No one knows where hopscotch began. Chinese texts make mention of it as early as 2357 B.C. Whether inscribed on sepulchres in Egypt, Greece or elsewhere, the game has always used the same rectangular or spiral plan.
The player hops along, pushing a marker that represents the soul. If he wobbles, it is because his soul is weak and he must work at purifying himself to get to heaven. After avoiding hell, and earning different merits, the player reaches heaven, picks up the marker (his soul) and places it under his arm or on his head, symbolizing the re-merging of soul and body.
The aim of the game is to avoid stepping on the lines dividing the boxes, symbolic of keeping one's life free of uncertainty. Hopscotch is entirely predictable. It is a game of initiation, which helps the player learn about himself through the development of certain skills.
Once scratched in the dirt, hopscotch was later drawn on flat surfaces. It is the predecessor of board games such as Go, Chess, Checkers, etc., which are known as seated hopscotch games.
