We have a thread for OGS proverbs but not for discussing regular old Go sayings.
Sensei’s Library has a list of them here.
I thought I’d begin by giving my 4k-level opinion on some of them.
- The enemy’s key point is yours. This is often but not always the case. For instance, in the position below, Black is very interested in playing at A but White wouldn’t think of playing there directly. Instead, White would rather play at B or C. However, I think key point may have been given a more tactical application in this proverb.
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Play on the point of symmetry. This one seems to be wrong practically as much as it’s right. When rephrased as the less catchy Consider the point of symmetry, though, I think it has a lot more value. Even if the point of symmetry is only correct 25% of the time, that still makes it a good first candidate move.
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Beware of going back to patch up. This proverb warns the player not to enter sente-looking situations that are ultimately gote. I think, though, that it’s largely eclipsed by Don’t atari the cutting stone. It does also have some relation to avoiding over-early endgame, I suppose.
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People in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones. An instruction to avoid playing too aggressively from a weak position. A useful proverb that seems to become progressively more subtle to implement as one gets stronger.
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Respond to attachment with a hane. I’d want to reword this as Consider haneing against the attachment (and if it doesn’t work, you should probably extend).
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Hane on the head of two stones. Very useful and basic proverb. In some situations though, when the opponent has nearby strength, it can be more prudent to just extend.
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Beginners play atari. I found the proverb we were discussing in the other thread ^^ I have my doubts about how constructive this saying really is, actually, since atari appear even in quite basic joseki like Play Go at online-go.com! | OGS, as well as in any position with a ladder, and during a squeeze, etc. etc… not to mention how crucial atari are to life and death.
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The empty triangle is bad. This usually stands up, at least in kyu games.
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The one-point jump is never bad. This is all very well to say until you’ve reviewed many games featuring the “pre-peeped jump” or “emo jump” A → B, in which White can immediately push through at 口. It’s also not uncommon that the wedge is an issue, especially in running fights.
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Cutting right through a knight’s move is very big. I like to rephrase this as Don’t allow the ripped keima shape., but it’s the same useful advice.
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Don’t peep where you can cut. Basic, common, and useful proverb, especially in the range, say, 6–12k.
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Even a moron connects against a peep. Like with some other sayings, there is definitely a kernel of truth – a simple connection is usually the best response. But there’s no need to coat that kernel in such absolutist language. There are plenty of situations in which one can respond to a peep by pushing against the peeping stone, or by threatening a net, or by utilising leaning aji.
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Use contact moves for defence. Very useful. I prefer the more double-sided variant “A contact fight makes both groups stronger”, which relates to one of my own favourite sayings “Attaching is not attacking.”
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Never ignore a shoulderhit. I find this holds up well, at least at kyu level. The exception is mainly the opinion of stronger players looking at the games of weaker ones, identifying certain shoulderhits as being in a small area of the board and thus not being urgent to respond to. Perhaps “When shoulderhit, first consider responding.” would be more diplomatic, but I think a perfectly good kyu-level game can be played with rigorous application of the original proverb.
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The bamboo joint may be short of liberties. I’ve been noticing the truth of this one more lately. It refers to how there are two “imaginary liberties” inside the bamboo joint, neither of which actually exist if connection needs to be maintained, as the opponent can remove them both in sente by threatening to push through.
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Nets are better than ladders. This is intuitive: a ladder created bad aji elsewhere on the board; a net doesn’t. This is not to say that nets don’t have their own issues, of course.
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Approach / block on the wider side. This seems obvious and thus redundant. It’s distingushing which side is widest that is the issue – nobody intentionally focuses on what believe to be the less important area. I suppose the proverb is meant topographically, ie. referring to the literally widest side.
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Five liberties are needed for tactical stability. A very versatile proverb that I’ve got pretty good use out of. Consider the diagram below. In the first diagram, where Black has four liberties, White has the push and cut sequence. In the second, where Black has five, that possiblity no longer exists.
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Capture laddered stones at the earliest opportunity. This proverb really hinges on what “earliest opportunity” is taken to mean. If it refers to one’s next turn then I think it’s probably wrong more than it’s right. However, if you like to play solidly then it would definitely be worth application. A diluted form like “Be mindful of the ladder.” might be more useful to most players, though.
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Urgent points before big points. This is useful insofar as you distinguish the two terms. It can be argued that all urgent points are big points, and a little less convincingly that all big points are urgent. Essentialy it means “don’t rush off to a nice-looking spot when there’s still potential to be attacked or bullied in the area you’re leaving”, which I think is better expressed by “Don’t go fishing when your house is on fire.” That phrasing has started to grate on me, though, as I’ve heard it too often.
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Play away from thickness. Basic and useful. It relates to Redmond’s “proverb” that if you make a big mistake, you should continue by playing a long way away.
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Don’t use thickness to make territory. This is a very textured saying that depends greatly on what is considered “thickness” and what is considered “territory” in any specific position, and even the definition of that verb “use”. Overall it is moderately useful but not all that clear. It also appears as Don’t enclose your influence. I much prefer the following proverb, Make territory by attacking,, which has greater clarity.
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A ponnuki is worth thirty points. A proverb so famous that it inspired the “thirty-point ponnuki variant” on VGS. The number thirty seems pretty meaningless. The sentiment of the saying is that ponnuki are usually more valuable than the weak player thinks, which is true in certain positions (in which the ponnuki faces onto the centre or side) and false in others. A more accurate phrasing is A central ponnuki is worth thirty points.
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Make a fist before striking. ie. “fix your defects before attacking”. This is simiar to the glasshouse proverb, but more understandable in my opinion. The glasshouse saying requires the student to imagine an entire setting with some kind of conservatory or greenhouse – the fist saying is much more intuitive.
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_Feint to the east, attack in the west._This is useful until you internalise what a leaning attack is, after which you can refer to the technique by name rather than through a proverb.
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Rich men don’t pick quarrels. Meaning that when ahead one can afford to play slackly. This is one of the more controversial messages, which can be criticised from both competitive and didactic angles. I remember, I think, Fan Hui and Ke Jie commenting on its fallacy, with one of them remarking “Who would declare themselves rich?” Still, application of the proverb is an aid to a certain style of play, like that of Kobayashi who used his “manageable slackness” style to great success.
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Play kikashi before living. A good message, but it does of course rely on those kikashi not being aji keshi or a needless wastage of ko threats.
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Reduction is worth as much as invasion. Crucial at my level. I think a big part of the 1–5k improvement path is learning not to underestimate reduction or overestimate invasions which will probably live small.
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Big dragons never die. Nonsense! Big dragons die very often in games at any level. I’ve seen them die many times in TPK games, DDK games, in SDK games including my own, in dan games on OGS and on Twitch, in professional games on Fox or Tygem, and even in top professional tournaments. What’s more, this proverb seems to encourage the student not to even attempt to kill those large eyeless groups, which promotes a stunted understanding of life and death. This is the only one I soundly disagree with.
