Ali guli mane

From Wikimanqala

Ali guli mane

Played in: India (Karnataka)
One cycle
Pussa-kanawa lap
Holes captured between games
7 holes per row
Two rows

Ali guli mane ("block of wood with holes") is a popular mancala game native to South India, especially Karnataka. The game is played by the young and the old alike. Its concept is sowing and reaping - an integral part of rural life all over India.

The game board is made out of wood and sometimes of metal. I earlier days, boards were even carved into stone slabs on veranda floors.

The counters used to play the game are tamarind seeds or tiny cowrie shells.

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Rules

The board called ane consists of two rows, each with seven holes.

At the start of the game each hole contains five seeds.

Initial Position

On his turn a player picks up the counters of one of his holes and distributes them into the following holes one by one anti-clockwise.

After the last counter was dropped into a hole, the contents of the following hole are distributed in another lap as usual in India.

The move ends when the following hole is empty. This is called saada.

If the hole was empty, the player captures the contents if any of the succeeding hole. In addition, he captures the contents of the hole opposite to that hole.

Each turn a player may move twice, if he captures in his first move. Then his term ends after two saadas.

A player must move unless he has nothing to play with.

The game is finished when when all counters are taken.

The player who has collected most counters wins the game.

In the next round, each player tries to fill his holes with five counters from his winnings. These holes which cannot be filled are marked with a pebble or a twig and are avoided for further play. The match is continued until one player is unable to fill even one hole.

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