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Original Mahjong Rules

The legends surrounding Mahjong claim that it was invented by Confucius to promote his three favorite virtues. While that may not be true, this addictive and popular game was certainly a passion in 19th century China before moving to Japan, England and America in the 1920s. While over the decades each new country has added its own rules and regulations, the original Chinese game is similar to Gin Rummy.

The Tiles
- Assemble your set of tiles face down. There should be 144 tiles in all, including 36 each of the Bamboo, Circle and Character suits, 16 Wind and12 Dragon tiles. There are four each of the Flower and Season suits, but they are considered optional in Chinese play and only used for bonus points.
Build the Wall
- Draw one of the Wind tiles, and position yourself according to the tile you drew, with the person getting the East Wind tile becoming the first to play. Each player draws 34 tiles and uses them to build a wall 17 tiles long and two tiles deep. Have each player's wall touch to form a square, representing the Great Wall of China.
Break the Wall
- Roll the dice. Use that number to determine whose wall to break. Take two tiles from that player, then distribute all the remaining tiles to the other players. Everyone should have 13 tiles except the player in the East Wind position. She'll have 14 tiles.
Playing the Game
- Take a tile, then discard a tile inside the remainder of the wall. You're trying to score a Pung (a set of three identical tiles), a Kong (a set of four identical tiles) or a Chow (a run of three identical tiles in the same suit). The first player to score a pair and four Pungs, Kongs or Chows calls Mahjong and wins the game.

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