Encyclopaedia of Classical Go Problems: Volume 1 Paperback – May 11, 2024

This is the first volume of a projected series of problems from the Chinese classics. Japan and Korea often rehashed these works - as did the Chinese themselves, of course - but their main sources were the Chinese editions that go back a millennium.This definitive volume goes back to the earliest two known collections, the Wangyou Qingle Ji (Carefree & Innocent Pastime Collection) and the truly seminal Xuanxuan Qiqing (Gateway to All Marvels). It thus covers over 500 problems. Each one was named. Many are beautiful, difficult, highly practical - or all three - and the names enhance the interest, understanding and memorisation of the problems, while also usually offering a clue to the solutions. The name of every problem is explained here, often in some depth (so giving a unique insight into Chinese history and culture). The fullest possible solutions (over 1,400 solution diagrams) are given on the basis of several centuries of opinions by the most expert players of the time in China, Japan and Korea. Sometimes the professionals differ among themselves! Some problems have over twenty variation diagrams. All known variants of each problem are given. This sometimes means a different solution to each alternative! This, too, promotes deep understanding of the problems.In addition, all the various themes that occur in the problems (many newly identified here) are listed and explained in the solutions and in an overall thematic index. The combination of names, interesting allusions, and identifiable themes ensures that reader can absorb both the shapes and the dynamic principles inherent in each problem. The large number of variants further allows the reader to understand the wrinkles within each theme.The modern Chinese characters for each name are given and indexed, but a character-conversion appendix is also provided for those familiar with Japanese or Korean. There is also a very comprehensive general index to the text.The book is in a large "coffee-table" format, and employs colour. Read more