Snakes and ladders are regarded as a worldwide classic board game for two or more players. In south India, it is referred to as Vaikuntha Palli or param pada Sopana Patam often played by Hindu devotees of God Vishnu during the Vaikuntha Ekadashi festival to stay awake during the twilight. According to historians, Saint Gyandev invented this game and used it as a part of moral instruction to children.

The ladder is figurative of the connection between heaven and Earth. It is also associated with Hindu philosophy contrasting karma and kama or destiny and desire.

       The board was covert with illustrative images, the top   featuring gods, angels, and majestic beings, while the rest of the board covert with pictures of animals, flowers and people. The ladders represent qualities like altruism, loyalty, and humbleness, while snakes represent sins such as lust, outrage, homicide, thievery.