Andy's Playing Cards - Japanese Matching Cards - Dôsai Karuta

Dôsai Karuta is a game whose cards resemble the ones used for playing Iroha, i.e. the popular children's pastime based on traditional proverbs; not many of these can be translated literally, and few of the ones who can would make sense to a Westener, as they are highly metaphoric, and often allude to personages of the old Japanese folk culture. For instance, card no.33 reads "a gold coin to a cat", whose real meaning is "a big waste of resources". The same name Dôsai Karuta comes from the saying of card no.10, the highest scoring subject of the set, which roughly means "learn a lesson from this, Dôsai" (the name of a young Buddhist monk, whose poor ability, due to a lack of experience, the proverb refers to).

Also these cards are based on popular sayings; they consist of a double set of subjects: colourful naive scenes which refer to the proverb's meaning ( efuda, "picture cards", or torifuda, "grabbing cards"), and text cards with the first half of the proverb spelt in black handwritten script on a white background ( yomifuda, or reading cards). The back of these cards is plain, red/brownish for the efuda, and black for the yomifuda (i.e. the same back colours used for double Hanafuda sets), but in some editions the colours are gold and silver, respectively. The Dôsai cards are also similar in size to Hanafuda and other gambling cards rather than to Iroha ones, and the number of subjects is greater (sixty-two and sixty-two), but in early times their overall look could have been easily mistaken for innocent proverb cards.

efuda and yomifuda no.59:
"when three men come together, there is wisdom"

From the Gojuu-Ku Karuta ("fifty verse cards", used between the 18th and the early 19th century, also mentioned in part 2 about Iroha Karuta) sprang a variety now called Kodousai Karuta ("old Dousai cards"), consisting of eighty-five proverbs and sayings, some borrowed from the earlier set, and some new.
By the end of the Edo period, in the mid 1800s, the game was simplified into its present form, by reducing the number of subjects (proverbs), and by replacing a few of them.

After having spread to the Osaka-Kyoto-Kobe area, the popularity of Dôsai Karuta gradually subsided during the 20th century. The game is now enjoyed by a rather restricted number of people in Kyoto only.

detail of the previous couple:
number 59, worth 2 points At first sight, the efuda are similar to the ones of Iroha Karuta (see part 2). But in place of the initial syllable of the proverb, usually inscribed in a circle, which characterizes every Iroha set, in Dousai Karuta the efuda bear two numbers, as seen in the enlarged detail on the left: the one enclosed by a tiny fan-shaped cartouche filled with colour is the subject's progressive number, running from 1 to 62 (numerals read from right to left, according to the old Japanese custom). This same number is also found in the matching yomifuda card, spelt vertically, in an oval cartouche.

The other two glyphs, only found in efuda, indicate how many points the card is worth; in some subjects these ones too have a frame, or are inscribed in other details of the illustration. The left character (otherwise spelt ) stands for mon, the smallest piece of Japan's old coinage, in use prior to 1868: in settling dues among the players, though, one point does not mean one actual mon, but one stake unit, or chip, which once used to be ten times this sum, or more. Therefore, each card's value is best referred to in terms of "points". Apparently, nowadays gamblers fix this unit as high as 1,000 Yen!

Among the many subjects, only one of them is worth 20 points, three are worth 15, seven are worth 10, seven are worth 4, ten are worth 3, seventeen are worth 2 and fifteen are worth 1 (see the table below). There is no connection between the card's number and the points it is worth, or the theme of its illustration.
The highest scoring subject, i.e. 20 points, after whose proverb the game is names (as previously mentioned) is no.10; it is also referred to as the first general.

no.10, i.e. the first general, worth 20 points, followed by
nos.38 (second general), 2 (third general) and 19 (fourth general)
The three cards worth 15 points are nos.38, 2 and 19, respectively called the second general, the third general and the fourth general.

The table on the right shows how the 246 total points are arranged; the scheme refers to the edition shown in this page, by Matsui Tengudô. In editions by other manufacturers the points may follow a slightly different scheme.

a selection of subjects: from the left, no.20 (10 points), no.51 (4 points),
no.32 (3 points), no.44 (2 points), no.42 (1 point)

1 card x 20 points

3 cards x 15 points

7 cards x 10 points

7 cards x 4 points

10 cards x 3 points

19 cards x 2 points

15 cards x 1 point

62 cards

Subjects nos.30, 33, 46, 50, 54 and 61 are called bakefuda, roughly translatable as "disguise cards", or "cards that take the shape of others".
Nos.30, 33, 54 and 61 are called "the four bakefuda", and give the holder a special benefit. Nos.46 and 50 are special, as well, but with a different property. All of them are dealt with further in this page, where their picture is also shown.

Hanafuda-like subjects: Cherry ribbon and boar	Among the Dôsai subjects, a few of them seem to have been inspired by Hanafuda illustrations, such as the two shown on the left (nos. 26 and 47). Some of the proverbs featured are in common with Iroha editions, especially with the Kamigata Iroha series, as the one on the right; others were also shared with the obsolete "50-verse cards" or the old Dousai karuta series, while others are unique of the present version.	no.28: "fortune comes to a happy household"

In any case, these proverbs do not follow any particular scheme nor ordering based on the Japanese table of syllables, as the ones in Iroha do.

The Dôsai Karuta set also includes two identical series of cards featuring large stylized characters for nos.1 through 6, called suujifuda ("numeral cards"), very similar to those called harifuda in the game of Tehonbiki; one series has red backs, the other one has black backs. These cards do not have an active role in play, being merely used as indicators, as the following paragraph explains more in detail.

THE GAME: SANJÔ DÔSAI
Game rules are not usually dealt with by this webpage, but apparently no other Western source about Dôsai Karuta is presently available, and some collectors may also find interesting to know how to play.

the six numeral cards, and their backs

The old rules have likely changed since the 19th century; these are the ones now followed by the small community of Dôsai Karuta fanciers in Kyoto for the main game, called Sanjô Dôsai, roughly meaning "three-piece Dôsai"; others whose name is known are Kan-i Dôsai played in Kyoto, as well, and Yao Dôsai, played in Osaka.

nos. 8 and 23, not used

Usually six players take part, while a seventh person acts as a reader. The number of players, though, can be smaller (but no less than three).
At first, the subjects nos.8 and 23 are taken out of the deck.
The remaining sixty efuda (red backs) are turned face down, shuffled, and six piles of ten cards each are formed. Each of these piles is called a house.
The same shuffling and piling is done with the yomifuda (black backs), although there is no need for these piles to be regular and contain a fixed number of cards.

The numeral cards with a red background are shuffled, and randomly laid face up on top of the six houses, one card on each pile.

Then the black series of numeral cards are shuffled and handed out; each player receives one and, according to the number, takes the matching house.
If less than six people take part, one or more players receive two numeral cards, thus taking two houses.

The players arrange their own house of efuda face up, in three rows of three cards each, with the last card placed horizontally at the top (as in the picture on the right). The four rows are called, from top to bottom, head, upper level, middle level, lower level.

The reader ("G" in our example) picks one yomifuda, and reads its text; since not all players may be fully acquainted with the old sayings, the number of the subject may be also called out.
Who holds the matching efuda must turn it face down, leaving it in its original position, what is said to extinguish the card, and receives from each other player a sum equals to the number of points it is worth. For a printable table showing each card's value, click on this LINK. The number of points each subject is worth partly depends on the edition of the set: the ones mentioned in this page refer to the Dôsai Karuta by Matsui Tengudo, but the same game by other manufacturers may partly mismatch this scheme, so players should refer to the set they are playing with.

Players whose own level matching the one of the called card has already been completely exinguished, do not have to pay. For instance, if in the situation shown on the left card no.41 is called out, and player D has it in the middle row, he receives the relevant payment of two points (or chips) from A, C, E and F, but not from B, as the whole central row of the latter player is already extinguished. In applying this rule, also the single card in the head counts as a full row.

Every five yomifuda, the reader calls hako ("box"), which doubles the points of the card; in other words, every fifth extinguished efuda is payed for by the other players two times its actual value (a pure element of gamble). In order not to forget the hako call, it is convenient to keep the yomifuda cards previously read in groups of five, as seen in the picture above.

The subjects nos.30, 33, 54, 61 ("the four bakefuda") bestow the holder with the special power of eating the following call: this means that when either of the four becomes extinguished, the same player receives the payment for the next subject called by the reader, in place of the actual holder of the card, i.e. the holder of the next subject called out is replaced by the player whose bakefuda has just been turned face down.

Only one card overrides this rule: no.2, or third general, featuring a rising sun ("the frost in the morning sun", reads its proverb).
In the example shown on the right, if player A has just extinguished subject no.30 (yellow asterisk), and the following card called by the reader is no.51 (worth 4 points) held by player F, not F but A receives four chips or stakes from each other player, including F. But if instead of no.51 the card called out is no.2, whoever is the holder gets regularly payed, regardless of the "eating" rule.

from the left: nos.30, 33, 54, 61 (the four bakefuda), followed by nos.46 and 50

When all ten cards of a house have been extinguished, this is called nobori ("ascent").

The cards numbered 46 and 50 can be extinguished by the holder at the end of the hand even if they have not been called out. Therefore, they are friendly cards, as they both help the player to reach the aforesaid nobori condition more easily. But only in the case they are extinguished during play, i.e. if the matching yomifuda is called by the reader, the other players have to pay the holder the card's face value.

The hand ends when ten yomifuda are left uncalled. Among the players, the same number of efuda should be left unextinguished (obviously before either nos.46 or 50, if not called yet, are turned round thanks to their special property). Each house that still has one or more cards face up pays twenty points (or chips), and the total sum is shared among the houses that turned nobori, i.e. completely extinguished. In the example on the left, A, D, E and F pay 20 points each, and the pool of 80 points is then shared between B and C (both nobori), who receive 40 points each.

MUBEYAMA KARUTA

Mubeyama Karuta is the variety of disguised gambling cards that mimics Uta Karuta, the 100-poet game (see part 1).

It consists of two sets of 100 cards each, one featuring an illustration together with the whole poem (efuda, or torifuda), the other featuring only one part of the poem (yomifuda, the reading cards). The poems are the same ones belonging to the classic Hyaku-nin Isshu anthology, but instead of depicting the author of the verses, as in Uta Karuta, the subjects featured are genre scenes consistent with the theme of the poem, in a somewhat humorous style, typical of the Edo period (1603-1867). However, the structure of the set is the same, and since in modern times Mubeyama sets have become difficult to obtain, a standard Uta Karuta set may be used as a replacement.

sample of Mubeyama Karuta subjects
(courtesy of Tadahiko Norieda)

Also Mubeyama cards were named after the text of one of the poems, which mentions an obscure "Mubeyama wind with a storm".

Each subject is marked with a number, from 1 to 100, inscribed in a small cartouche whose shape is identical to the one found in Dôsai Karuta, but no points are mentioned.

three more Mubeyama Karuta subjects
(courtesy of Tadahiko Norieda)

The game of Mubeyama Karuta is no longer played. Either four of five players took part, and a reader was also required. The 100 efuda were dealt to the players, who arranged them in a specific number of rows, face up. Then one card at a time, the yomifuda were read, and the holder of the relevant efuda turned the card face down. Therefore, the structure of the game was rather similar to Dôsai Karuta. Some differences may have concerned the opening layout, and how the points were counted, but some details remain obscure, having the Mubeyama Karuta become obsolete since the early 1900s; an early simplified description of the game, dating back to the Edo period, is the only record left about the rules.

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part 1 HEN-TSUKURI KARUTA UTA KARUTA	part 2 IROHA KARUTA	part 3 VARIANTS OF THE IROHA KARUTA