Page 22 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Tokyo

20  INTRODUCING T OK Y O

Sumo and the Martial Arts

Now more of a professional sport than a martial art, sumo
traces its origins back 2,000 years to Shinto harvest rites,
and retains strong links with Shinto in many of its rituals.
There are six sumo tournaments in Japan every year (see
p148), broadcast live on TV and followed enthusiastically.
Training is a way of life for sumo wrestlers, and if a tourna­
ment is not on, it may be possible to watch practice
sessions. Martial arts are known as budo, or the “martial
way.” They aim to cultivate bal ance, control, speed, and Sumo wrestlers were a highly
accuracy in a spiritual, mental, and physical sense. Kendo popular subject for Edo-period
and kyudo, the least changed since the days of the wood-block prints.
samurai, are seen as the purest of the martial arts.

Throwing salt to
purify the ring and the
fight to come is part of
a complex pre-match
ritual that the wrestlers
undertake. They also
stamp, clap, and raise
their hands before
crouching down in
front of their opponent
ready to start.

The gyoji (referee) wears
traditional court costume
and uses a fan to signal
when to begin.

Sumo Wrestling
Despite their size – there are no weight
restrictions – sumo wrestlers (rikishi) move
quickly and with agility, and so matches are
often short (10 seconds or so). The loser is the
first to touch the ground with any part of his
body, except the soles of his feet, or to step out
of, or be pushed from, the ring. The referee
declares the winner.
Grand champions (yokozuna) perform pre-match
rituals wearing a richly decorated ceremonial apron
and a white hemp-rope belt hung with folded paper
(as seen at Shinto shrines). This champion is per-
forming shiko, lifting his leg and stamping his foot
to banish evil spirits and intimidate his opponent.

A referee pours an offering of sake onto the ring as
part of the dedication ceremony before a tourna ment.
The ring is a platform of clay edged by a square of
sunken rice-straw bales, with an inner ring (where
the match is fought) also marked by sunken bales.

020-021_EW_Tokyo.indd 20 12/09/16 11:27 am