There is no certainty about the origin of the Game of the Goose, but there are several theories; one of these considers it a symbolic map of the Camino de Santiago. According to a medieval legend, the body of St. James the Greater, beheaded in Jerusalem in 44 AD, was transported on a boat that landed in Galicia. For centuries, the Apostle’s tomb remained undiscovered; only in 818 did a stationary star in the sky indicate to the local inhabitants the burial site. The bishop had the area excavated, and a marble ark containing the saint's remains was brought to light. The place was named Field of the Star, from which the Spanish name Compostela derives.
A chapel was erected on the site, and after the Battle of Clavijo (840) against the Moors, during which St. James appeared on a white horse urging the Christians to victory, a basilica was built that immediately became a pilgrimage destination. St. James was proclaimed the patron saint of Spain, and the route to the sanctuary was called the Camino de Compostela or Camino de Santiago. Over time, monasteries, hospices, and hospitals were built along the way.
But the Camino de Compostela was already a pilgrimage route since the Neolithic period. In pre-Christian times, it was called the "Rainbow of Lug" (the Celtic god who likely gave his name to the city of Lugo, the ancient capital of Galicia) or "the way of the Wild Geese." It is interesting to note how Christian legend chose St. James among the twelve apostles to insert him into a much older tradition. Many medieval legends were born in Benedictine monasteries after their fusion with the Irish monks of St. Columbanus, who preserved the knowledge obtained from the Druids in Ireland. Among these legends was that of a Master James, a stonecutter who helped Hiram of Tyre in the construction of Solomon's Temple. The builders of Compostela were united in a brotherhood called the "Sons of Master James," who followed ancient traditions and had the webbed foot of the goose as their symbol.
When the ancient builders embraced Christianity, Master James, the wise Jakin, was transformed into St. James. The Jars (Geese), members of the brotherhood, were called the "Sons of Master James," and their Goose symbol became the shell that pilgrims used to adorn their cloaks. With this slight modification, the ancient tradition was preserved along the Camino de Compostela, which in pagan times was known as the "way of the Wild Geese" (of the free Jars). This ancient tradition is preserved not only in the names of some streets in the towns along the "Way," but also in many other place names.
For millennia, the Jars, initiated builders, undertook pilgrimages to the Atlantic coasts to interpret the sacred signs carved on the rocks of Galicia. The Galician petroglyphs date back to prehistoric times, and some reproduce signs of an unknown alphabet, also present in the monasteries along the way of Compostela. Among these signs stands out the stylized Goose foot, or Trident.
Even the Christian builders, called "Sons of Master James," followed the path of the ancient Jars, walking the pilgrimage route to the place where, according to tradition, the ancient sages who engraved the petroglyphs landed. The pre-Christian route of the "Wild Geese" has been connected to the Game of the Goose, which is much more than a simple pastime: it represents a teaching transmitted through the game, a ritual in which certain trials must be overcome to reach a higher state of consciousness. It is said that it was invented by Palamedes, a Jar who passed his knowledge to humanity, to entertain the Greek warriors during the siege of Troy.
The Game of the Goose was rediscovered in Italy by Francesco de' Medici, who gave a copy to Philip II of Habsburg. The game fascinated the Spanish court and soon spread among all social classes. The board shows a spiral, circular, or elliptical path divided into 63 numbered squares. Thirteen of these squares contain images of geese, representing advantageous stages. During the Middle Ages, pilgrims on the Camino de Compostela were advised to make the same number of stages. Other squares contain symbolic figures that impose penalties. The final goal, without a number, is the Goose Garden, a place of eternal happiness similar to Eden. The favorable squares are those of the Geese (Jars) and the Dice (Great Stones, like the megalithic constructions), which facilitate the journey. The obstacles are represented by the Bridge, the Inn, the Well, the Labyrinth, the Prison, and Death. However, Death can be overcome with rebirth rites.
For the initiated Jar, the end of the pilgrimage is not Compostela, considered a place of death like square 58 of the game, but beyond: the Atlantic coast, Cape Finisterre (Finis Terrae, the extreme edge of the earth), where one enters the Goose Garden, the kingdom of the Spirit and communion with ancestors.
It is impossible to directly compare the stages of the Camino de Compostela with those of the Game of the Goose, as the latter represents a symbolic map of the pilgrimage. However, in both paths, the Goose marks a boundary between one stage and the next. The final stages of the Game of the Goose reflect the initiatory journey of the Jars beyond Compostela. Square 54 of the game, with a goose, may represent the Galician town of Oca; square 58, with Death, represents Compostela; and square 59, with another goose, can be identified with San Sebastián de Oca. This suggests that the ancient pilgrimage of the Wild Geese reached Cape Finisterre, beyond Compostela.
The Christian pilgrimage stops at Compostela, perpetuating an ancient tradition of spiritual asceticism. This place, discovered by the pre-Celtic megalithic people and adapted by medieval monks, is known for its exceptional cosmic and telluric energies. The Camino de Compostela, symbolically represented by the Game of the Goose, is a way to spiritually reconnect with ancient traditions and the "divine light" (Lug, equivalent to "lux").
The simplicity of this popular pastime, lately relegated to children's entertainment, is therefore only apparent: few other games contain so many archetypes and symbols.