The Quaternity Culture

There is no doubt, at least for me, that the four-player game known as Quaternity is merely the tip of the iceberg of a much larger event—one that has already been called the Quaternity Culture. This game, with its unique dynamics and interactions, embodies principles that align with both new and future developments in human evolution.

At first glance, such a statement may seem overly ambitious. But if we could travel into the future, observe its reality, and return to the present, we would likely understand why. How far into the future? Less than a hundred years. What appears today as something small, unassuming—perhaps even fragile, like a beggar or an infant—will, in time, reveal itself as a king and a fully developed entity. Our role is to help it grow. And paradoxically, in doing so, it helps us grow. Participation creates resonance, and both sides benefit.

Yet, either the call to participate is heard, or it is not. There is a natural, resonance-based affinity between the game and the player. This connection does not necessarily depend on prior chess experience. I, for one, have little to no background in traditional chess and never felt particularly drawn to it. That is just my personal experience. But Quaternity is an entirely different game. By its very nature, it is unpredictable.

This unpredictability expands perception, opening it to infinite possibilities. Creativity manifests in every move, whether our own or our opponents’. It is a microcosm of life itself, distilled into the form of a game.

Now, let’s take a look at Quaternity as a cultural phenomenon and consider its possible stages of growth. But first, a bit of history.

“Quaternity Chess was born, after a long labour, one evening in January 2014 at a rest stop on a caravan in India — Rajastan to be more precise. As with all births a story preceded. Elements of this story were brought together by the four of us there that evening, and indeed these elements or chapters can be seen in the game itself.”

Introduction to Quaternity Chess International Rules (2015). Arif Shah

In The People of the Secret, Ernst Scott, quoting R. Collin, presents a framework for understanding the cyclical changes in human cultures throughout history. I found this concept particularly intriguing and decided to explore whether it might also apply to the emergence of Quaternity Culture—which, if so, would signify the beginning of a new historical cycle.

“Rodney Collin suggests that the logarithmic terms of human life, 10: 100: 1,000 should be extrapolated into the series 100: 1,000: 10,000 (lunar months) which is roughly 8, 80 and 800 years. If the analogy holds, eight years will be the period of gestation of a culture; eighty the period of its physical self-expression and 800 years the total of its life. At the end of 800 years it will die. Some men die before they are 70 or 80. Some live to be over a hundred, but the intervals given by the 10: 100: 1,000 lunar months series will represent the human average and the periods 8, 80 and 800 years will represent the average for cultures. During the eight years that a culture is in the womb, the Conscious Man who has impregnated it gathers round him a body of material, an inner circle of disciples. A Teaching is worked out. The teaching is the personality of the coming culture, it may take the form of artistic expression, or a new principle of science. Perhaps a book is composed or a code of principles. Some symbol is worked out which will be the signature of the culture till it dies. A culture’s character, like a man’s character, is formed in the womb and the whole of its life will be an expression of that character and no other. Eighty years is the period of a culture’s physical expression in the outside world, exemplified in the dazzling expansion of invention and creation which is so visible - and so inexplicable - at the beginning of each cultural period.”

“...At each stage man has to abandon the secure, the trusted, and - for his present moment - the ultimate. At each stage he has to struggle with the denying force of inertia. He has to surmount a mental obstacle as once he had to surmount biological obstacles. If he succeeds, he learns more, under­stands more, gets closer and closer to participating. It may be that he is now required to confront - and accept - the mechanism of his own evolution.”

The People of the Secret. The Hidden Tradition. Ernst Scott. Pp.26, 27, 38

The graph below illustrates the development of Quaternity from its conception in 2014 to the present. The first official rulebook was published the following year, marking the initial stage of its growth. Over the next several years, the game experienced an exponential expansion during what could be considered its gestation period.

Notably, the first Quaternity Club Associations began to form internationally in 2023, eight years after the rulebook's release. The online application (play.quaternity.com) was introduced approximately halfway through this gestation phase, further accelerating the game’s reach. Since then, international tournaments have been held annually, both online and in person, contributing to the refinement and evolution of the rules. Adjustments have been made to improve functionality, and referees have naturally emerged through participation in various tournaments, as if in preparation for an increasingly professional framework.

Quaternity sets have been designed and produced in different materials across various parts of the world. Strategies have been developed and implemented to promote the game across different sectors of society. A legal framework has been established to protect the copyright, and a dedicated company has been created to support its expansion. Hundreds of games are now played online daily, with the number of players growing steadily. Members can access software packages to organize their own tournaments, and the momentum continues to build.

What once began as an experiment has now taken on a life of its own, evolving into a global movement with no signs of slowing down.

In the next graphic, we observe the distinct periods of 8, 80, and 800 years, marking different phases of Quaternity’s development and influence.

What would it mean for a new culture to emerge around a four-player game? Would this game simply symbolize and reflect the core values of a new paradigm, functioning like a kind of mandala? Is there a key to understanding its potential and future possibilities?

Perhaps E. Scott will once again provide a plausible answer to these questions.

“...A great event lay ahead in man’s temporal future. It existed already in eternity and was required to be actualised in time. The event is a mutation in man’s evolutionary nature involving a new modality of experience, a new organ of perception. Though latent, perhaps, since man emerged from his ancestors, it is an organ of experience that has only intermittently been active in certain exceptional individuals. Man is due to inherit it one day as part of his total experience. For this event man had to be prepared. Certain promising races of pre-man were inexplicable extinguished and it had been conjectured that this happened because they were unable to come to terms with intellect - for them an incomprehensible and unmanageable experience. By analogy, a function giving access to a four-dimensional world might be equally disastrous to intellect based Modern Man. A certain minimum standard of soul, a certain minimum psychic specific gravity is necessary before such a radical new modality may be risked”.

The People of the Secret. A Secret Directorate? Ernst Scott. P. 51

"We are in the very early stages of Quaternity growth and what I like to call Quaternity culture. It’s been a few years now but its growth it’s still at its very early stages and God willing we’ll see that continuing for many years, decades and who knows, even centuries. We are very fortunate to be in at the beginning. Quaternity is still a young game, the culture it’s still undeveloped and that means that everybody can be involved, and this is one of the most attractive things about Quaternity and anybody can play and it’s fun. Obviously, it has deeper levels but essentially, it’s a fun game because we have less deep culture and it’s open to anybody, so nobody has to be intimidated or worried or anything like that. You just play. Usually, you’d all enjoyed it and certainly it’s an extremely interesting experience. It also means that play will develop and change over time so the way people play now will develop and change and it’s another very nice feature of Quaternity and in fact everybody who plays brings their own value to the game and it’s very inclusive in that sense, so everybody has to just play and because it’s an experiential game, I mean by that, you really have to play to experience the full game. All the answers are in the game."

Opening of a Quaternity Tournament. Brazil. 2021. A. Shah

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