https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_games_that_Buddha_would_not_play List of games that Buddha would not play From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to navigation Jump to search The Buddhist games list is a list of games that Gautama Buddha is reputed to have said that he would not play and that his disciples should likewise not play, because he believed them to be a 'cause for negligence'.^[1] This list dates from the 6th or 5th century BC and is the earliest known list of games.^[2] There is some debate about the translation of some of the games mentioned, and the list given here is based on the translation by T. W. Rhys Davids of the Brahmajala Sutta and is in the same order given in the original.^[3] The list is duplicated in a number of other early Buddhist texts, including the Vinaya Pitaka.^[2]^[4] 1. Games on boards with 8 or 10 rows. This is thought to refer to ashtapada and dasapada respectively, but later Sinhala commentaries refer to these boards also being used with games involving dice.^[2] 2. The same games played on imaginary boards. Akasam astapadam was an ashtapada variant played with no board, literally "astapadam played in the sky". A correspondent in the American Chess Bulletin identifies this as likely the earliest literary mention of a blindfold chess variant.^[5] 3. Games of marking diagrams on the floor such that the player can only walk on certain places. This is described in the Vinaya Pitaka as "having drawn a circle with various lines on the ground, there they play avoiding the line to be avoided". Rhys Davids suggests that it may refer to parihara-patham, a form of hop-scotch. 4. Games where players either remove pieces from a pile or add pieces to it, with the loser being the one who causes the heap to shake (similar to the modern game pick-up sticks). 5. Games of throwing dice. 6. "Dipping the hand with the fingers stretched out in lac, or red dye, or flour-water, and striking the wet hand on the ground or on a wall, calling out 'What shall it be?' and showing the form required--elephants, horses, &c." 7. Ball games. 8. Blowing through a pat-kulal, a toy pipe made of leaves. 9. Ploughing with a toy plough. 10. Playing with toy windmills made from palm leaves. 11. Playing with toy measures made from palm leaves. 12. Playing with toy carts. 13. Playing with toy bows. 14. Guessing at letters traced with the finger in the air or on a friend's back. (letters in the Brahmi script) 15. Guessing a friend's thoughts. 16. Imitating deformities. Although the modern game of chess had not been invented at the time the list was made, earlier chess-like games such as chaturaji may have existed. H.J.R. Murray refers to Rhys Davids' 1899 translation, noting that the 8x8 board game is most likely ashtapada while the 10x10 game is dasapada. He states that both are race games.^[6] Occurrences in the Pali Canon[edit] The complete list is repeated several times in the Digha Nikaya as part of a passage called 'The Intermediate Section on Moral Discipline' that details ways in which the Buddha and his followers differ in their practices from brahmins and other ascetics. * Brahmajala Sutta (DN 1) * Samannaphala Sutta (DN 2) * Ambattha Sutta (DN 3) * Sonadanda Sutta (DN 4) * Kutadanta Sutta (DN 5) * Mahali Sutta (DN 6) * Jaliya Sutta (DN 7) * Mahasihanada Sutta (DN 8) * Subha Sutta (DN 10) * Kevatta Sutta (DN 11) * Tevijja Sutta (DN 13) The full list also occurs twice in the Vinaya Pitaka, once in the Suttavibhanga as part of the criteria for a rule entailing suspension, and once in the Cullavaga as part of a technical discussion regarding the procedure for banishing monks from an area.^ [4]^[7] An abbreviated version also occurs in at least two other sutras: the Upali Sutta in the Anguttara Nikaya and the Mahatanhasankhaya Sutta in the Majjhima Nikaya.^[8]^[9] See also[edit] * History of Buddhism * Timeline of chess * History of games * List of chess variants References[edit] 1. ^ Brahmajala Sutta, Bhikkhu Bodhi, trans. 2. ^ ^a ^b ^c A History of Chess, by Harold James Ruthven Murray 3. ^ Davids, T. W. Rhys (1899-1921). Dialogues of the Buddha. Pali Text Society.^[full citation needed] 4. ^ ^a ^b Bhikkhu Vibangha, Kuladusaka 5. ^ American Chess Bulletin, vol. 13-15, Hartwig Cassell & Hermann Helms, eds. 6. ^ Murray, H J R (1952). History of Board Games Other Than Chess. Clarendon Press. p. 35.^[full citation needed] 7. ^ Kammakkhandhaka 8. ^ Upali Sutta 9. ^ Mahatanhasankhaya Sutta * Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title= List_of_games_that_Buddha_would_not_play&oldid=1054681846" Categories: * Buddhism-related lists * Lists of games * History of India * History of games * Buddhism and sports Hidden categories: * All articles with incomplete citations * Articles with incomplete citations from June 2016 * Articles with incomplete citations from May 2015 Navigation menu Personal tools * Not logged in * Talk * Contributions * Create account * Log in Namespaces * Article * Talk [ ] Variants expanded collapsed Views * Read * Edit * View history [ ] More expanded collapsed Search [ ] [Search] [Go] Navigation * Main page * Contents * Current events * Random article * About Wikipedia * Contact us * Donate Contribute * Help * Learn to edit * Community portal * Recent changes * Upload file Tools * What links here * Related changes * Upload file * Special pages * Permanent link * Page information * Cite this page * Wikidata item Print/export * Download as PDF * Printable version Languages * Espanol * Francais * Bahasa Indonesia Edit links * This page was last edited on 11 November 2021, at 14:25 (UTC). * Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. 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