The Chess Philosophy of Aaron Nimzowitsch: Prophylaxis and Mobility
As a player, Nimzowitsch favoured an attacking game that was entirely founded on positional factors. Seldom
did he try an attack in a serious game if his position was not secured, but once he attacked, he struck meticulously
and, if necessary, by a brilliant combination. To quote Richard Réti in Die Meister des Schachbrettes (1930), a
combination was to Nimzowitsch just a way of proving the strategic superiority in his position on the board. 

    Richard Réti  

So, the question arises: What are the criteria of a sound position? Above all, Nimzowitsch advocates prophylaxis.
This concept has two aspects:

1) Try to stop your opponent from liberating himself. Keywords in this action are restraining (German "Hemmung")
and blockade, which latter expression refers to the stopping of a passed pawn. However, a blockade must be
elastic.

2) Place your own pieces in such a way that they cooperate in perfect harmony. A famous keyword in this connection
is over-protection (German "Überdeckung"), which refers to the strengthening of certain central points, such as a
passed pawn or a blockade square.

As a consequence of such harmony, your pieces, including pawns, will be able to move forwards in a combined
attack, all at the same time. Mobility is the second key word in Nimzowitsch's philosophy.

Botwinnik and Petrosjan on prophylaxis
By “out-turned prophylaxis” Nimzowitsch means the hindering of freeing moves (point 1 above), whereas “in-turned
prophylaxis” (point 2 above) aims at bringing certain strategically important points in contact with each other. As an
illustration of this thesis we may refer to Michail Botwinnik, who said about Tigran Petrosjan that he mastered the art
of placing his pieces on invulnerable squares, where the opponent could not attack them.
(Mihail Marin in Schacknytt 2005-4:32 ff)

Petrosjan has disclosed that his first chess book was Die Praxis meines Systems, and evidently this book made a
deep impression on him as he later became famous for his eminent talent for foresight and prophylaxis.                                                                                                       

    Tigran Petrosjan, World Champion 1963-69  

Also former world champion Anatoli Karpow seems to have been influenced by Nimzowitsch, as he says in the
book Karpow-Mazukewitsch: Stellungsbeurteilung und Plan (Berlin 1987) that "prophylaxis" is the number one rule
in chess.                                                                                                                      

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