Introduction:
前言:
Chinese New Year is probably the only time of the year when you can play mahjong without being accused of engaging in illegal gambling. But while happy Chinese people everywhere are having a good time and laughing joyfully as they play, foreigners are left scratching their heads, unable to understand this quintessential part of Chinese culture. Here's Mahjong 101 for those who feel left out and can't wait any longer to break the cultural barrier.
中國新年大概是一年中唯一可以合法打麻將的時候，不過當喜氣洋洋的中國人愉快地打著麻將，輕快的摸牌聲伴隨著笑聲響徹雲霄，外國人卻丈二金剛摸不著頭緒，無法了解這項中國國粹。Taipie Times特別規劃「麻將自救手冊」給覺得自己被冷落，或是等不及想打破文化藩籬的你。
The origins of mahjong:
麻將的起源
There are several theories about the origins of mahjong, but the most plausible one suggests Confucius developed the game around 500BC; the appearance of mahjong coincides with Confucius' travels, and the three main tiles correspond to his three basic doctrines: prosperity, benevolence and sincerity. All right, enough dry theory, we know you're chomping at the bit to play.
關於麻將的起源有幾個不同的理論，但是比較可信的說法是孔子在西元五百年前發明了麻將，因為麻將的圖字呼應他周遊列國的經歷及三大教條：昌盛、仁愛、意誠。好了，枯燥的理論說太多，你大概磨拳擦掌，躍躍欲試了吧。
Where can I buy a Mahjong set?
哪裡可以買到麻將？
A basic plastic set costs about NT$900. You can find one at major retailers and nightmarkets.
一副簡單的麻將約要新台幣九百元左右，各大賣場或夜市都買得到。
Suits of the tiles:
牌型介紹:
There are several kinds of mahjong. The mahjong we'll focus on is Taiwanese mahjong, which uses 144 tiles: 108 suit tiles, 28 honor tiles and 8 bonus tiles.
麻將有幾種形式，我們這裡談的是有一百四十四張牌的台灣麻將:其中有一百零八張同花色牌組、二十八張字牌和八張花牌。
1. There are three kinds of suit tiles, one kind showing a line, another a dot, and another a character. In Chinese we call them 索 (suo3), 筒 (tong3), and 萬 (wan4) respectively.
1.同花色牌組有筒字牌、索字牌和萬字牌。
Note: Yes, that's right, the first "suo" tile looks like a bird. That's why we sometimes call this tile "yi1 zhi1" (一隻).
註：是的，第一張索看起來像一隻鳥，所以我們有時叫它「一隻」。
2. The honor tiles consist of dragon tiles and wind tiles. Dragon tiles come in three different colors and wind tiles come in four different directions.
2.字牌包括三色的三元牌和有四種風向的四喜牌。
Here's how they look:
牌型如下：
The dragon tiles are called red 紅中 (hong2 zhong1)、white 白板 (bai2 ban3) and green 青發 (qing1 fa1).
The wind tiles are East 東 (dong1), South 南 (nan2), West 西 (xi1), and North 北 (bei3).
3. Lastly, bonus tiles 花牌 (hua1 pai2) are as follows.
3.最後花牌牌型如下：
The tiles mean: plum, orchid, bamboo, chrysanthemum, spring, summer, fall and winter. In Chinese they are written 梅 (mei2), 蘭 (lan2), 竹 (xhu2), 菊 (ju2), 春 (chun1), 夏 (xia4), 秋 (qiu1), 冬 (dong1) respectively.
Building the wall:
如何堆牌:
1. You need four people to play the game, and it's best to have a square table instead of a round one.
1.這個遊戲一共需要四個人，而且最好找一張四方桌，不要圓桌。
2. Take out one of each kind of wind tile and flip them over. Each player chooses one tile to decide where he will sit. For example, whoever picks up the North wind tile should sit to the North. Players should determine where each direction is located on the table before picking tiles.
2.拿出東南西北四喜牌，蓋起來，每個人抽一張，抽到北風就坐北位，不過玩家要事先決定桌子的風位。
3. Mix up all the tiles thoroughly and put them on the table facing down.
3.把牌蓋起來徹底搓乾淨。
4. Each player randomly selects 36 tiles to make a wall in front of him consisting of two horizontalrows of 18 face down tiles. Use the rack that comes with the Mahjong set to push the wall forward a little bit to make it nice and orderly. When each player has done this, the wall is complete.
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