Kajiwara's Go Philosophy: The 'Nothing Style'

What makes Kajiwara's Go style, known as the "Nothing Style" or "Living Go," so unique? Let's dive into Kajiwara's approach to Go during his peak. Matthew will tell you about the philosophy behind Kajiwara's strategic decisions, his emphasis on responding to the opponent's moves, and his belief in leaving everything on the board.
This lesson is taken from the course:
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[@nobetternickname]

'you're not playing to win, you're playing Go, man' maybe I have more in common with Kajiwara than I thought

[@GoMagic]

That's what we should all remember - not just to play, but to try to do our best on the board.

[@e4jasperi]

«You’re playing go, man!» is such a great sentiment!

[@GoMagic]

I can't help but agree.

[@myboy_]

Matthew I really enjoy your lessons, always ready to see more from you

[@GoMagic]

🥰

[@maximelesage399]

Yes ! Keep on quality content !

[@GoMagic]

Will do. Thank you!

[@john12168]

I really enjoyed this. Thank you so much for making this content!

[@GoMagic]

Thanks for watching and enjoying our content!

[@Lormax-wm6vw]

Go is not " just Go" ... Go is the universe your hand. Great video, sensei.

[@GoMagic]

♥

[@ThomasMeliWellness]

In any game or system where there multiple ways to reach a goal (strategies), style can simply refer to the preference(s) the system has to achieve that goal in different circumstances. There is no need to sequester the notion of "style" to just humans because we have an intuitive and felt-sense of what strategies we tend to choose.

[@Batman2006100]

Gracias. Muy instructivo. Saludos desde Argentina

[@GoMagic]

😊

[@sorenwestwood1514]

I meditated on the idea "style was the way you feel like playing" for about 30 minutes, and found a very large Mental-Moyo when I let the question sit.

[@GoMagic]

Keep exploring and enjoying these mental landscapes. Who knows what other insights you might uncover!

[@Oblomovrising]

Nice video !

[@МаксПокат]

This bro went full Theaetetus

[@GoMagic]

😄

[@kissaku]

Just a thought; Isn't pushing down a 3-3 stone there kind of reactive in style. A bit aggressive and proactive too to go for it immediately. I kind of understand what you are saying here but that "nothing" style is pretty hard to categorize. Just about any move you coud just say "I'm playing Go, man." :D

[@GoMagic]

Well, pushing down on a 3-3 stone can also be seen as aggressive and proactive, especially if you're aiming to secure territory or unsettle your opponent's position right from the start. And yes, I totally get the "nothing" style being hard to categorize, we're on the same page here. Sometimes you just have to shrug and say, "I'm playing Go, man." 😄

[@Beyondhumanlimits1]

It’s a shame you spent half the video without actually showing it and discussing about it.

[@GoMagic]

Thanks for the feedback!

[@infinityslibrarian5969]

You know nothing about Kajiwara, Jon Snow. When Kajiwara is in a cup he becomes the cup, when Kajiwara is in a bottle he becomes the bottle. Be like Kajiwara my friend. Be formless. Empty your mind

[@MasterRikiki-l7u]

Did you set the goban in the wrong direction ?

[@GoMagic]

It's the ancient and elusive technique of Reverse Goban! It adds a twist to Go strategy 😁

[@MS-ee3ie]

The Seinfeld style, it's a Go about nothing.

[@GoMagic]

Go really is a game about nothing and everything at the same time. 👍

[@fccwebmeister]

Thank you for the video. Because the camera board view being sideways, ( for example at 2:19 ), somewhat to my surprise, I found this was very disconcerting and did not finish the video for this reason. In case anyone thinks this is a silly comment I will point out the 'squares' are never true squares but oblongs. When the players sit down with the board positioned correctly, the paralax view changes them into squares. I am quite surprised that this view makes me uncomfortable!

[@GoMagic]

Yes, we know about the problem =(

[@fccwebmeister]

@@GoMagic Thank you for your reply. Now I have noticed something else! The two tone board when seen from this exact side I can suddenly see a beautiful picture! There is some land at the bottom dissapearing into the horizon and a beautiful cloud formation centered at the golden ratio point top right. An amazing 3D feel and a great choice for this Zenish game being shown. Even a little detail bottom left giving further perspective and a mirror to the clouds. I watched the video in the event. Brilliant, many thanks.

[@GoMagic]

A problem unexpectedly transforms into a benefit. 🤩

[@shufandurin1229]

so... AI style is quite similar with the nothing style then?

[@GoMagic]

Probably =)

[@helxis]

You never hear people discuss Chess players like this. They all just.. play Chess.

[@GoMagic]

😀

[@rodgersvalkyrie2379]

I couldn't resist and just typed in chess player styles.... I wish I had your confidence when you said that statement. Like, chess players like to argue over positional vs tactical styles and book patterns vs intuition styles more than go players do.

[@helxis]

@@rodgersvalkyrie2379 Very binary approaches to "style". And no chess player would ever forgo winning for the sake of the beauty of the game or to maintain the sanctity of their "style". The mentality behind playing chess is holistically different from that in Go. The combination of a 19x19 board and the position starting empty means there is vastly more room for personal expression. In chess, it is rote calculation -- beginning to end. In Go, one has many, many opportunities to choose branching paths based solely on feel or preference. Even when I coach beginners in Go, I frequently say things like "I can't call this particular move good or bad. It seems reasonable, and I don't want to stifle your creativity here if you have a goal in mind". That never occurs in chess. Almost every move in binary: the exact right move, or not accomplishing enough. Chess players strive for perfection. Go players know they can't achieve it and strive for something else instead.

[@e4jasperi]

Exactly, there are many playing styles in chess also. @rodgers