Dear list,

I am currently conducting a study of traditional Indian Gyān Caupaṛ (skt. jñānapaṭṭa) boards used to play a kind of instructional karmic game destined to become the precursor of Snakes and Ladders. I have found a number of photographic reproductions of various boards (Jain, Vaiṣṇava, Śaivite, Muslim) in the following publications:

* Shimkhada, Deepak (1983) "A Preliminary Study of the Game of Karma in India, Nepal, and Tibet" in Artibus Asiae 44:4, p. 308-22.

* Topsfield, Andrew (1985) "The Indian Game of Snakes and Ladders" in Artibus Asiae 46:3, pp. 203-26.

* Topsfield, Andrew (2006) "Snakes and Ladders in India: Some Further Discoveries" in Artibus Asiae 66:1, pp. 143-79.

A reproduction of a Tibetan board also appears in Mark Tatz and Jody Kent's "Rebirth: The Tibetan Game of Liberation" (New York, 1977), while a somewhat new-agy recreation of a Vaiṣṇava board is found in Harish Johari's "Leela: The Game of Self-Knowledge" (Vermont, 1980).

Several of the boards in the above publications also appear as illustrations in more popular books on ancient Indian board games.

Owing to the fragile material (cloth, paper) and relatively careless handling of the boards, they are apparently few and far between (the oldest known versions dating to the late 18th century). I would therefore be very interested in learning about the existence of boards (published or not) hidden away or on display in places where I have not yet looked.

My present focus is on 72-square Vaiṣṇava boards as they seem to be the more numerous and widespread (with 84-square Jain boards running a close second), but news of any kind of boards unknown to me would be heartily welcomed.

Kind regards,
Jacob

Jacob Schmidt-Madsen
Assistant Teacher, Department of Indology
University of Copenhagen