Mubeyama Karuta is a bingo-style gambling game using Hyakunin Isshu Karuta from the Okayama prefecture in Japan, that was very popular from the mid-Edo period to the Meiji period.
The game is named after the following poem written by Fun’ya no Yasuhide:
#22 Fun’ya no Yasuhide
| Japanese | Romaji | English |
|---|---|---|
| 吹くからに 秋の草木の しをるれば むべ山風を あらしといふらむ |
Fuku kara ni Aki no kusaki no Shiorureba Mube yama kaze o Arashi to iuran |
It is by its breath That autumn’s leaves of trees and grass Are wasted and driven. So they call this mountain wind The wild one, the destroyer. |
Originally, the game was created during the Genroku era as an elegant way of playing Hyakunin Isshu karuta, without using fast reflexes like in the typical method of playing the game.
Eventually, the game was adapted for gambling, and some time later in the Edo period, card makers were manufacturing special sets designed specifically for playing Mubeyama Karuta.
The game is played with 1 person reading the Yomifuda (hereafter refered to as the “reader”), and players competing in the game.
Only the players compete in the game. The reader’s role is to read the Yomifuda only.
The Torifuda are divided equally between a preset number of players, who then arrange them neatly in rows.
The reader reads the Yomifuda, and the player must then check their cards if they have the corresponding Torifuda. If they do, they flip it face-down.
The reader must double-check if a player has flipped the corresponding Torifuda before reading the next Yomifuda.
A player is paid points for either completing a row of Torifuda, or flipping a Torifuda of special “yaku” poems, which contain certain words.
There are many different configurations of this game, depending on the attested ruleset.
This is one the oldest variations of this game, and also resembles Bingo the most.
The game can be played by 4 or 6 players.
When playing with 4 players, each player is given 25 Torifuda, arranged face-up in a 5x5 grid.
When playing with 6 players, each player is given 16 Torifuda, arranged face-up in a 4x4 grid.
There will be 4 Torifuda left unused in a 6 player game.
The reader draws a Yomifuda from the deck and starts reading it out loud. Players must recognize the poem being read, and check their cards if they have the corresponding Torifuda. If they do, they flip it face-down.
A player wins if a line of Torifuda are flipped face-down. It can be vertical, horizontal, or diagonal, just like in Bingo.
There are no “yaku” poems in this ruleset.
This was recorded in 1952 by Keikazu Izumoji, a descendant of the Izumoji family of Shinto priests in Kyoto.
The game can be played by 5 or 6 players.
When playing with 5 players, each player is given 20 Torifuda, arranged neatly by the player.
When playing with 6 players, each player is given 16 Torifuda, arranged neatly by the player.
There will be 4 Torifuda left unused in a 6 player game.
The gameplay is the same as in the Okayama version, however, instead of aiming to form a line of face-down cards, players aim to place all of their cards face-down. So in this regard, it resembles Blackout Bingo more than it does regular Bingo.
However, the interesting part of this game are the “yaku” poems. These are poems whose latter half of the poem contain specific words or phrases (with exception of poems #1 and #100). They are considered powerful in this game, because they allow players to pass their Torifuda to other players.
“Yaku” poems in this set include those whose Torifuda contain the following key words:
| Japanese (Romaji, ‘English’) |
Poem number |
|---|---|
| 人 - ひと (hito, ‘person’) |
#8, #11, #18, #25, #28, #38, #39, #40, #41, #44, #47, #58, #63, #66, #92 |
| 戀 - こひ (kohi, ‘love’) |
#13, #27, #39, #46, #65, #68, #84, #88 |
| 關 - せき (seki, ‘gate’) |
#10, #62, #78 |
| 雪 - ゆき (yuki, ‘snow’) |
#4, #15, #31, #96 |
| 月 - つき (tsuki, ‘moon’) |
#7, #21, #36, #57, #59, #68, #79, #81 |
| 花 - はな (hana, ‘flower’) |
#29, #33, #35, #66 |
Editor’s note: Supposedly there are only 28 Torifuda with the above key words, but it seems that I have found 39 of them in total. Probably only some of these poems are used in the game. NEEDS MORE DOCUMENTATION
If a player flips a Torifuda that contains one of the above key words, that player passes one face-up Torifuda to the player on their right.
If a player flips a Torifuda that is either of the poem #1 (“Aki no ta no…”) or poem #100 (“Momoshiki ya…”), that player passes one face-up Torifuda to the player on their right.
If a player flips a Torifuda that contains two of the above key words, that player passes two face-up Torifuda to the player on their right. These cards include those of poems #39, #66, and #68.
The theme of this set is Mountains, and the Torifuda contain the following key phrases:
| Japanese (Romaji, ‘English’) |
Poem number |
|---|---|
| 富士の高嶺に - ふじのたかねに (Fuji no takane ni, ‘on Fuji’s peak’) |
#4 |
| 三笠の山に - みかさのやみに (Mikasa no yama ni, ‘on Mount Mikasa’) |
#7 |
| をとめの姿 - をとめのすがた (otome no sugata, ‘maiden’s appearance’) |
#12 |
| 外山の霞 - とやまのかすみ (toyama no kasumi, ‘Toyama mountain mist’) |
#73 |
| むべ山風を - むべやまかぜを (mubeyama kaze wo, ‘Mubeyama mountain wind’) |
#22 |
If a player flips a Torifuda that is either of the poem #4, #7, #12, or #73, that player passes one face-up Torifuda to each of the other players.
If a player flips a Torifuda of the poem #22 (the one which contains the phrase “Mubeyama kaze wo…”), that player passes two face-up Torifuda to each of the other players.. This is regarded as the most powerful Yaku poem in the game since you pass many cards away from your table, which will make victory easier to achieve.
Unlike the first 2 Yaku poem sets which are advantageous, the Yaku poems in the 3rd set are disadvantageous to the player who flip the Torifuda. These are also called “Batsu” poems.
The theme of this set is Sadness, and the Torifuda contain the following words:
| Japanese (Romaji, ‘English’) |
Poem number |
|---|---|
| 泣く - なく (naku, ‘cry’) |
#14, #34, #83 |
| 悲し - かなし (kanashi, ‘sadness’) |
#5, #93 |
| 涙 - なみだ (namida, ‘tears’) |
#82, #86 |
Note that only poems #5, #82, and #86 contain the actual words in their original meaning, while in poems #14, #34, #83, and #93, the words only appear in a pun.
The following ruleset was recorded in “Bakuchi Shikata Fūbunsho” (‘Report book on the Methods of Gambling’), a report book of the Edo Town Magistrate’s Office written during the Kansei era (1789-1802).
First, the amounts paid to a player for achieving certain actions are determined:
During the time the book was written, the currency being used was the Mon (文).
The game is played by 4 players, each having 25 Torifuda.
Each player arranges the Torifuda in a pyramid formation:
*The book actually mentions to put 6 cards on the 3rd row, but that would make the total number of Torifuda to 26. So it is assumed to be a mistake and that the 3rd row actually has 5 cards.
It is also possible to play such that there is no face-down card, by removing the card at the peak and placing it face-up on the 3rd row instead. Decide first whether to use this formation before playing the game.
The reader draws a Yomifuda from the deck and starts reading it out loud. Players must recognize the poem being read, and check their cards if they have the corresponding Torifuda. If they do, they flip it face-down.
A player is paid Mon by each of the other players for the following:
The game ends when a player finishes every row of Torifuda on their table. The player with the most Mon wins.
It is also possible to play the game with 5 players, each having 20 Torifuda.
The Torifuda are arranged in a truncated pyramid formation as follows:
Other than the changed formation and the lack of hidden card, the game is played exactly the same as the 4-player version.