Maai (the distance bet­ween you and your oppo­nent) is very important in mar­ti­al arts as it is in sho­gi. But in sho­gi we have to not only think about attacking, but also retrea­ting. We have to go ahead, but if we go too stron­gly we will be cut by the enemy. So it’s important to go ahead litt­le by litt­le, so as not to be cut.

Yoshiha­ru Habu, der bes­te Sho­gi-Spie­ler aller Zei­ten, über Ent­fer­nun­gen (via The Japan Times)