CARD PLAYING

Card playing is a game. Just a game? No, not 'JUST' a game, it 'IS' a game, and this must be kept in mind in order to understand the Tarot. Games exist everywhere, they are not limited to human beings. Who has never seen puppies playing together, with their mother, or perhaps with themselves? I have seen it many times, these little dogs really love to play. And they learn quickly. And that is what it is all about, learning. Playing is an important part of any creature's education. Playing is how you learn to survive. And the better you are in the play phase of your life, the better chance you have of living a long life.

Games can serve many purposes. Let us explore some of them:

• Education. This is the first and most important function of games. We play games to learn, to acquire knowledge, to train ourselves.
• Pleasure. Games can be amusing, just what you need when you have a lot of time on a rainy day. Some solitary games require skill. And it can be fun to watch your skills grow. Some games can even obsess you for a while. Most puzzle games, construction games (putting something together is also a game) and many solitaire card games fall into the 'play for pleasure' category.
• Pass the time. Almost the same, but now the aim is not pleasure, but killing time. Who has never done a crossword puzzle on the train to pass the time?
• Competition. Games can also be a challenge to compare your strength with others, to show that you are the strongest. This type of game is not restricted to children. The stronger you get, the better you get. Most sports fall into this category. You want to know who is the best, you want to compare your skills with others. Honour is the only thing you get. We call them sports, but they are still games. The highest level of sport is called 'the Olympic Games', isn't it?
• Money. When you compete, you can make money if you are better than the others. If you get money, it is because you were better than other people. Professional sports are in this category. Poker is also in this category. Even if you do not have good cards, you can bluff other people and win the jackpot if you are clever. So you do need some skill. Many card games are not just about chance, they require some skill. And the first seed of skill is what you get when you play the game for fun as a child.
• Others. This is just a short list. Games can be used for many other purposes, bringing people together, self-awareness, divination, group development, you name it, games can be used in many situations.

Games are important in our lives, we spend more time playing them than we can imagine. Card games are an oriental invention. People played cards in China long before Charlemagne was born. So let us dive into the history of card games to see how it all began and how the ancient oriental games were the cradle of the Tarot game.

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