THE VALUE OF A HEAVENLY HAND (Article 41)

Commentary: Although rare, East can be dealt a winning hand, and if that happens, the Charleston is waived – this is called a Heavenly Hand. Similarly, the same bonus applies if East has a winning hand after the first left or after the last right – this is called an Earthly Hand. In both situations, the value of the hand is doubled as a bonus!

Heavenly and Earthly hands are featured in most, if not all, Asian versions of mahjong, so, understandably, the League incorporated these exceptional circumstances into their rules. However, their interpretation has led to an imbalance. If I were rewriting the rules, I would define a Heavenly Hand as East declaring mah jongg before making their first discard, and an Earthly Hand as any other player declaring Mah Jongg immediately after East’s first discard. This approach would preserve the spirit of these rare hands while ensuring all players have a fair opportunity to benefit from them.

Question from a player:  What is the value of a heavenly hand? 
 
Answer from the NMJL: If East, who has 14 tiles, draws a Mah Jongg hand, the Charleston is waived. This is called a “Heavenly Hand” East wins instantly and gets paid double from all. 

Source:  Mah Jongg Made Easy (2024, page 12, The Charleston; page 14 bullets 6 and 7) 

Other Answers from the NMJL:

If East has Mah Jongg before the Charleston begins, the Charleston is waived, and East declares Mah Jongg immediately. This is referred to as the “Heavenly Hand”. It is considered a self-picked Mah Jongg, and the winner collects double from each player.

If you are East and have Mah Jongg after the Charleston, you may declare Mah Jongg immediately. This is referred to as the “Earthly Hand”. It is considered a self-picked Mah Jongg, and the winner collects double from each player.