Cosmic Game of Snakes and Arrows

A profound and modern approach to playing the ancient board game• Offers a comprehensive guide to the traditional Hindu game gyān caupar—a predecessor to Snakes and Arrows—and includes a three-color gameboard allowing readers to play• Analyzes archetypes of consciousness with the 72 squares of gyān caupar, enriched by spiritual references to deepen the game’s messages• Offers instruction for conducting personal development ceremonies and receiving guidance from the gameThe origins of Snakes and Arrows trace back to gyan caupar, or the “game of knowledge,” a spiritual board game from ancient India. Like other forms of divination, such as the I Ching and the Tarot, the game offers a playful yet profound approach to explore the self, the present, and the future as well as understand one’s destiny.Polina Rud delves into the oracle, shedding light on gyan caupar’s archetypal wisdom and its power as a divinatory tool. Using a 72-square gameboard, players are invited to step back and observe their lives from above, seeing the emotional and behavioral patterns that guide their steps and, at times, lead them astray. Rud shows how the 72 squares represent different levels of human experience. Each square provides a philosophical key while practical exercises reveal the hidden beliefs and obstacles that hinder progress in the area of life that matters most to the player. The game’s ascending path mirrors spiritual evolution and guides players toward enlightenment, akin to systems like the Kabbalistic Tree of Life or the Road to Paradise. Rud shows how gyan caupar symbolizes the psyche’s journey, leading toward the ultimate prize: cosmic consciousness.The Cosmic Game of Snakes and Arrows offers a way to learn more deeply about who you are while fostering a connection with the divine.

Polina Rud, a doctoral candidate in art history at Moscow University with a master’s in international relations, is an art curator and lecturer. With expertise in Theosophy, Nordic runic oracles, and Hindu astrology, she combines therapeutic experience, including mental health and suicide risk training at UNAM, with diverse spiritual teachings. A renowned gyan caupar guide, she helps individuals uncover hidden obstacles. She lives in Mexico City.