NAME:OM SINGH

CLASS: I MSC PHYSICS

REGISTRATION NUMBER:22056

A GAME OF CHESS AGAINST A MIND READER

I was running down the college Hall with my chess board when I suddenly
bumped into a stranger. He had gloomy eyes and Mexican beard, he wore a
cowboy hat, a black coat and an old pant. He looked at me and asked if I would
like to play a game of chess with him. I hesitated thinking, 'I have to meet my
friend at 5 pm, who had requested me to teach him chess'. The stranger looked at
me, smiled and said "It's still 4 pm, you can teach me first". I was startled. I sat
against him and asked who he was. He replied in a mysterious tone "Oh! me, I am
just a challenger, who challenges one to beat his own mind".
I was a bit scared and confused but still excited to play against this
challenger. So we began, I wanted him to start so I stretched my hand towards
black pieces but he had already turned the board with white pieces facing
towards me. I thought fine, let me try the Scholar mate, a 4-move checkmate
where we position our queen and knight in such a way that the king is trapped
and we inflict the checkmate. I made my first move by moving my pawn from e2
to e4 in front of my king to provide queen a path diagonally. He immediately
moved his pawn from d7 to d6 making space for his king to escape and thus
avoiding me to inflict my 4-move checkmate in any way. I understood that my
opponent was no ordinary challenger, he was a mind reader.
Now I had to plan without thinking but it seemed foolish, absurd and stupid.
Heedlessly I moved my knight from b1 to c3, riding my horse into the open
battlefield, where the enemy was my own mind. The stranger looked at me and
played a similar move knight b8 to c6.I had the plan to capture his rook in two
steps using my knight at c3.But with his pawn at d6, the one which allowed 'his
majesty' to escape was blocking me to provide guard to my knight from black
queen. I saw a clear path to give check by moving my bishop at f1 to b5 and I did.
His horse at c6, diagonal to my bishop was immobilized. He was quick to bring his
bishop from c8 to d7.I noticed, he himself had blocked the king's escape path that
he had initially created. I kept myself calm and my mind still, and then went back
to ‘4 move checkmate plan' not letting even my mind hear it.
I closed my eyes and remembered my Guru's quote "Mind is like a mad
monkey and you should not surrender to it. You should control the mind and
keep it under your direction".
I started to bluff my mind saying I need to save my bishop at b5.Challenger
immediately moved pawn a7 to a6 threatening to capture my bishop. Then I
started thinking of many patterns to save my bishop but kept my hand on my
knight at f3 and moved it to g6.Not letting him know that I have already played
my second move through knight. I could see that challenger had smirk on his face,
he had thought all those calculations and pattern had led me to the blunder to
leave my bishop an easy target. He captured my bishop. I had to distract him to
play my 3rd move to bring my queen at f3.Thus my mind developed an idea to use
my knight at c3 to capture his pawn in next move and then move it to c7 to give
check and get his rook. Suddenly he started giggling, I knew what I thought was
foolish. But I had to act it within my mind to distract him of my real purpose. He
had waded through my mind and he knew the moves were foolish. The black
queen at d8 would easily capture my knight. My mind had amused him by its
stupidity. Then I let my mind flow. It thought to bring my queen at d1 to g4 in 2
moves to give support to knight diagonally at c7. But to do this it had to first get
rid of challenger’s pawn at d6 which would block my queen.So I moved my pawn
from c2 to c4, diagonal to his pawn to deviate his pawn’s path.He was following
my mind. He moved pawn in front of king from e7 to e5 shattering my plan to
provide guard to knight. I still had to distract him. I could see my knight at g5 in
danger to be captured by black queen at d8 diagonally, so I gave it support
moving pawn h2 to h4, in front of my right rook. He moved his knight from c6 to
b4 mocking my previous knight move. I knew what I was doing, keeping myself
absolutely silent. I sacrificed my rook by moving it from h1 to h3 right in diagonal
to his bishop. Smiling at my present innocence he captured my rook at h3 using
his bishop. I moved my queen to f3 telling in my mind I had done it to capture his
bishop. But only my inner consciousness knew it was my third move. He
chuckled, then paused. I became nervous but I kept my mind still. Then he started
laughing at my foolishness of not using my pawn at g2 just diagonal to his bishop
to capture it. Then in his amusement he said “kid let me show you how to check
and capture the rook". He moved his knight from b4 to c2, giving check and in
next move captured my rook at a1.
Mind is a mad monkey and swami had taught us to control it. So I let the
mind reader chase the monkey, not letting my inner consciousness get affected
by the mind.
Finally, I inflicted my fourth move. I moved my queen at f3 to f7, giving
check to his king. Surrounded by his own pieces unable to escape he was trapped
into a net following the mind, the mad monkey. Thus, it was a checkmate and the
mind reader was defeated.