Editing Shatranj

{{short description|Old form of chess}}
{{for-multi|the 1969 film|Shatranj (1969 film)|the 1993 film|Shatranj (1993 film)}}
[[File:Bayasanghori Shahnameh 5 (cropped).jpg|thumb|Two shatranj players in a detail from a [[Persian miniature painting]] of [[Shahname|Bayasanghori Shahname]] made in 1430]]

'''Shatranj''' ({{langx|ar|شطرنج}}, {{IPA|ar|ʃaˈtˤrandʒ|pron}}; from [[Middle Persian]] {{Transliteration|fa|chatrang}}) is an old form of [[chess]], as played in the [[Sasanian Empire]]. Its origins lie in the South Asian game of [[chaturanga]].<ref>{{cite web |author=Jean-Louis Cazaux |url=http://history.chess.free.fr/shatranj.htm |title=Shatranj |publisher=History.chess.free.fr |date=2012-04-20 |access-date=2013-11-23}}</ref> Modern [[chess]] gradually developed from this game, as it was introduced to Europe by contacts in Muslim [[Al-Andalus]] (modern Spain) and in [[Sicily]] in the 10th century. In modern [[Persian language|Persian]], the term is also used as the translation of chess.<ref>{{Cite web |title=شطرنج، دیکشنری آبادیس |url=https://abadis.ir/fatofa/%D8%B4%D8%B7%D8%B1%D9%86%D8%AC/ |language=fa}}</ref>

==Etymology and origins==
The name of the game in adjoining countries appears to be derived from chaturanga - chatrang in Persian, shatranj in Arabic, Chanderaki in Tibetan are examples. This suggests that the game, as well as its name, came from India. Also, as will appear, it was believed in Persia that the game arrived there from India.<ref name="ANCIENT">"The name of the game in adjoining countries appears to be derived from chaturanga - chatrang in Persian, shatranj in Arabic, chanderaki in Tibetan are examples. This suggests that the game, as well as its name, came from India. Also, as will appear, it was believed in Persia that the game arrived there from India."{{Cite book |url=http://archive.org/details/ancientboardgame0000unse |page=18|title=Ancient board games in perspective : papers from the 1990 British Museum colloquium, with additional contributions |date=2007 |location=London |publisher= British Museum Press |isbn=978-0-7141-1153-7}}</ref> The Persian word {{Transliteration|fa|shatranj}} ultimately derives from [[Sanskrit]] ({{langx|sa|चतुरङ्ग}}; {{IAST|caturaṅga}}) ({{IAST|catuḥ}}: "four"; {{IAST|anga}}: "arm"), referring to the game of the same name: [[Chaturanga]]. In [[Middle Persian]] the word appears as {{Transliteration|fa|chatrang}}, with the 'u' lost due to [[syncope (phonetics)|syncope]] and the 'a' lost to [[apocope]], such as in the title of the text {{Transliteration|fa|Mâdayân î chatrang}} ("Book of Chess") from the 7th century [[AD]].

[[File:Chaturanga Chess Set.jpg|thumb|Antique North Indian Mughul shatranj chess set made from sandalwood.]]

The [[Kar-Namag i Ardashir i Pabagan]] refers to [[Ardashir I]] as a master of the game: "By the help of Providence, Ardeshir became more victorious and warlike than all, on the polo and the riding-ground, at Chatrang and Vine-Artakhshir,{{efn|''Vine-Artakhsir'' refers to the game later known as [[Nard (game)|Nard]].}} and in several other arts."<ref>{{cite web |title=The Karnamik-I-Ardashir, or The Records of Ardashir |url=http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/ardashir.html }}</ref> However, ''Karnamak'' contains many fables and legends, and this only establishes the popularity of chatrang at the time of its composition.{{sfn|Murray|1913}}

<gallery mode="nolines" widths="200">
File:Persianmss14thCambassadorfromIndiabroughtchesstoPersianCourt.jpg|[[Persia]]n manuscript from the 14th century describing how an ambassador from [[India]] brought chess to the [[Persia]]n court
File:A treatise on chess 2.jpg|Indian ambassador, probably sent by the [[Maukhari]] King [[Śarvavarman]] of [[Kannauj]], introducing chess to the Persian court of [[Khosrow I]].<ref name="ME">{{cite book |last1=Eder |first1=Manfred A. J. |title=South Asian Archaeology 2007 Proceedings of the 19th Meeting of the European Association of South Asian Archaeology in Ravenna, Italy, July 2007, Volume II |date=2010 |publisher=Archaeopress Archaeology |isbn=978-1-4073-0674-2 |page=69 |url=http://history.chess.free.fr/papers/Eder%202007-2.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160414233414/http://history.chess.free.fr/papers/Eder%202007-2.pdf |archive-date=2016-04-14 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Bakker |first1=Hans T. |author-link=Hans T. Bakker|title=The Huns in Central and South Asia. How Two Centuries of War against Nomadic Invaders from the Steps are Concluded by a Game of Chess between the Kings of India and Iran |date=2017 |url=https://www.academia.edu/34156496}}</ref>
File:Shams ud-Din Tabriz 1502-1504 BNF Paris.jpg|[[Shams Tabrizi|Shams-e-Tabrīzī]] as portrayed in a 1500 painting in a page of a copy of [[Rumi]]'s [[Rumi ghazal 163|poem dedicated to Shams]].
File:Radha-Krishna chess.jpg|[[Krishna]] and [[Radha]] playing [[chaturanga]] on an 8×8 Oshtapata board
</gallery>
[[File:Chess Set MET DP170393.jpg|thumb|[[Iran]]ian shatranj set, glazed [[fritware]], 12th century [[Nishapur]] ([[New York Metropolitan Museum of Art]])]]
During the reign of the later [[Sassanid]] king [[Khosrau I]] (531–579), a gift from an Indian king (possibly a [[Maukhari Dynasty]] king of [[Kannauj]])<ref>{{cite web |title=The Enigma of Chess birth: The Old Texts: 6th, 7th and 8th centuries |author=Jean-Louis Cazaux |url=http://history.chess.free.fr/sources.htm |date=12 March 2004 |access-date=14 July 2007}}</ref> included a chess game with sixteen pieces of [[emerald]] and sixteen of [[ruby]] (green vs. red).{{sfn|Murray|1913}} The game came with a challenge which was successfully resolved by Khosrau's courtiers.  This incident, originally referred to in the {{Transliteration|fa|Mâdayân î chatrang}} (c. 620 AD), is also mentioned in [[Ferdowsi]]'s [[Shahnameh|Shahnama]] (c. 1010).

The rules of chaturanga seen in India today have enormous variation, but all involve four branches (''angas'') of the army: the horse (knight), the elephant (bishop), the chariot (rook) and the foot soldier (pawn), played on an 8×8 board.  Shatranj adapted much of the same rules as chaturanga, and also the basic 16-piece structure.  There is also a larger 10×11 board derivative; the 14th-century [[Tamerlane chess]], or {{Transliteration|fa|shatranj kamil}} (perfect chess), with a slightly different piece structure.{{citation needed|date=December 2023}}

In some later variants the darker squares were engraved.  The game spread Westwards after the [[Islamic conquest of Persia]] and a considerable body of literature on game tactics and strategy was produced from the 8th century onwards.{{citation needed|date=December 2023}}

In early Indian chaturanga ({{abbr|c.|circa}} 500–700), the king could be {{chessgloss|captured}} and this ended the game. Persian shatranj (c. 700–800) introduced the idea of warning that the king was under attack (announcing ''check'' in modern terminology).  This was done to avoid the early and accidental end of a game.  Later the Persians added the additional rule that a king could not be moved into check or left in check. As a result, the king could not be captured,<ref name=dav22>{{Citation|last=Davidson|first=Henry|year=1949|title=A Short History of Chess|publisher=McKay|isbn= 0-679-14550-8}} (1981 paperback)*{{Citation|last=Emms|first=John|author-link=John Emms (chessmaster)|year=2004|title=Starting Out: Minor Piece Endgames|publisher=[[Everyman Chess]]|isbn= 1-85744-359-4|page=22}}</ref> and [[checkmate]] was the only decisive way of ending a game.<ref name=dav6364>{{Citation|last=Davidson|first=Henry|year=1949|title=A Short History of Chess|publisher=McKay|isbn= 0-679-14550-8}} (1981 paperback)*{{Citation|last=Emms|first=John|author-link=John Emms (chessmaster)|year=2004|title=Starting Out: Minor Piece Endgames|publisher=[[Everyman Chess]]|isbn= 1-85744-359-4|pages=63–64}}</ref>

With the spread of Islam, chess diffused into the [[Maghreb]] and then to [[Al-Andalus|Andalusian]] Spain.  During the [[Islamic empires in India|Islamic conquest of India]] (c. 12th century), some forms came back to India as well, as evidenced in the North Indian term ''māt'' (mate, derivative from [[Persian language|Persian]] {{Transliteration|fa|māt}}) or the [[Bengali language|Bengali]] {{Transliteration|bn|borey}} (pawn, presumed derived from the [[Arabic language|Arabic]] {{Transliteration|ar|baidaq}}).<ref>{{cite web |title=Indian Chess Sets |author=Jean-Louis Cazaux |url=http://history.chess.free.fr/india.htm |date=16 June 2006 |access-date=14 July 2007}}</ref> Over the following centuries, chess became popular in Europe, eventually giving rise to modern chess.{{citation needed|date=December 2023}}

==Rules==
{{Chaturanga diagram
 |tright
 |
 |rd|nd|bd|kd|qd|bd|nd|rd
 |pd|pd|pd|pd|pd|pd|pd|pd
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  
 |pl|pl|pl|pl|pl|pl|pl|pl
 |rl|nl|bl|kl|ql|bl|nl|rl
 |Shatranj starting setup
}}
The initial setup in shatranj was essentially the same as in modern chess; however, the position of the white shah (king), on the right or left side was not fixed. Either the arrangement as in modern chess or as shown in the diagram were possible. In either case, the white and black shāh would be on the same file. The game was played with these pieces:
{| class="toccolours" style="float:left; margin-left:15px;"
|-
! colspan="2" style="background:#ccf;"| Shatranj pieces
|-
| [[File:Chess kll45.svg|25px]][[File:Chess kdl45.svg|25px]]   || shah ([[King (chess)|king]])
|-
| [[File:Chess qll45.svg|25px]][[File:Chess qdl44.png|25px]]  || ferz or wazir (counselor or [[Ferz (chess)|ferz]])
|-
| [[File:Chess rll45.svg|25px]][[File:Chess rdl45.svg|25px]]   || rukh ([[Rook (chess)|rook]])
|-
| [[File:Chess bll45.svg|25px]][[File:Chess bdl45.svg|25px]] || pīl, or "alfil" in Arabic (elephant or [[Alfil (chess)|alfil]])
|-
| [[File:Chess nll45.svg|25px]][[File:Chess ndl45.svg|25px]] || asb or faras (horse or [[Knight (chess)|knight]])
|-
| [[File:Chess pll45.svg|25px]][[File:Chess pdl44.png|25px]] || sarbaz / piyadeh, or "baydaq" in Arabic (soldier, infantryman or [[Pawn (chess)|pawn]])
|}
{{clear left}}
{{Chess diagram 5x5
 |tright
 |
 |  |  |  |  |  
 |  |xx|  |xx|  
 |  |  |ql|  |  
 |  |xx|  |xx|  
 |  |  |  |  |  
 |Moves of the ferz
}}
{{Chess diagram 5x5
 |tright
 |
 |xx|  |  |  |xx
 |  |  |  |  |  
 |  |  |bl|  |  
 |  |  |  |  |  
 |xx|  |  |  |xx
 |Moves of the alfil, which can jump over other pieces
}}
{{Chess diagram 5x5 | tright | |bl|nl|rl|nl|bl|nl|ql|rl|ql|nl|rl|rl|xx|rl|rl|nl|ql|rl|ql|nl|bl|nl|rl|nl|bl| Complementarity of the shatranj pieces' movements, excluding king and pawn.}}
* '''Shāh''' ("king" in Persian) moves like the [[King (chess)|king in chess]].
* '''[[Ferz (chess)|Ferz]] (Wazir)''' ("[[adviser|counselor]]"; also spelled ''fers''; Arabic ''firz'', from Persian {{lang|fa|فرزين}} ''farzīn'') moves exactly one square diagonally, which makes it a rather weak piece. It was renamed "[[Queen (chess)|queen]]" in Europe. Even today, the word for the queen piece is ''ферзь'' (ferz) in Russian, ''vezér'' in Hungarian, ''vezir'' in Turkish, ''vazīr'' in Persian and ''wazīr'' in Arabic. It has analogue to the guards in [[xiangqi]].
* '''Rukh''' ("[[ratha|chariot]]"; from Persian {{lang|fa|رخ}} ''rokh'') moves like the [[Rook (chess)|rook]] in chess.
* '''[[Alfil (chess)|Pīl]]''', '''alfil''', '''aufin''', and similar ("[[war elephant|elephant]]"; from Persian {{lang|fa|پيل}} ''pīl''; al- is the [[Arabic language|Arabic]] for "the") moves exactly two squares diagonally, jumping over the square between. Each pīl could reach only one-eighth of the squares on the board, and because their circuits were disjoint, they could never capture one another. This piece might have had a different move sometimes in [[chaturanga]], where the piece is also called "elephant". The pīl was replaced by the [[Bishop (chess)|bishop]] in modern chess. Even today, the word for the bishop piece is ''alfil'' in Spanish, ''alfiere'' in Italian, ''fil'' in Turkish, ''fīl'' in Persian and Arabic, and ''слон'' ("elephant") in Russian. As chess spread from Iran northward to Russia, and westward into eastern Europe, south to Italy, and finally westward, it mostly retained the original name and look of the piece as an elephant. Usually, it was carved as a rounded shape with two blunt points representing the elephant's tusks. In Christian Europe, this piece became a bishop because the two points looked like a bishop's [[mitre]] to those unfamiliar with elephants in Western Europe. An early example of the bishop being used is the [[Lewis chessmen]] chess set of the 12th century. The elephant piece survives in [[xiangqi]] with the limitations that the elephant in xiangqi cannot jump over an intervening piece and is restricted to the owner's half of the board. In [[janggi]], its movement was changed to become a slightly further-reaching version of the horse.
* '''Asb (Faras)''' (current meaning of "[[cavalry|horse]]" in Persian, from old Persian ''Asp'' ({{lang|fa|اسپ}})), moves like the [[Knight (chess)|knight]] in chess.
* '''Piyadeh''' ("[[infantry]]man"; from Persian {{lang|fa|پیاده}} ''piyāde''; also called '''Sarbaz''' "[[soldier]]") in Persian and adopted later to ''Baydaq'' ({{lang|ar|بيدق}}) in Arabic (a new singular extracted by treating the Persian form as an Arabic [[broken plural]]), moves and captures like the [[Pawn (chess)|pawns]] in chess, but not moving two squares on the first move. When they reach the eighth rank, they are promoted to ferz.

Pieces are shown on the diagrams and recorded in the notation using the equivalent modern symbols, as in the table above. In modern descriptions of shatranj, the names king, rook, knight and pawn are commonly used for shah, rukh, faras, and baidaq. However, the ferz and alfil are sometimes treated as distinct, and given their own symbols. Specific ferz and alfil symbols have been provisionally accepted for a future version of [[Unicode]].<ref name=shatranj>{{cite web |url=https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2024/24020-shatranj-symbols.pdf |title=Unicode request for ''shatranj'' symbols |last1=Bala |first1=Gavin Jared |last2=Miller |first2=Kirk |date=22 December 2023 |website=unicode.org |publisher=Unicode |access-date=4 February 2024 |quote=}}</ref><ref name=pipeline>{{cite web |url=https://unicode.org/alloc/Pipeline.html |title=Proposed New Characters: The Pipeline |author=Unicode |date= |website=unicode.org |publisher=The Unicode Consortium |access-date=4 February 2024 |quote=}}</ref>

There were also other differences compared to modern chess: [[Castling]] was not allowed (it was invented much later). [[Stalemate|Stalemating]] the opposing king resulted in a win for the player delivering stalemate. Capturing all one's opponent's pieces apart from the king (''[[bare king|baring the king]]'') was a win, unless the opponent could capture the last piece on their next move, which was considered a draw in most places in the Islamic world (except for [[Medina]], where it was a win).{{sfn|Murray|1913}}

The possible movements of the main shatranj pieces, excluding that of the king and pawn, are complementary to one another, and without any omission or redundancy occupy all available squares with respect to the central position of a 5x5 grid, as shown in the figure to the right.<ref>Something similar also holds for both modern [[chess]] (rook-knight-bishop and knight-queen), as well as [[Tamerlane chess]] (general-vizier-elephant-catapult-knight and rook-general-knight-camel-giraffe).</ref>

==History==
[[File:The Vizier Buzurghmihr Showing the Game of Chess to King Khusraw Anushirwan, Page from a Manuscript of the Shahnama (Book of Kings) LACMA M.73.5.586.jpg|thumb|Early shatranj]]
[[File:Cabinet des médailles, Paris - Ivory Chess King or Vizier, 9th Century.jpg|thumb|Ivory chess king or vizier, 9th century, islamic art]]

=== Middle Persian literature ===
Three books written in [[Pahlavi scripts|Pahlavi]], ''[[Kar-Namag i Ardashir i Pabagan]]'', ''[[Khosrow and ridag]]'', and ''Wizārišn ī čhatrang'' ("Treatise on Chess"), also known as the ''Chatrang Nama'' ("Book of Chess"), all mention ''chatrang''. In ''Kār-nāmak'' it is said that Ardashīr "with the help of the gods became more victorious and experienced than all others in polo, horsemanship, chess, backgammon, and other arts," and in the small treatise on ''Khosrow and ridag'', the latter declares that he is superior to his comrades in chess, backgammon, and ''hašt pāy''. [[Bozorgmehr]], the author of ''Wizārišn ī čhatrang'', describes how the game of chess was sent as a test to [[Khosrow I]] (r. 531–79) by the "king of the Hindus Dēvsarm" with the envoy Takhtarītūs and how the test was answered by the vizier Bozorgmehr, who in his turn invented the game [[Backgammon]] as a test for the Hindus. These three Middle Persian sources do not give any certain indication of the date when chess was introduced into Persia. The mentions of chess in ''Kar-Namag i Ardashir i Pabagan'' and ''Khosrow and ridag'' are simply conventional and may easily represent late Sasanian or even post-Sasanian redactions.<ref>{{cite web|title=CHESS|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/chess-a-board-game|publisher=ENCYCLOPÆDIA IRANICA | access-date=18 January 2016}}</ref> According to [[Touraj Daryaee]], ''Kar-Namag i Ardashir i Pabagan'' is from 6th century.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Daryaee|first1=Touraj|title=Sasanian Persia: The Rise and Fall of an Empire|date=2009|publisher=I.B.Tauris & Co Ltd|isbn=9781850438984|page=114}}</ref> ''Wizārišn ī čhatrang'' was written in the 6th century.<ref>[http://www.rahamasha.net/uploads/2/3/2/8/2328777/chess.pdf Explanation of chess and disposition of backgammon] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150612220623/http://www.rahamasha.net/uploads/2/3/2/8/2328777/chess.pdf |date=2015-06-12 }}</ref>

===Early Arabic literature===
During the [[Islamic Golden Age]], many works on shatranj were written, recording for the first time the analysis of [[chess opening|opening moves]], [[chess problems|game problems]], the [[knight's tour]], and many more subjects common in modern chess books. Many of these manuscripts are missing, but their content is known due to compilation work done by the later authors.{{sfn|Murray|1913}}

The earliest listing of works on chess is in the ''[[Al-Fihrist|Fihrist]]'', a general [[bibliography]] produced in 377 [[Anno Hegirae|AH]] (988 AD) by [[Ibn al-Nadim]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Nadīm (al)|author-link=Ibn al-Nadim|first= Abū al-Faraj Muḥammad ibn Isḥāq Abū Ya’qūb al-Warrāq| title=The Fihrist of al-Nadim; a tenth-century survey of Muslim culture|editor-last=[[Bayard Dodge|Dodge]] |editor-first=Bayard |place=New York & London|publisher=Columbia University Press|year=1970|page=341|volume=i}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Nadīm (al-)|author-link=Ibn al-Nadim|first=Abū al-Faraj Muḥammad ibn Isḥāq| title=Kitāb al-Fihrist|editor-last=[[Gustav Leberecht Flügel|Flügel]]|editor-first= Gustav|place=[[Leipzig]]|publisher=F.C.W. Vogel|year=1872|page=567 (p.155)|language=ar|url= https://archive.org/details/KitabAlFihrist/page/n565}}</ref> It includes an entire section on the topic of chess, listing:
* [[Al-Adli ar-Rumi|Al-Adli]]'s ''Kitab ash-shatranj'' ('Book of Chess')
* [[Muhammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi|Ar-Razi]]'s ''Latif fi 'sh-shatranj'' ('Fun with Chess')
* [[As-Suli]]'s ''Kitab ash-shatranj'' (two volumes)
* Al-Lajlaj's ''Kitab mansubat ash-shatranj'' ('Book: Strategies of Chess')
* B. Aluqlidisi's ''Kitab majmu' fi mansubat ash-shatranj'' ('Book: Intent of Strategies of Chess')

There is a passage referring to chess in a work said to be by [[al-Hasan al-Basri]], a philosopher from [[Basra]] who died in 728 AD.{{citation needed|date=February 2016}} The attribution of authorship is dubious, however.

===Player classification===
Al-Adli as well as As-Suli introduced classifications of players by their playing strength. Both of them specify five classes of players:
* '''Aliyat''' (or aliya), grandees
* '''Mutaqaribat''', proximes – players who could win 2–4 games out of 10 in the match against grandee. They received odds of a pawn from grandee (better players g-, a- or h-pawn, weaker ones d- or e-pawn).
* Third class – players who received odds of a ferz from grandee.
* Fourth class – received odds of a knight.
* Fifth class – received odds of a rook.

To determine a player's class, a series or match would be undertaken with a player of a known class without odds. If the player won 7 or more games out of 10, he belonged to a higher class.{{citation needed|date=December 2023}}

===Notable players===
During the reign of the [[Arab]] [[caliph]]s, shatranj players of highest class were called ''aliyat'' or grandees.{{sfn|Murray|1913}} There were only a few players in this category including:
* '''Jabir al-Kufi''', '''Rabrab''' and '''Abun-Naam''' were three aliyat players during the rule of caliph [[al-Ma'mun]].
* '''[[Al-Adli ar-Rumi|Al-Adli]]''' was the strongest player during the rule of caliph [[al-Wathiq]]. At this time he was the only player in aliyat category.
* '''[[Muhammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi|Al-Razi]]''' ([[Persians|Persian]] [[polymath]]) in 847 won a match against an already old al-Adli in the presence of caliph [[al-Mutawakkil]] and so become a player of aliyat category.
* '''[[Abu-Bakr Muhammad ben Yahya as-Suli|As-Suli]]''' was the strongest player during the reign of caliph [[al-Muktafi]]. Al-Razi was already dead and there were no players of comparable strength before as-Suli appeared on the scene. In the presence of al-Muktafi he easily won a match against a certain al-Mawardi and thus proved that he was the best player of that time. As-Suli considered Rabrab and al-Razi as the greatest of his predecessors.
* '''Al-Lajlaj''' was a pupil of as-Suli and also a great shatranj master of his time.{{citation needed|date=December 2023}}

==Gameplay==

===Openings===
{{Chaturanga diagram
 |tright
 |Mujannah–Mashaikhi opening 
 |rd|  |bd|  |kd|bd|  |rd
 |pd|  |  |nd|nd|  |pd|  
 |  |pd|pd|qd|  |pd|  |pd
 |  |  |  |pd|pd|  |  |  
 |  |  |pl|  |  |pl|  |  
 |  |pl|nl|pl|pl|nl|pl|  
 |pl|  |  |  |  |  |  |pl
 |  |rl|bl|ql|kl|bl|rl|  
 |In the opening, players usually tried to reach a specific position, ''{{chessgloss|tabiya}}''.
}}
Openings in shatranj were usually called '''taʿbīya''' {{lang|ar|تَعبِيّة}} (pl. taʿbīyāt), {{lang|ar|تَعبِيّات}} in Arabic, which can be translated as "battle array". Due to slow piece development in shatranj, the exact sequence of moves was relatively unimportant. Instead players aimed to reach a specific position, tabiya, mostly ignoring the play of their opponent.

The works of al-Adli and as-Suli contain collections of tabiyat. Tabiyat were usually given as position on a half-board with some comments about them. The concrete sequence of moves to reach them was not specified. In his book Al-Lajlaj analyzed some tabiya in detail. He started his analysis from some given opening, for example "Double Mujannah" or "Mujannah–Mashaikhi", and then continued up to move 40, giving numerous variations.{{citation needed|date=December 2023}}

===Piece values===
Both al-Adli and as-Suli provided estimation of piece values in their books on shatranj. They used a monetary system to specify piece values. For example, as-Suli gives piece values in [[dirham|dirhem]], the currency in use in his time:{{sfn|Murray|1913}}

{| cellspacing="0" border="1" style="background:white;"
|-
!Piece !! Value !! Shape of piece sometimes found
|-
|[[File:Chess kll44.png|king|30px]] king || style="text-align:center;" | 2
| {{pad|1}} seat, representing a throne
|-
|[[File:Chess rll45.svg|rook|30px]] rook || style="text-align:center;" | 5 || {{pad|1}} rectangular block with V-shaped cut in top, representing a chariot
|-
|[[File:Chess nll45.svg|30px]] knight || style="text-align:center;" | 3 || {{pad|1}} cone with beak-shaped sideways projection at top
|-
|[[File:Chess qll45.svg|30px]] ferz || style="text-align:center;" | 2 || {{pad|1}} seat, smaller than king, depicting a smaller throne
|-
|[[File:Chess bll44.png|30px]] alfil || style="text-align:center;" | 2 || {{pad|1}} cone with notch cut in top
|-
|[[File:Chess pll45.svg|the horses|30px]] pawn || style="text-align:center;" | 1 || {{pad|1}} small cone, or sometimes a dome
|}

==Mansubat==
{{Chaturanga diagram
 |tright
 |Dilaram Problem, c. 10th century
 |  |rd|  |  |  |  |kd|  
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  
 |  |  |  |  |  |pl|pl|  
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  
 |kl|  |nd|  |  |  |nl|rl
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |bl
 |  |rd|  |  |  |  |  |  
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |rl
 |White to move and win
}}
{{algebraic notation|pos=secleft}}

Persian chess masters composed many [[chess problem|shatranj problems]]. Such shatranj problems were called '''manṣūba''' {{lang|ar|مَنصوبة}} (pl. '''manṣūbāt'''), {{lang|ar|منصوبات}}. This word can be translated from Arabic as "arrangement", "position" or "situation". Mansubat were typically composed in such a way that a win could be achieved as a sequence of checks. One's own king was usually threatened by immediate checkmate.{{citation needed|date=December 2023}}

One Mansuba is the ''Dilaram Problem''. Black threatens immediate checkmate by 1...Ra2#, Ra8#, or either Rb4#. But White can win with a two-rook sacrifice:
:'''1. Rh8+ Kxh8 2. Bf5+ Kg8 3. Rh8+ Kxh8 4. g7+ Kg8 5. Nh6{{chessAN|#}}'''

Note that the [[alfil]] (♗) moves two squares diagonally, jumping over intermediate pieces; this allows it to jump over the white knight to deliver the [[Discovered attack|discovered check]] from the second rook with 2.Bf5+. It was said that a nobleman (playing White) wagered his wife Dilārām on a chess game and this position arose. She appealed "Sacrifice your two Rooks, and not me."{{sfn|Murray|1913|p=311 (bottom)}}

==See also==
* [[Chess in early literature]]
* [[History of chess]]
* [[Tamerlane chess]]
* [[Timeline of chess]]

==Notes==

{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

'''Bibliography'''
*{{Cite book|title=A World of Chess|last1=Cazaux|first1=Jean-Louis|last2=Knowlton|first2=Rick|publisher=McFarland|year=2017|isbn=978-0-7864-9427-9}}
*{{cite book
 |last=Murray
 |first=H. J. R.
 |author-link=H. J. R. Murray
 |title=[[A History of Chess]]
 |edition=Reissued
 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]
 |year=1913
 |isbn=0-19-827403-3
}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite book
 |last=Parlett
 |first=David
 |author-link=David Parlett
 |title=The Oxford History of Board Games
 |url=https://archive.org/details/oxfordhistoryofb0000parl
 |url-access=registration
 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] Inc 
 |year=1999
 |contribution=Shatranj (Islamic Chess)
 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/oxfordhistoryofb0000parl/page/296 296–99]
 |isbn=0-19-212998-8}}

==External links==
* [http://history.chess.free.fr/shatranj.htm Shatranj, the medieval Arabian Chess] by Jean-Louis Cazaux
* [http://www.chessvariants.com/historic.dir/shatranj.html Shatranj] by [[Hans L. Bodlaender]], ''[[The Chess Variant Pages]]''
* [https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2024/24020-shatranj-symbols.pdf Unicode request for ''shatranj'' symbols]
* [https://www.schemingmind.com/home/journalarticle.aspx?article_id=170 The Time of Shatranj and the Aliyat] by Miguel Villa
* [http://www.chessclub.com/help/shatranj ICC shatranj rules]
* {{bgg|26064|Shatranj}}

{{Chess variants}}
{{Chess}}

[[Category:Chess in Iran]]
[[Category:History of chess]]
[[Category:Games related to chaturanga]]
[[Category:Persian words and phrases]]
[[Category:Sports originating in Iran]]
[[Category:Iranian inventions]]
[[Category:Indian inventions]]