Is chess good for the mind or does it lead to insanity?

Hey Changu, how about Tylenol?

The only chess I know of that has been seriously accussed of causing insanity is blindfold chess which I heard was banned in Russia after several grandmasters ended up in asylums. With Fischer about half the people seem to say that high level chess drove him nuts and the other half saying that it is what kept him sane for most his life.  Who knows but i would side with the second opinion. On the other hand i love the bumper sticker which says "Normal People Scare Me", so maybe we are all a little nuts here,and better for it.

I think the best insanity which a chess champion had was the version which Wilhelm Steinitz had. He claimed he could play God a game a chess, spot him a pawn and still win. You have to admire that kind of confidence!

Cant remember that from the top of my head

It's starnge how often this sort of question comes up.  I'd have never guessed to see people questioning whether or not chess is bad for someone.

The weird-manner the knight moves in drove Steinitz to insanity.

The similar manner with which my golf shots move drive me to insanity.

Was troublesome for me in subbuteo.

both if you become a total addict it may drive you to  drunk bobby ficher

I dream of rooks, freaks me out 

If you would like to understand how it feels, or feel what happens to those GM's who lose themselves in chess, try this. It will only take about one-half hour (or so) of your time.

You need to be able to meditate a little, but everyone should be able to accomplish this exercise to some extent. I personally found this post exercise uncomfortable, but ymmv. I wanted to try and understand the concept of infinity, and this is how I did it.

You will be able to approach infinity, or as much of infinity as you are able to comprehend, which I think is not much of the total. Find a quiet place, that is not overly bright. Find a relaxed position with your eyes closed and your breathing relaxed. Once you have been in position and relaxed for about a minute start this exercise:

1. Pick a spot in your minds eye a short distance from where you are. Move to that spot and look back and see yourself where you were, and you body is.

2. After you are comfotable with that view, pick another spot farther away, say twice as far. Move yourself to that spot and look back at where you left your body.

3. Pick a third spot twice the distance of your last move. Look back and see if you are still visible. You may become hard to see way back there where you left yourself. If so you are making good progress. At this point, you should change your focus to looking forward. Move to a place twice the distance from your last move.

4. Keep moving farther and farther until there is no place on the earth you can move yourself to because the distance is now too great.

When this happens move your spot into space. Double the distance every time, looking back to the earth to see how small it is becoming.

5. Once you can no longer see the earth, use the sun as a reference and keep moving outwards. Once you can no longer see the sun, use the galaxy.

Once you are past all the galaxies you can imagine, it gets shakey because there is no longer a reference point to go to or leave from. For me there was only emptiness at this point.

Repeat the movements outward until until you are no longer comfortable doing it. For me, I felt so far out there in nothingness beyond everything I could imagine, I was not sure I could find my way back. there was no light, no stars, no me, nothing. 

I felt like I had gone so far there was no going back because I did not know where I was, or where I should return to. I was so far out in nothingness it would be easy to get lost, or give up, and never return. The trip back (to me or my body) seemed to take a long, long time.

I clearly understood what happens to people who become too absorbed and lose themselves in chess, or otherwise cease to function and connect with normal reality.

It was not a good feeling. I never tried this a second time as it was disturbing to me for some weeks afterward.

You could also start at 1 and begin counting up until you reach infinity.

How's a lunatic expected to remember all that?

Would have to write these instructions in biro all over his torso.

The joke among the physicists is that the Super-String folks are all "tied up in knots."

It ain't PHYSICS, it's just MATH on steroids.

Call in @Kingpatzer, he'll clear up this mess.

I really wish people would back up what they say with some hard evidence. Here's what I've found:

Chess is an excellent educational tool: http://www.auschess.org.au/articles/chessmind.htm

http://www.chesscorps.org/chess_benefits/education.asp

http://www.psmcd.net/otherfiles/BenefitsOfChessInEdScreen2.pdf

The educational benefits of chess are manifold and do not only apply to young children. PLaying chess helps improve concentration, teaches one how to plan and exercise forsight, increases memory, improves mathematical and problem solving skills, and can lead to unexpected benefits such as improved reading skills!

Chess is useful is preventing dementia in old age:

http://www.healthylivingnyc.com/article/9

Listen to him,he speaks the truth.

• AndyClifton

  God, that opinion irritates me!

• TheGrobe

  It's OK, it's mutual -- genius has little patience for mediocrity.

• nameno1had

• I honestly think that true genius is so understanding that, it is patient with slower people and also that, some less intelligent people not only recognize genius and appreciate it for it's sheer magnificence but, also do so because they can't help but to laud what they themselves wish they could be and do...

• I guess it is possible to be intellectually a genius, but emotionally a moron...

"The joke among the physicists is that the Super-String folks are all "tied up in knots."

It's an old joke now, but I was told, "Watch out for Quantum Ducks, quark, quark."

This is how I feel after a game of chess.