Long story
My favorite pet theory is it came in a celestial vision to an Intu Native awakening from a long winter's nap. He or she had been give a glorious vision and gifts to achieve five things in a lifetime:
1) conceive of 22 arcana and 16 courts and 40 suited images that would become a gambling game and divination system that would spread down to the Eastern or Western worlds at the retreat of the Ice Age.
2) be known for their polar bear and caribou jewelry
3) sing songs and tell legendary stories at family parties
4) build glorious kayak.
5) chew all the never-ending fat (a delicacy for Ice Agers, noteriously always cold and lean) from a jar of never-ending storage.
The native became known to share the never-ending jar contents first (5), have beautiful artcarving gatherings with friendly artisans (2) and then became famous for family parties, where gifts of jewelry and food were plentiful to all. (3) For a change of pace, they would go hunting or racing on the kayaks they would build (4). At such gatherings, the native spoke about the original vision and the intricate gambling and divination system that was to be carried in this vision.
"The visionary who does this will change the world of pictures and words," the native said to others, and they nodded in agreement. They had no idea of what the native was saying, but they loved good food and generous gifts.
At one point, the Intu's children decided to make a team effort with all various guests that the Intu had treated. Every guest was invited to actually carve one arcana and design a few of the minors or courts. The biggest, oldest, smallest, everyone did a carving and a picture-word card and the resulting designs were first 78, then double, then triple. Some gifted guests even did their own version and threw their completed designs into the collection. They chose the 78th birthday of the Intu to present all the versions and waited with baited breath to choose the very best.
The Intu smiled at all the various versions presented, touched one or two and sat for hours, listening to all the guests present their stories, systems, and ideas. They all asked as the last question, "Oh great Intu, is my system closest to the celestial vision that originated it all?
At the end of several hours, even days, it finally became time to choose. Everyone had their favorites and had secret side bets going which would be the first, second, third, etc. But when the final morning dawned and no one else had any more decks or carvings or bones to present, The Intu smiled and pronounced the closest to the celestial vision with a single finger pointing to a certain point.
It was a baby kicking its feet and squealing with delight.
"But that is just a baby just born," said the people in the crowd. "Not evening talking, singing, making art, or even walking or thinking. They live by instinct. The life just beginning---how could such a one be associated with the celestial system of mystery, games and words and pictures? How could such a naive thing be the maker of such a vision that you describe?"
An impetuous artist and yet another also began shouting. For one had made theirs from hand carved blocks, another had handpainted, another had melted down gold nuggets.
One prominent promoter even had ground pigment from bone ivory and painted his wife and children several times in various poses on stretched canvas adorned with several pinholes. (Indeed, this version was so plentifully distributed among his family, that over time people said it was the original version. Bits and pieces of it were taken here and there, assembled and reassembled in so many ways, the original author/artist didn't know which version was the right one--but that's another story).
Back to the patient Intu. The only words said were, "To this babe, as it grows, it will find its way with words and even pictures. The way that we teach is one way; then we will ask it to find it's own way. That is how we live. That is for this child, what becomes the right way.
And for me, what I think and say, what I come to believe, is this: the visionary who does this will change the world of words and pictures. Each visionary who dares changes their worlds--every minute they do this, every day. And for them, then, that is the right way."
Even the most prominent promoter thought a moment and said, "you mean for you...."
"Yes," said the 78 year old sage, "It is the Intu native way."
Peace to all,
Mari Hoshizaki