Gandhi and the chess set
May 16, 2023
In May 1893, young Gandhi was on a voyage to Africa. Compared to the later decades of his life, where his time was tightly regimented, the month aboard the ship allowed Gandhi the freedom to relax. There were no exams to study for, no information to digest on behalf of the client he had yet to meet in person. I can’t help but wonder how he looked back on this trip in later years. Did he know that it was the calm before the storm?
Since local dignitaries had purchased all the ship’s first class berths, Gandhi found himself sharing the captain’s quarters, taking a bunk often used by a crewman. The captain, it seems, had recently learn how to play chess, and was delighted to teach Gandhi the game. He wrote in his Autobiography:
The Captain and I had become great friends…. The Captain was fond of playng chess, but as he was quite the novice, he wanted one still more of a beginner as his partner, and so he invited me. I had heard a lot about the game, but had never tried my hand at it. Players used to say that this was a game in which there was plenty of scope for the excercise of one’s intelligence. The Captain… found me a good pupil as I had unlimited patience.
In later years, Gandhi’s tactics and strategies would inspire, but on the chess board, he was unsuccessful in finding any advantage. “Each time I was the loser,” he recalled. The captain was a good sport, and more than happy to play as often as the young barrister was willing. I’m a fan of chess myself, and I think I would rapidly get bored playing against someone who lost every game.
Other than this voyage and the return trip in 1896, where he played an hour a day with an English officer, Gandhi never showed any further interest in chess.
Gandhi may have recognized how the rules of chess corresponded to the stated ideals of the British Empire. Black and white pieces had equal freedom of movement; the laws applied to all. However, after arriving May 24, Gandhi quickly learned that those were not the rules in South Africa. He would soon dedicate himself to fighting the injustice of color prejudice.
When you play games with young or inexperienced people, do you ever let them win? Why or why not?