Introduction
The original name of this game is Jnana-chaupada (jnana - knowledge, wisdom, chaupada - a game of dice; thus, the name can be translated as "Knowledge Game"). It was created by the holy seers of the past as a key to inner states and to study the principles of the Dharma, which is commonly referred to as "Hinduism". Seventy-two squares of the playing board with all the arrows and snakes that bind them, which represent the seventy-two main planes of being, reveal to us the knowledge contained in the Vedas, Shruti, Smriti and Puranas. To play this game is to come into contact with the divine wisdom contained in the teachings of Yoga, Vedanta and Samkhya, which are the flesh and blood of the Hindu tradition. During the game, you automatically move around the fields of the playing board, each of which has a specific name, reflecting one of the internal states, or planes of being. Once on a particular field, the player begins to think about ideas and concepts associated with the name of this field, until it is again his turn to roll the die to move on to the next state. As a result, the mind, intellect and ego (sense of "I") of the player are involved in the game.
Neither the author nor the time of the creation of this game, which we today call Leela, is known to us. However, in the Indian written tradition, the name of the author has never been considered something significant. The author of the game was only a pen driven by the Divine Hand, an instrument that expressed the Will of the Creator, and his name was not recorded. However, the ideas and concepts on which the game is based indicate an age of at least 2000 years.
The version of the game used for this edition was kept by the author's family in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh for about 150 years. The author also has at his disposal an older version of the game, bought from an antique dealer in Rajasthan, but it has not been completely preserved and therefore could not be used in compiling this commentary.
A book consisting of shloka verses was attached to the playing board. After each roll of the die, the player recited a verse referring to the place where they ended up. The slokas described the nature and meaning of the spaces represented by the squares of the playing board. Unfortunately, this book has been lost, hence the need to write a new commentary, revealing the interweaving of philosophical ideas associated with the names of the squares, and explaining the method of using the game for self-knowledge. In the tradition in which the game originated, the meaning of all the Sanskrit terms used is well known. Apart from these definitions, information received from some sannyasins who played the game in their youth or after joining the order, and the terms indicated on the game board itself, some knowledge comes from the author's family tradition. All this, taken together, formed the basis of this commentary.
The creators of the game saw in it, first of all, a tool that develops an understanding of the relationship of the individual "I" with the Absolute "I". Passing through the game while maintaining this position helps the player to free himself from the illusion that has tightly entangled his personality and see his life as a reflection of the macrocosm. The number rolled on the die is determined not by the player's identifications, but by the interaction of cosmic forces, which, in turn, determine the development of the human game of life. And the goal of the game is to free the human consciousness from the shackles of the material world and reunite it with the Cosmic Consciousness.
As one drop taken from the ocean contains all the elements present in its source, so the human consciousness is a microcosmic manifestation of the Universal Consciousness. Everything that a person can ever know or experience is already contained within him as a potentiality. For all human perceptions are the result of the work of the senses.
The events taking place in the world excite the five organs of perception (nose, tongue, eyes, skin and ears). This is accompanied by a biochemical process in the central nervous system, which manifests itself in the form of electrical activity in various areas of the brain. This play of energies is a reflection of one of the aspects of consciousness called the mind.
The mind presents data received from the senses to the intellect and ego for evaluation and action. Sense perceptions are the source of all desires. And desire is the essence of the game - who will participate in the game if he does not want to play? It is desires that serve as the main motivating force in human life; in fact, he lives to satisfy his desires.
Desires, depending on their nature, can be classified into one of three spheres: physiological, social or psychological. Physiological desires are the essential needs of the body. In this group, the main needs are food, drink, sex and sleep. Social desires include the same physiological desires, but colored by the social context. Having one house, a person strives to take possession of five more. The desire for superfluous comforts and possessions of luxuries, for a higher position in society, which a person can acquire by demonstrating his achievements - all these desires are social in nature and differ from each other in different societies and cultures. Psychological desires are rooted in a person's desire for self-identification, in his ego. This is where the desire for inner growth and spiritual experience originates. It is amazing that at the end of this path the ego of a person is lost: the greatest egoism is the absence of ego!
Physiological needs are recognized in every society, and there are no obstacles to their satisfaction. Social - differ depending on the society in which the person is located. Psychological desires and needs are also known to everyone on our planet - in this area there are human complexes and achievements, respect and contempt, joys and mental trauma.
All these desires arise as a result of sense perception and the faculty we call the mind. On the physical plane, they all manifest as certain states of the biochemical processes in the body and can be caused or satisfied by the introduction of appropriate chemicals from outside.
Physiological desires are often called animal needs, since they are inherent in man along with other animals. Psychological needs are spoken of as the highest needs, since they are associated with the attachments of the ego and with the feeling of satisfaction that arises from complete identification with the object of desire.
Whatever the source of desire, the ego seeks to satisfy it using the five organs of action: arms, legs, mouth, genitals and anus. The result is manifested in a change in the state of consciousness. Negative actions lead the player into a trap, while positive actions lead to release. “As you sow, so shall you reap” - this proverb contains the essence of the law of karma.
Any action of the player will be true as long as he realizes that any act entails a chain of karmic consequences that can remain hidden for many years. The fruits of some actions may not appear at all in this life and, gradually ripening, will make themselves felt only in the next incarnations. It is the karma acquired in previous lives that determines both the present state and the direction of the development of the individual.
The player's task is to recognize the presence and impact of this karma in their life. From this awareness comes the wisdom needed to raise the level of consciousness. This work belongs to karma yoga. And this world is a stage on which the action of the divine karmic game - Leela - unfolds.
To understand the world around us, we must explore our own "Self", studying the structure of our consciousness, recognizing the levels through which we move throughout our lives, meeting with snakes that lead us to fall, and arrows that symbolize spiritual uplift. It is here that the game serves its highest purpose, revealing to us a map of our internal states, where "One becomes many."