It’s a chequered board of nights and days
Where Destiny with men for pieces plays,
Hither and thither ,moves ,mates and slays
And one by one ,back in the closet lays.
—Rubiyat , by Omar Khayam, Translated by Fitzgerald.
It’s an amazing parelel between a game of chess and Life.
Opening is sedate, structured and provides the base for a good game.
The middle game is full of excitement, gambits, traps , pitfalls and innumerable options . Every such option exercised would have profound implications not just in the middle game but in the whole game .
In the end game, the board is clear, pieces are few and options are limitted. The King that had been well protected by the resources available is generally out in the open fighting by himself with limitted mobility .
Time is in plenty, moves may be slow but have to be precise. There is hardly any scope for gambits.
…and a well played game ends in victory with the promotion of pawns to queens to take over the fight.
Vaguely understood as you didn’t succeed in teaching me to play chess at school!
How come you made this blog short and sweet?
Random thoughts don’t need to be understood..
About ‘short and sweet’, I published it from a mobile phone; away from laptop for quite a while.
Beautifully penned Murali and so timely. You think on your feet and put the issue so eloquently in short, crisp way. More power to your pen.