Gambling - Essay Example

Download file to see previous pages The beginning of gambling and its tools can be traced to religious customs in early pre-historic societies. Pagan rituals had a purpose of foretelling the future or explaining what was beyond the comprehension of the general public (History of Gambling, 2011). The practice of the rituals was uncomplicated and consisted of throwing small objects like pebbles, sticks, nuts, arrows etc. out of the palms of the hands or any primitive container (Sifakis, 1990).. The result was checked to see if the number of things on the floor was even or odd. Even number usually meant a positive outcome and interpretation and odd stood for a negative one (Sifakis, 1990).
After that, the same sort of chance-based practices expanded into the lives of everyone. “Gambling grew out of religious rituals into a separate activity, which helped with decision-making process like who will get a better piece of a killed prey or get himself a better-looking woman” (History of Gambling, 2011). The final step in the process of evolution towards pure gambling happened when people decided to gamble by putting their own stakes for the sole purpose of material gains.
Human beings have this inner tendency to try to know about their own future. They have this inner craving to know what will happen in future. Religious rituals provided people with an opportunity to know about their future. Divinity, therefore, is considered as the source of gambling in this world.
Origins of Gambling can also be traced to the games that people played to spend their free time. The first human society dates back to 7000 BC. This is considered the first time since people settled in an area and developed a society (History of Gambling, 2011). In order to pass the times, different sporting activities were invented and board games were one of them. People started to gamble on board games in order to make the game thrilling and interesting. Money became involved in many forms (like food, watch etc) in these games. This is how modern-day gambling was born. ...Download file to see next pagesRead More