Rock, Paper, Scissors: The untold origin story of this classic hand game 

Decision making, we all know, is a critical life skill. What if you could master it through a simple, yet fun game? Actually, there are many games that boost our decision-making skills. One among them is Rock Paper Scissors. While many of you must have played it already, some of you may not be aware of it. It’s a simple hand game played by two players and centres around three objects: Rock, paper and scissors. Each player has to choose one of these and reveal their choice at the same time. The winner is decided by this rule of thumb:  Rock defeats scissors, paper defeats rock by covering it, and scissors defeat paper by cutting it. Wondering where and how it originated or how it became a strategy game globally? Come, let’s find out.  

The early version 

Wuzazu, a book written by Chinese author Xie Zhaozhi, has the first recorded reference of a game similar to the Rock, Paper, Scissors game. According to this book, the game originated during the Chinese Han dynasty (206 BC - 220 AD) and back then it was called shoushiling. Players had to choose between these to make hand signs: Frog, slug and snake. The options were denoted by hand gestures, much like in the game we play today: 

• An extended thumb denoted the frog. 
• An extended little finger denoted the slug. 
• An extended index finger represented the snake. 
   

Shoushiling was exclusively played in China for hundreds of years, but it ultimately spread to other parts of the world. It also endured some strange alterations during its voyage! 

Rock, Paper, Scissors reaches Japan! 

In the 1700s, shoushiling was brought to the people of Japan from China, where it is now known as jan-ken. Here, players have to choose any one of the three hand gestures denoting fox, gun or hunter and a village leader. Who’s the winner? The fox wins against the village leader, who defeats the hunter or gun, who, in turn, beats the fox. In Japan, games similar to Rock Paper Scissors used to be referred to as sansukumi-ken, historically. This is a term that loosely translates to 'three are afraid of one another.’ Today, this popular strategy game is played worldwide using rock, papers and scissor gestures.  

The Indonesian version 

The game developed considerably as it expanded throughout Asia. Take the Indonesian version for example. It is known as semut, orang, gajah, which translates to ant, human and elephant. Here, an elephant kills a man by stomping him to death, a human tramples down a tiny ant and an ant sneaks into the elephant’s brain, killing or driving it insane.  

Rock, Paper, Scissors beyond Asia 

The rock, paper, scissors game had expanded beyond Asia by 20th century, owing to greater Japanese engagement with the West. The well-liked Asian hand game reached Great Britain in the 1920s. In 1927, La Vie au Patronage, a French children's magazine also described the game in-depth, referring to the Japanese version. In 1932, the rules of Rock, Paper, Scissors were even published in a New York Times (newspaper) article. 

A tournament dedicated to this game  

The World Rock Paper Scissors Association, or WRPSA, is a Canada-based exclusive platform for championship-level RPS tournaments for professional RPS athletes. The WRPSA membership is free! All you need to do is complete a simple form on their website with your name, gender, date of birth, email and preferred RPS move. After that, you are a professional athlete! 

The competition's rules are pretty basic. The participants must remain on opposite sides of the table. In addition, a referee oversees the contest. Simple rules you should be aware of are that paper beats rock, scissors beat paper and rocks beat scissors! Yes, the same ones as you play. Here is another fun fact for you: There is a day dedicated to this game. Known as the World Rock Paper Scissors Day,  it honours the well-known hand game every year on August 27.