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Evidence for Mawkar Katiya
1 pieces of evidence found.
Id DLP.Evidence.741
Type Ethnography
Location Khasi
Date 1923-06-01 - 1923-12-31
Rules Two rows of seven holes Five counters in each hole Players sow in a clockwise direction. When the final counter lands in a hole, the contents of the next hole are picked up and sowing continues. When the final counter is sown and the next hole is empty, the contents of the hole in the opposite row of the empty hole are captured. Play continues until all of the counters are captured. A new game begins. The players fill their holes with five counters in each, starting from the left. The player who has remaining counters after this puts the extra counters aside to their credit. The player who has fewer places the remainder in the next empty hole. Play begins with the same rules, with the following modifications: Each player, during their opponent's turn, captures counters in any hole that are made to equal the number of extra counters they had at the beginning of this round. The winner of the previous round will capture one counter each time that player sows into the leftmost hole of their row. The opponent cannot sow in this hole. In addition, the winner of the previous round will always capture pieces that accumulate in the hole which contained the extra counters of the opponent at the start of the round. Subsequent rounds are played like this until one playre captures all of the counters, and thus wins.
Content "The type of sedentary game which is the subject matter of this note is usually played on a plank on which a number of shallow depressions have been scooped out; the depressions are filled with small pieces of stone, cowries, or seeds, etc.
My attention was first drawn to this game in June, 1923 at Cherrapunji. Among the Khasis the game is known as Máwkár kátiyá (=going round the slab or plank). It may be mentioned that though a wooden board in which rough circular and shallow depressions have been scooped out in two rows, the number of rows in each hole (sic) being seven, is generally used, sometimes specially on fair days, the game is played outside the house on stone slabs. Two persons are necessary for the play and, to start with, five small stones are kept within each depression. One of the players picks up the stones from a depression lying in the row just next to him and goes on putting one piece of stone into each depression. As soon as he has done with the five pieces he started with, he picks up all the stones lying immediately in front of the depression where the last piece was deposited. He must repeat this action till, after having deposited all the pieces that he may carry in his hand, he comes to an empty depression lying immediately in front of the one where the last piece was dropped. In this case all the pieces of stone lying within the depression immediately next to the vacant one will come into his possession and the other player will begin the game, following exactly the same method, each playing from right to left along his line of depressions and from left to right along the line of depressions belonging to his adversary. The players will thus keep on the game alternately till all the pieces have been removed from the plank, with the general result that one of the players is in possession of more than 35 pieces of stone and the other less. The game will now be started for the second time but not by the player who started it on the previous occasion and one peculiarity will be observed while arranging the pieces. Suppose, for example, that after the end of the first game, one player finds that he has 37 pieces in his possession, then he will arrange 35 pieces in the usual way, while two (I.e. the pieces he has obtained in excess of 35) will not be placed in any of the depressions, but will remain to his credit while the game is being played for the second time. The other player will now arrange the 33 pieces, placing 3 within the depression lying to the extreme left along his line, while the other six will contain 5 pieces each. On this occasion the following additional rules will also be observed:—
(a) The person that has got two pieces extra will have all the single groups of two pieces that may accumulate within one depression while his adversary is playing to his credit. While the latter will have all the single groups of 3 pieces that may accumulate within one depression to his credit while the former may be playing.
(b) The winner will have the depression to his extreme left covered by his palm and gain one piece every time he passes round this depression, while his adversary will not be allowed to drop any piece in it.
(c) The pieces that will be gathered in the depression where the three pieces were placed will always come to the possession of the winner.
These rules will, certainly, vary according to the difference in the number of pieces possessed by each player after the end of any game. If we, for example, suppose that the winner has got 47 pieces after one game, then two depressions beginning from the right of his adversary along the row belonging to his adversary along the row belonging to his adversary will be kept covered over and none will be allowed to place any piece inside these. The games will be continued in this way and the person who succeeds in capturing all the pieces of his opponent will be victorious. It is clear that the rules of the game are a little complicated and as I had to obtain my information from an old Khasia woman with the help of an interpreter I would not be surprised if it was found that the rules enumerated above require correction. I sincerely hope that, as a result of the publication of this note, some better informed person may come forward and give us (possibly) a more correct and complete account of the game." Das Gupta 1923: 71-72.
Confidence 100
Source Das-Gupta. H. 1923. "Notes on a Type of Sedentary Game Prevalent in Many Parts of India." Journal and Proceedings of the Asiatic Society of Bengal 19: 71-74.
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