In mythological tales, gods and heroes do play games and sports. Vedic gods do chariot racing in order to decide who gets the bigger share of the Soma juice. Shiva and Parvati are shown playing board games. Sita plays solitaire to cope with loneliness. Bhagavata describes a game played by Krishna and Balaram where losers carry winners on their shoulders. Then there are martial games like wrestling and archery, where the trophy was often a princess! Ram wins a wife by stringing a bow, Arjun wins a wife by striking the eye of a fish, and Krishna wins a wife by yoking seven wild bulls.

Games and sports were invented by human beings for various reasons. The game of snakes and ladders was invented by monks to teach us about fortune and misfortune, which are not in human hands. Dice was used to teach people about luck. Card was a game that taught you about fate (cards you were dealt with) and free will (how you played the cards). Chess was invented for kings to encourage strategic thinking. Hide-and-seek prepared people to be alert in strange neighbourhoods, and protect themselves during village raids.