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Showing posts from December 19, 2013

Snakes and Ladders is an ancient Indian board game

Snakes and Ladders is an ancient Indian board game... The board game, today called Snakes and Ladders, originated in ancient India, where it was known with the name Mokshapat or Moksha Patamu.  It's not exactly known when or who invented it, though it's believed the game was played at a time as early as 2nd century BC. According to some historians, the game was invented by Saint Gyandev.  Originally, the game was used as a part of moral instruction to children. The squares  in which ladders start were each supposed to stand for a virtue, and those housing the head of a snake were supposed to stand for an evil. The snakes outnumbered the ladders in the original Hindu game. The game was transported to England by the colonial rulers in the latter part of the 19th century, with some modifications. Through its several modifications over the decades, however, the meaning of the game has remained the same -- 'that good deeds will take people to heaven (Moksha) while evil dee