Beside the Mahjong Table
September 19, 2025
by Makayla
The sound of shuffling tiles intermingled with various exclamatory shouts has become synonymous with my memories of family gatherings, as the game of Chinese Mahjong has been an important pastime of mine throughout my childhood. I was often surrounded by this game during these family gatherings, where I would find myself sitting on a miniature stool beside my mother, playing amongst my relatives, fascinated by the quick plays before my eyes, and subconsciously picking up the rules and method of the game. For my family, Mahjong is more than a meaningful activity; it is a generational occupation that contributes to our overall well-being and supports resilience against cognitive decline in older generations. While I hadn’t fully understood the realization at the time, the game of Chinese Mahjong has allowed me not only to grasp my native Chinese roots but also to learn valuable lessons about the art of strategy and calculation applicable to the present, changing world, which requires both to navigate uncertainty and make thoughtful decisions.
Mahjong is an intellectual activity involving four players sitting around a square table who must draw and discard tiles to arrange them in a “perfect” set. One must complement their hand of tiles while memorizing the tiles discarded by their opponents to strategically form special sequences essential for a win. Though simple in explanation, it is complex in playing, as players must take calculated chances on possible risks or play defensively so that other players cannot win.
I often questioned why the older generations of my family were so devoted to this game and what exactly was the fixation that drew them to return to the game every waking moment of our family gatherings. The placement of a single tile can alter the course of the game and the strategies of the opposing players. You must be mindful and strategic in your intentions, since your actions have consequences not only for yourself but also for those around you, requiring full concentration on your own set while remaining aware of the tiles desired by other opponents and those being circulated in the game.
While Mahjong may seem like a leisure activity or family pastime, it is an effective intervention that occupational therapy practitioners may use when supporting healthy aging across the lifespan. The game of Mahjong is not just an activity that sustains social engagement but also serves as a means to alleviate depressive symptoms of older populations in addition to empowering individuals to regain or maintain the ability to stay cognitively engaged. Unique to Mahjong are strategies that require players to integrate working memory, attention, logic, executive function, and intrinsic motivation in ways that complement one another. In doing so, Mahjong provides protective factors against cognitive deterioration while also fostering self-efficacy that contributes to a positive outlook on aging. What began as a family tradition has become a powerful reminder that our personal and cultural identities can shape effective, health-promoting interventions using occupations as both a means and an end goal.
While I am still quite a beginner at this game, I see life as a parallel to Mahjong, as life changes with every move, sometimes as a result of others’ actions or even of your own doing. Sometimes you must be patient for the serendipitous moment when you find the tile you need to complete a winning set. Other times when the odds are against you, it is important to be cautious in compromising, but when you can’t, you shouldn’t for the sake of protecting your own tiles to win. Mahjong is a metaphor for life; one must take what life throws at you, just like receiving a set of undesirable tiles, to adapt quickly and uncover advantages hidden within setbacks. There is no perfect round or just one strategy to win.
And perhaps that is the draw of the game — because it is so difficult to master. It takes years of experience, a good grasp of body language, and a command of the Chinese language, coupled with a dash of good luck, to be successful.
Every time I return to play Mahjong at family gatherings, I have begun to understand why this activity was more than just a game to me. Looking across the table, I have come to realize the shared bond with my family that not many people can replicate. As a non-native speaker of Chinese, the game of Mahjong has brought me closer to my culture as well as my grandparents. While we are engaged in deep concentration and contemplating strategies in Mahjong, I have recognized that this game forms its own separate language to converse through, strengthening my bonds with my grandparents and relatives while also helping to keep their minds sharp.
As an aspiring occupational therapist, I imagine one day drawing upon my own personal experiences and applying these principles to empower the growth and support the development of the future patients I work with. When I am older, I will congregate at my own mother’s house, where relatives and different walks of life will come together over the game of Mahjong. And this cycle will continue for generations beyond my time.
⋯
Next by tag Community ⟩ Diversity ⟩
⋯
