Ishi no Shita

Ishi no Shita, meaning “under the stones” in Japanese, is a tactical maneuver in Go where a player lets some stones be captured and then plays on the points they vacated to capture the opponent’s stones in return. Unlike simple nakade or throw-in tactics, ishi no shita relies on the opponent actually capturing the stones, only to fall into a hidden trap.

In one of our free videos, Vadim reviews Ishi no Shita shown in the Gobangiri movie (7:53).

This technique often appears in tsumego (life-and-death problems) and tesuji sequences. A well-executed ishi no shita move can dramatically change the outcome of a local fight, turning what seemed like a loss into a surprising comeback.