Ganifa: The Story of the art of playing card
Ganifa: The Story of the art of playing cards
Throughout the ages, each society has developed its games; Pachisi, Mallakhamb, and Jal Tarang to name a few of the various categories such as board games, outdoor games and water sports. In particular, we have games such as chess, snake and ladder, solitare, polo and the martial arts of judo and karate originated in India, some have been played indoors and some are outdoor games. For example in Indian history one episode of the Mahabharata narrates an incident where the game chaturanga has been between the Kauravas and Pandyas and how this game has turned the whole story, no one is unaware of the consequences, from this instance we can encounter the popularity of games among the ruling class.
Some of the games lost their glory as time passed, however, there are some of these games evolved and grew, one such indoor game is Ganjifa, which is a game played by using cards. All the cards were handmade and painted in the traditional style, these cards were made up of different materials some were made up of ivory, tortoiseshell, mother of pearl, inlaid or enamelled with precious metals. The shapes of the cards also varied they were circular, rectangular, and oval. Ganjifa, an art form involving playing cards, represents a significant aspect of human cultural history. This game of cards was developed in ancient India. This game existed earlier in ancient times known as kridapatram, in the Middle Ages it was known as Ganjifa. This game has two main cards or the court cards, variations have existed in terms of the number of cards in the number of suits for instance the Mughal ganjifa had 96 cards with 8 suits but later on the numbers changed. This art form has evolved according to the time suitability of the people, as this was certainly royalty and the common masses. from the earlier evidence, the cards have Persian motifs but when it became common among the Indian masses the depiction of motifs and letters on the cards changed. Every state in India has its unique style for making the Ganjifa cards.
Etymology of Ganjifa
Ganjifa, an art form involving playing cards, represents a significant aspect of human cultural history. Throughout the ages, humans have enjoyed a profound and enduring relationship with games, using them as entertainment. These indoor or outdoor games have played a crucial role in shaping cultural identities and have often been imbued with symbolic meaning. Ganjifa, in particular, serves as a noteworthy example of leisure activity, with its playing cards offering a glimpse into the artistic and visual pursuits of post-medieval royalty and nobility.
Historians have posited various theories regarding the origins and evolution of Ganjifa cards. Some scholars have traced their roots to Persia and China. The etymology of the word “Ganjifa” remains enigmatic, as its precise origins are neither Arabic nor Turkish. Furthermore, the term “Ganj” itself carries multifaceted meanings, including treasure, treasury, or collection. Additionally, one interesting perspective suggests that one of the money suits was named after a local currency, such as Dirham, Denari, Ashrafi, and Tanka in the Iranian packs. In several regions, it is called Ganjifa, Ganjapa, Ganjefeh, Ganjafah, Kanjafeh, Kanjifah, Kanjapa or kanjafah, but the term Ganifa has been used most widely. According to Siddharth Y. Wakankar, it is derived from the Sanskrit verb ‘ganj’ which means making noise, or loud sounds. His logic behind this is that while playing the game the winners always shout with the excitement of victory over the others. When the history of cards in India is traced back, the earliest confirmed mention of the cards of Ganjifa is found in Baburnama.
Historical Significance of Ganjifa
The earliest documented reference to Ganjifa cards dates back to the Mamluk era, as recorded by historian Ibn Taghribirdi in an Arabic text. The cards were reportedly played by Sultan-Al-Mamilk Al-Mu’yyud between 1399 and 1412, indicating their use in gambling during that period. The existence of the word “kanjafah” in the inscription of Mamluk cards at the Topkapi Saray Museum in Istanbul further corroborates their historical significance. This particular set featured four suits (cups, swords, coins, and polo sticks), each comprising 13 cards and a king, governor, and vice-governor.
Conjectures regarding the ancestral origins of playing cards and their belonging to either the Western or Eastern world persist due to a lack of documented evidence. One hypothesis suggests that Chinese playing cards of the money type may have migrated to the West during the 13th century, facilitated by increased communication between China, Central and Western Asia, and the Mediterranean following the Mongol conquest. Additionally, evidence points to the development of early card packs during the Timurid period in 14th-century Iran and Samarkand, indicating the evolution of their hierarchical structure.
The Persian word “Ganj” alludes to “treasure, treasury, or collection,” unveiling its cultural significance. Notably, the “Rubaiyat-i-Ganjifa,” a poem authored by Ahli Shirazi, sheds light on the eight suits of the classic Ganjifa pack of Iran and India. Ahli Shirazi penned the composition comprising 96 quatrains, one for each card for his patron, Isma’il, the first Shah of the Safavid dynasty. This literary work provided the names of the eight suits, including Ghulam (slave), taj (crown), Shamsher (sword), Ashrafi (gold coin), Chang (har), Barat (document), Tanka (silver coin), and Qimash (stores). Furthermore, the composition underscores the shifting of the gold and silver coins in the order of the suits within the Indian Ganjifa tradition.
How Ganjifa cards made their way to India
The historical significance of ganjifa cards in India dates back to around 1500, these cards were patronized by the Mughal emperors. Babur, the first Mughal conqueror of Northern India, played a role in introducing the cards to the region. While the specific nature of the cards he used remains unclear, it is believed that they may have been an 8-suited pack. The types of ganjifa cards with indigenisation were produced during the 16th century, under Akbar’s tremendous empire. Ain-i-Akbari, written by his chronicler Abu’l Fazl, contains a first-hand account of playing ganjifa cards. He explains in detail two packs of cards (ganjifa or ganjafeh), namely the 8-suited and 12-suited packs, and concludes that this is a well-known game (ganjifa). His Majesty has modified the cards. The number cards (waraq) were taken by the ancient sages, but they neglected to note that there should be twelve various types of rulers (amirs). His Majesty plays a new version.
The game of ganjifa cards is gradually becoming more popular throughout the Indian subcontinent. The imperial darbar in Delhi, as well as the lavish palaces and homes of sultans, nawabs, subhadars, rajas, jagirdars, and their vassals and retainers, were among the many homes and courts that adopted these cards by the 17th and 18th centuries. Interestingly, even the ladies in the zenanas played ganjifa frequently, offering an intriguing glimpse into the gender dynamics of card games at the time.
Evolution of Ganjifa in India
Ganjifa as it spread throughout India’s various regions, and they helped shape its development. An important shift in the design of the cards and the ways of playing was the insertion of indigenous motifs, such as representations of gods and other subjects. Interestingly, the dashavatara ganjifa appeared as a ten-suit pack that included the 10 manifestations of Lord Vishnu, one of the Trimurti and the universe’s preserver. The eleven painted manifestations of Vishnu were depicted on these finely created cards.
Additionally, artists were able to showcase their ingenuity by creating cards with a variety of ornamental pictures, such as different kinds of flowers, animals, and birds, thanks to the complex card-playing system and the artistry involved. A few surviving cards from a flower ganjifa, which may have originated in Kashmir, add to the depth and complexity of this creative legacy, while the bird and animal ganjifa cards were quite popular in Rajasthan. These cards have evolved in different states of India and compost their own regional variations and belief systems, such as Navadurga from Odisha, Gujarat and Rajasthan Ganjifa, Mysore Ganjifa, Kashmir Ganjifa, and Sawantwadi from Maharashtra are a few examples. Each style’s cards are distinct and feature various motifs and themes.
Orissa Ganjifa Cards: Themes and Motifs
Ganijfa cards adopted regional styles as they catch the interest of large audiences, and Orissa is one of the regions where the popularity of ganjifa reaches the local population in Orissa it is called Ganjapa, and these cards adopted the local style, where the Indigenous art style know Pattachitra become the medium to decorate the Ganjapa or Ganjifa cards, gradually Orissa becomes the largest community of Players and manufacturers. In today’s scenario Raghurajpur the craft village of Orissa, artists engaged in the creation of gangifa cards. The dacks of ganjifa cards included themes like Ramayana suits of cards, Dashavatara and many others.
Representation of Dashavatara of Vishnu with regional motifs
The card suits of Dashavatara usually consist of ten suits, but the Orissian cards have added two extra cards which showcase the representation of Lord Ganesha and Skanda along with the ten incarnations of Vishnu, the most important feature which becomes identical is the iconography of avatars which varies according to regional beliefs among Balrama, Krishna and Jagannath.
Matysa: the first avatar Matya shows a symbolic representation of a fish, the suit’s colour is black or red.
Kurma: the second avatar is a tortoise, where in suits tortoises painted in red, crimson, yellow or brown colour.
Narasimha: a third form, a lion-man form, in suit chakra or lion, has been shown against the blue and white background.
Vamana: In Orissa ganjifa cards this form of Vishnu appeared in blue, and kamandalu or chatri(umbrella) as a suit symbol to show the representation of the dwarf-brahmin form of Vishnu and king Bali.
Parshurama: the form of Rama with an axe appeared in white, where Vishnu destroys the Kshatriyas, with the axe as a suit symbol.
Rama: Rama is an ideal son, who defeated Ravana, in cards he is represented fighting with Ravana and the suit symbolises his weapon bow and arrow.
Balarama: Balaram is the elder brother of lord Krishna, and the suit symbol is the plough(hala)
Krishna: Krishna is the significant incarnation of Vishnu, Lord Jagannatha who is the main idol of Orissa has occupied this place, A representation of the black idol worshipped in the temple of Puri has been popular in Orissan culture. The Jagannatha suit symbol is the lotus.
Kalki,considered the last incarnation of Lord Vishnu, is also popular in ganjifa cards, with swords and horses depicted as suit symbols.
This article has dealt with the story of art and its variant representation as the art and artist’s treasure is not limited to a broad medium. Painting a ganjifa cards is the artist’s challenge where the artist has various symbolic traditions within a small space, these cards not only visualise entertainment purposes but also showcase the inner cultural tradition of the particular region.
