"Chess and Islam were born about the same time β chess out of a regional need to understand complex new ideas, and Islam out of the Arabs' desperate need for discipline, intelligence, and meaningful community. [...] In Persia the Muslims encountered chatrang, the bloodless new war game which relied solely on players' intellect. Chess and Islam complemented each other well: a new game of war, wits and self-control serving a spirited new religious and social movement organized around the same values."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
David Shenk, The Immortal Game: A History of Chess (2006), "House of Wisdom"
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Chess
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Chess
40 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Chess β
Related Quotes
"Chess is so characteristic a product of the legacy of Islam that it deserves more than a passing mention. Modern Euroβ¦"
"It is an abomination to play at chess, dice, or any other game, for if anything be staked it is gambling (maisir), whβ¦"
"Life's too short for chess."
"A friendship across sectarian lines is not a common phenomenon, in his experience. In the past, it has struck him thaβ¦"
"Amberley excelled at chess—one mark, Watson, of a scheming mind."
"Fancy what a game at chess would be if all the chessmen had passions and intellects, more or less small and cunning; β¦"
"In my opinion, the King's Gambit is busted. It loses by force."
"I have played over several hundred of Morphy's games, and am continually surprised and entertained by his ingenuity."
"You know I'm finished with the old chess because it's all just a lot of book and memorization you know."
"That which has reached us from the discoveries of their clear thinking and the marvels of their inventions is the (gaβ¦"