Chennai Center for History and Culture

Figure 1.  Mahendran reading the epigraph alongside the game of Pallankuzhi. Photo by Mathivanan.V

This research paper is based on discovery of five board games in 2007 by Mr. Mahendran. The study lasted for seven years and was published in the year 2018. The five board games are etched on a flat horizontal rock surface, clustered within a radius of ten feet. Hence the title ‘The Ancient Play Station’ probably the only one of its kind in India.  The three epigraphs tell us about the local chieftains responsible for creating the board games.

The author, Mahendran draws upon the theory of Transactional Analysis by Dr. Eric Berne to explain the psychodynamics of the tendency to play these games which are commonly termed as time-pass.  He has categorised the games as man versus man, man versus chance, man versus his own self. The paper further throws light on how the traditional games have been replaced by computer-based video games including fantasy games in life-like virtual reality, and artificial intelligence. This reflects the complexity of the socio-technical environment of our present nano-tech society. The most brilliant section is the research and analysis of time structuring and its importance in human resource management and the therapeutic uses to educate mentally challenged children and help them to improve social interactions, arithmetic, and motor skills and also to treat hyperactive or autistic children too. This article was published in the 2nd of the three-volume encyclopedia.