9. Mah Jong and the Monkey King


Beijing Opera performers

Day 08

After lunch, we had some time to just sit in the lounge and enjoy the view. The Yangtze is a huge energy force grinding away at its shores constantly. One hasn't long to wait before seeing where sections of the bank are dissolving to become river silt. The silt gives the Yangtze its color. In fact, we're told that the China Sea in the area around ShangHai also has this yellowish color.

Empty sampan
An empty sampan powers upstream ... empty.

On this part of the Yangtze, there are numerous sampans going in both directions. Coal from the many small mines upstream is an important cargo. The Three Gorges Dam upstream requires immense quantities of concrete components from downstream sources. It would seem that sampans would be carrying their capacities of goods for consumers downstream and construction materials upstream. And so it comes as a surprise to see this and other sampans deadheading ... carrying no load ... upstream.

Yangtze bank erosion
Erosion of the Yangtze banks sends silt downstream, even into the China sea.

Later in the afternoon, a key crew member was kind enough to teach Virginia and some other ladies in our group some of the basics of the game of Mah Jong. The game is played with tiles similar to dominoes. To Virginia, it was like learning a difficult card game, especially since the tiles were imprinted with Chinese symbols. It was fun, but it would take a lot of practice to become proficient. 

Beijing Opera performers

After dinner, we were very fortunate to be entertained by three members of the Beijing Opera. One of them performed the part of the Monkey King, the mischievous protagonist from the ancient Chinese folk tale, "Journey to the West". The book portrays his adventures in search of the Sutra, the Buddhist holy book. 

The show lasted about an hour and it was non-stop martial arts action with incredible athletics. 

Beijing Opera performers

Mah Jong - An Intriguing History

Some of the other names by which this game has been called are Ma Jong, Mah Jongg, Ma Diao, Ma Cheuk, Mah Cheuck, Baak Ling and Pung Chow. 

Throughout history, many theories have been presented regarding the origin of the game. One suggests that it had been played on Noah's Ark during the 40 days and nights of rain. East had been the prevailing wind during the storm thus becoming the dominant seat in playing the game. This theory would suggest that the game would date back to around 2350 BC.

Another story suggests that Confucius the great Chinese philosopher had developed the game about 500 BC. The appearance of the game in various Chinese provinces coincides with Confucius' travels at the time he was teaching his new doctrines. The three "Cardinal" tiles also coincide with the three Cardinal virtues taught by Confucius. Chung (middle) the Red, Fa (prosperity) the Green, Po (white) the white, for Benevolence, Sincerity, and Filial Piety. Confucius was said to be fond of birds, which would explain the name Mah Jong (Hemp Bird).

Terms used in the play of the game "Pung," "Chee," and "Kong" also add support to this theory. Confucius was of the Kong family, his full name being Kong-Fu-Tze. He married a girl named Che and adopted the term "Chee" meaning 'to connect' which has been corrupted into "Chow".

Although these as well as various other stories lend themselves to a very interesting background to the game, the most logical theory suggests that the game had been developed from various Chinese games. During the Sung Dynasty (960-1279 AD) a game called "Ya Pei" is played with 32 cards made of either wood or ivory. The cards are oblong in shape similar to the present day Ma Jong tiles. During the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 AD) a game called "Ma Tiae" (Hanging Horse) was invented. This game was played with 40 paper cards similar in appearance to the cards used in the game Ya Pei. These forty cards were numbered 1 to 9 in four different suits. Along with four additional flower cards, they are quite similar to the numbering of Mah Jong cards today. It is thought that roughly around 1850 AD in the city of Ningpo, two brothers had created Mah Jong from the earlier game of Ma Tiae. 

Certainly, the history of Mah Jong coincides with that of China.

Mahjong class
A key crew member teaches Virginia and other ladies the rudements of MahJong.

<Previous> Table of Contents  <Next>