My Initial Enlightenment
I used to be terrible at chess. I used to lose game after game after game. I tried various strategies to escape this everlasting rut; I would attempt moving my knights before my bishops, try making walls with my pawns, and even tried to dominate the board with only my queen. However, none of these approaches resulted in much success. After enduring a substantial amount of failure, I began to question not only my tactics, but also the tactics behind my tactics.
I began to realize that my game plans had no plan, and that in turn, each of my moves was meaningless. After discovering why I was losing, I began to study the game. As a true student of chess, I began to learn that victory did not come through mindlessly stockpiling my opponent's pieces; it came through setting goals and working towards them.
After thousands of games, and much advice, I am now considered a competitive chess player. I no longer simply take a rook when able, or trade pawns without the barter having a purpose. I create goals - either to protect my king, trap my opponents queen, attack the weak square, or any other goal that can have a large impact on the game. After outlining those desires I then execute moves that coincide with at least one of them.
When I began playing with a plan and stopped following finite impulses, I started winning. With victory came curiosity. After my wins began to outweigh my losses I began breaking down the nature of my success. I have realized that my approach to chess is the same approach a person must take if they desire to lead an enlightened life.
From Pieces to People
When broken-down, my chess evolution is easily noticeable: I used to be the type of player who played in the present. When I had the opportunity to take a piece, I took it; without even calculating how the move would affect the future. I made moves that I would eventually regret. My thoughtless moves had no objective. They were simply terminal moves whose purpose was obvious.
After studying the game, I began to see and eventually fixed the flaws in my method. I now create goals that help me win; and every move I make is in accordance with one of these goals. My moves now have purpose; they no longer have a terminal affect on the game, but rather an eternal one. Their affect is everlasting because regardless of their immediate impact, my moves help me achieve goals that remain constant throughout the game.
Ironically the model for a game of chess is the same as a mode of being that leads to enlightenment. The two mindsets with which I have approached chess represent unenlightened and enlightened lives. They also represent the path one must take to obtain enlightenment.
When instantiated within the real world, my chess progression can be translated as such: The unsuccessful chess player represents a person who does not work towards eternal goals.
For example, a person can have eternal goals of being healthy; leading a creative life; creating a good life for their children (when a person has them); all three, or any other insatiable desire. The unenlightened person might pretend to have these goals, but does not live accordingly.
Rather than having objectives, this person goes through life making impulse decisions that have no connection with what this person truly wants. This person follows terminal desires, which are satisfied upon completion. The actions of this person have no deeper purpose than what is evident. These meaningless actions therefore create a meaningless life. Likewise, the model for an enlightened life follows the same logic as the model for a successful approach to chess.
The enlightened person sets goals that will never change, such as: leading a healthy or creative lifestyle; being successful; and even more specific eternal goals, such as becoming the best athlete, artist, or even mathematician possible. These desires are what I consider to be eternal. They are eternal because they are never satisfied. For example, the eternal desire of leading a healthy lifestyle is not terminated after a person exercises or eats a healthy meal.
Even after acting in accordance with an eternal desire, a person still maintains the desire. Being healthy for a day or a week does not satiate a person's eternal desire to be that way.
The Testing and Implementation of Eternal Desires
The enlightened person can follow any schema of eternal desires, with only one restriction - the pursuit of their eternal desire must also pursue the eternal desire of happiness. Eternal happiness is not only a goal, but also a test; an eternal desire is valid when a person can honestly answer yes, when asked, will the eternal pursuit of this desire make me happy? In an essay by Aristotle entitled The Aim of Man, it is proven that every action leads to happiness, but that happiness does not lead to any action, therefore making happiness the point of life.
