(feature article)

What do you know about Japan? Sushi, samurai, anime, robots – these are the first associations that arise while mentioning this amazing country. The Japanese know how to impress with many things: modern technologies, incredible inventions, ancient customs and how harmoniously all this is combined their contempo culture.

Have you ever heard of Karuta? Uta-karuta (from the Japanese “song card”) is a national Japanese card game, the origins of which date back to the 8th-12th centuries. Traditionally, the collection “One Hundred Poems of One Hundred Poets” is used to play Karuta, where each work has a clear form — 5 lines and 31 syllables. This leads to the convenience of writing poetry on two types of cards: yomifuda (reading cards) and torifuda (taking cards).

The main goal of the game is to find the end of the poem faster than the opponent. It is astonishing that the Karuta appeared in its usual form in the 17th century, after the introduction of paper maps by the Portuguese. Before that, other materials were used for the game: shells, wooden chips, bamboo plates. They depicted parts of one picture, lines of a poem or song, which then had to be connected to each other. It was the second option that later became the basis of Karuta.

However, even with the advent of paper maps, entertainment was not cheap, since until the end of the 18th century, each map was made and painted by hand by masters. Only the aristocracy could afford it. Therefore, later, the ability to play Karuta became considered a necessary element of education for all representatives of the nobility, and cards were among the dowries for brides.

Today, uta-karuta is popular throughout society, regardless of gender, age or profession. Knowing all the works from the collection “One Hundred Poems of One Hundred Poets” is the sacred duty of every educated Japanese, and the game itself has ceased to be just entertainment for the rich. It is an integral part of many spheres of social life. Karuta is widely used in education, in particular in literature and language classes, among other things, not only Japanese.

Karuta not only develops memory, attention and perseverance, but also helps maintain good physical shape. Players have to constantly work on mobility, lightness and accuracy of the shot, as well as on endurance, because in tournaments you have to play up to 5 matches a day.

So, Karuta is not just a game. These are traditions, a way to understand the spirit of the past era, a way to get closer to the beautiful. So, if you became interested, wanted to dive into the incredible world of Karuta – play and enjoy it to the fullest.