Thoughts on Anish and Sandipan master classes ( Pro Chess Diaries)

Grandmasters Anish Giri and Sandipan Chanda were giving a master class on the same day (Oct 21st, 2022) in Pro Chess, and I was given an opportunity to witness the interesting Chess Lessons being discussed in those sessions. Any Chess fan would of course be thrilled with it and my experience was absolutely the same too! In this article I share a few interesting positions and thought processes I encountered from these sessions, for the readers to get a view of the nuggets of wisdom that were unearthed there. 

You are your own enemy

 "आत्मैव ह्यात्मनो बन्धुरात्मैव रिपुरात्मन:"

-Bhagavath Geetha

The above quote from the Bhagavath Geetha (the dialogue between Lord Krishna and Arjuna) means that the Self is one's own and friend and that it is also its own enemy! The verse is quite philosophical and has its own deeper meanings for the seeker. However, my idea of quoting the above statement was not with that in mind. From the perspective of a chess, can a unit of our army be a friend or foe depending on the circumstances? From experience we know that the answer is a resounding, yes!