I
do not have a gambler’s disposition, but I would buy the occasional
lottery ticket if the prize money is worth the trouble, and I happen to
come across a betting shop without any lines. I always tell myself that
it is for charity.
I can count on one hand the number of times that I have entered a casino, but I have won at the tables twice.
The
first time was in Macau a few years ago, where I won HK$3,000 (US$380).
My recent, second win at Genting Highlands in Malaysia made me richer
by 800 ringgit (US$170)
At the risk of offending punters who
frequent casinos but seldom win anything, I must admit that I cannot
even remember the names of the games that I played and won.
All I
know is that playing cards were involved, and that the rules must have
been so simple that even a novice like myself could quickly understand
how the games were played.
On both occasions, I prudently left the
table and cashed in my chips after I felt that I had won enough, and
that my streak of beginners’ luck was about to run out.
Like I said, I am not a gambler.
The act of making a bet and hoping to win the money or chattel that is wagered is as old as it is universal.
The
old joke about betting on two flies climbing up the wall contains a
kernel of truth. Almost anything – a game, a contest, animal behaviour,
natural phenomena – can be the subject of a wager.
The Chinese
have had many forms of gambling. Some of them might have simply started
out as games for one’s leisure and entertainment, but when money and
betting got involved, it became a whole new ballgame, as it were.
There
were different kinds of chess games that the Chinese bet on, as well as
horse and dog races, and fights between crickets, roosters, quails and
other birds.
There were also various card games, one of which, the
madiao, might have been the precursor of mahjong, probably the most
popular gambling game among the Chinese today.
The ills associated
with excessive gambling were known very early on in China, and several
rulers tried to ban the activity or discourage it by meting out severe
punishments.
During the reign of Emperor Wu of the Western Han
dynasty, from 141 to 87 BC, three noblemen were stripped of their titles
for gambling, one of whom was sentenced to hard labour.
The
anti-gambling laws in the Song period (960–1279) were particularly
harsh. Anyone caught gambling in the capital would be beheaded.
The
Qing dynasty (1644–1912) also had laws prohibiting gambling. Gamblers
were not put to death, but they could be imprisoned, flogged or exiled
to the frontier garrisons.
These laws would be applied for a while, but they would be soft-pedalled or even ignored after some time.
One
reason was that it was simply impossible to stamp out gambling even
with the harshest laws, so enforcement fatigue eventually set in. This
is true even today.
Another reason was that gambling was also popular with the ruling elite.
When
avid gamblers could be found among emperors, their consorts, and senior
officials in the government, then it goes without saying that
enforcement would be difficult.
I play mahjong with members of my immediate family whenever we get together at my brother’s home.
We play with pretend money, which is not converted to cash at the end of the game.
We
chat, nibble on snacks, exercise our mental faculties (especially my
82-year-old father) and enjoy each other’s company at the mahjong table.
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