Week 6
Discussion
From a print by Shunshō Katsukawa (1726 – 1793). See discussion.
The Japanese National Sport
Sumō Wrestling
The main difference between Japanese sumō wrestling and Western-style wrestling is that while the objective of the latter is to pin the shoulders of an opponent to a mat, sumō wrestlers try to remove opponents from a straw ring or make them touch the floor inside the ring with any part of their body besides their feet.
The earliest written account of sumō wrestling in Japan appears in the Kojiki (An Account of Ancient Matters) (712 A.D.) manuscript in which a wrestling match between two kami (Japanese gods) decided the ownership of Japanese islands. Nihon Shoki (Chronicles of Japan) (720) records a sumō match that is supposed to have taken place between mortals around 23 B.C. Some haniwa (terracotta figurines) from the Kofun Period (300 - 710 A.D.) depict sumō wrestlers.
The earliest historically verified sumō match occurred in 642 in the imperial palace as entertainment for visiting Korean diplomats. Sumō matches weren't just for entertainment; they had religious significance, too, as part of rituals to promote good harvests. Many elements of the religious heritage of sumō continue today.
This photo shows part of the elaborate religious ritual preceding a sumō match. The large white rope around the wrestler's waist is a shimenawa and the folded streamers hanging from it are shide. They are often seen together at the entrances to Shinto shrines to mark the boundaries of ritually pure spaces. Among sumō wrestlers, only yokozuna (highest ranking wrestlers) wear them.
The Heian Period (794 and 1185) saw the beginning of the development of formal rules. These have remained stable since the 18th century. Under the military classes that succeeded the Heian Period, sumō wrestling became part of combat training.
The Edo Period (1603 - 1868) saw sumō wrestling become popular with commoners, stimulated by the production of sumō-e, ukiyo-e depicting sumō matches. Street matches sometimes erupted into violent behavior among spectators and so were banned in Edo for a time. They were occasionally allowed in Osaka and Kyōto to raise funds for new construction and the repair of bridges and public buildings. In 1757, Edo-sumo Kaisho, an organization authorized to manage sumō matches, was founded. The ukiyo-e below shows the Kanjin Grand Sumo Tournament held in 1843.
Edo-sumo Kaisho was succeeded in 1925 by Japan Sumo Association which manages all professional sumō wrestling in Japan today.
Those wanting to become professional sumō wrestlers must join one of several "stables" (heya) around Japan where they lead a highly regimented lifestyle for many years.
The sort of loin cloth thing that sumō wrestlers wear is called a mawashi. Heya students are fed meals highly rich in protein and carbohydrates to build muscle mass and gain weight. Among the rules is that their hair must be arranged into a traditional topknot.
Six sumō tournaments are held in various Japanese cities every year. Each tournament lasts 15 days. There are numerous religious rituals associated with each tournament and at the beginning of matches. Some of the rituals surround the construction of the arena stage, called a dohyō. An opening day "entering ceremony," shown below, involves all of the contestants surrounding the straw ring within which matches occur.
Artwork
Given how popular sumō was and is in Japan, it isn't surprising that there is a wealth of ukiyo-e prints devoted to the subject.
Shunshō Katsukawa (1726 – 1793)
Shunshō is best known for his yakusha-e prints depicting kabuki actors, but though less prolific in other areas, his bijin-ga (prints of beautiful people) are considered to be among the best of the latter half of the 18th century. Early sumo-e prints were generic, and their popularity began to wane until Shunshō began to produce prints detailed enough that wrestlers' features were identifiable. The print below illustrates a famous sumō match between two grand champions in 1782. Onogawa Kisaburo won the match, breaking Tanikaze Kajinosuke's string of 63 consecutive wins.
Katsushika Hokusai (1760 – 1849)
Though Hokusai is best known for his landscapes, he painted many other subjects, too. He produced this ukiyo-e of grappling wrestlers in 1806, relatively early in his career.
The word manga has entered the English language as meaning a Japanese-style comic book. What isn't so well known is that Hokusai coined the word, manga (meaning "whimsical drawings"), to describe books of his sketches. A page in one of these depicts wrestlers in various positions.
Utagawa Kunisada (1786 – 1865)
Also known as Toyokuni III, Kunisada was one of the most popular ukiyo-e artists of his time, even outshining contemporaries like Hokusai. He was best known for his bijin-ga (pictures of beautiful people), but he was also very prolific in producing sumō paintings, too. This is his version of the Entering Ceremony, produced in 1840.
Kunisada painted a number of portraits of sumō champions outside the ring. This one is Tsuneyama Goroji (1850).
The date this ukiyo-e of twelve sumō champions on public view was produced is uncertain. Of interest is that they are accurate depictions of real wrestlers. From left to right, they are Matsuchiyama, Yuranoumi, Musashigawa? Echinoumi, Kuroyanagi, Washigahama, Akitsukaze, Narimiyama, Hiodoshi, Nishi no Ozeki Inazuma, Toriimine, Azumazeki.
Utagawa Hiroshige (1797 – 1858)
Like Hokusai, Hiroshige is best known for his landscapes, but he, too, painted a far greater range of subjects. One of Hiroshige's series relates the story of the Soga brothers, a famous vengeance incident in Japanese history around the end of the Heian Period. The print below, produced around 1845 depicts a wrestling match between two champions in 1196, On the left is Kawazu Saburo Sukemichi, and Matano Goro Kagehisa is on the right. Matano lost but refused to accept the defeat. Kawazu, the father of the legendary Soga brothers, was assassinated the following year, with the probable complicity of Matano.
