--- ruwanr2003 <ruwanr2003@...> skrev:

> Can someone tell me what's the pali word Buddha used
> to indicate chess..

Most probably he didn't speak about chess at all, as
it wasn't invented yet when he lived; it must be an
anachronistic mistranslation. You may have a look at
the history of the game at

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess

The modern rules of international chess were fixed, I
think, as late as the 19th century.

"Caturanga", which Gregory told us is mentioned in the
dictionary of Metta Net, was a predecessor of chess,
but even that is known to have been played only from
the 6th century a. D., so it is doubtful if it was
known at the time of the Buddha; see

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaturanga

"Atthapada", sanskrit "Ashtaapada", also mentioned in
this dictionary, seems to have been the board on which
Caturanga was played, rather than the play itself, and
older than the game; se also

http://history.chess.free.fr/ashtapada.htm

What is meant in the Vinaya passage is probably an
earlier game played on the atthapada board, but
according to some theories that may have been a dice
game, thus not very similar to chess, where chance
plays no role and nothing is hidden.

Gunnar

(saved from being addicted to chess by the fact that
my brother always beat me at it; he played "mental
chess" - that is ordinary chess without a physical
board and pieces, just keeping it all in ones head -
already fifty years ago, so it isn't very new. I've
never been able to play it.)







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