Game of the Gods by Paolo Maurensig

Author:Paolo Maurensig
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: World Editions
Published: 2020-05-11T11:14:44+00:00

-

11

I must say that after a certain period of time spent in Europe, my vision of the game had become corrupted; it had lost the sacredness that characterized chaturanga. The magical aura that surrounded it had vanished entirely. Playing chess, checkers, backgammon, or any other game did not make much difference. Whereas in India a chaturanga master maintained a hieratic pose throughout the game, as if rapt in prayer or meditation, here they played without the slightest demeanor: the players fidgeted in their chairs, stood up to stand behind me, yawned, coughed, puffed pestilential cigar smoke in my face, drank whiskey, ate ham sandwiches and belched—perhaps imagining that I was Muslim and that the smell of pork would disturb my concentration. They dropped curls of ash on the chessboard and then blew them on me, or else they stared at me insistently just to make me uncomfortable. There was even one player who halfway through the game took out his glass eye and placed it casually beside the chessboard. What I perceived on the faces of my opponents, as soon as they found themselves in difficulty, was not surprise, but a kind of restrained contempt, a wary disbelief that presumed the execution of some diabolical trick on my part. Then, too, the fact that my stony face did not show the slightest emotion ended up irritating them: How dare I assume such an attitude of blatant arrogance? How was I able to endure every provocation with that perpetual little smirk on my lips? None of them bothered to conceal their hostility towards me. I could hardly accept such behavior, when in our country the opponent was sacred and had to be accommodated in every way. Indeed, my father had taught me that a game must be played on equal terms. To disturb the opponent’s concentration was tantamount to cheating, and a victory obtained by improper means was spurious and unworthy, a stain that would weigh on the winner’s conscience more than defeat would weigh on the loser’s pride. Our religion teaches us that concealed behind every victory or defeat on the chessboard—and in life as well—lies the indelible design of karma: a victory can be a form of consolation, of encouragement, while a defeat can be read as an incitement or a warning. But, even knowing that everything has already been written, it would be a disaster to passively accept one’s destiny; it would be a mistake to desist, to give up at the first difficulty, consoling ourselves with the thought that, after all, it’s pointless to rebel … We must apply ourselves to every undertaking as if our very life depended on the outcome of the game, because what matters is not the victory in and of itself, but rather the firm commitment we put into achieving it. What matters ultimately is what we accomplish ourselves, and it is only in this way that destiny can be changed while we are still alive. We can elude karma’s design,

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.