The Intricacies Of Sumo Wrestling And Its Ancient Practices

By Author: Ramesh Vittal
Total Articles: 26
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Sumo wrestling has been associated with Shinto ritual besides being a trial of strength in hand to hand combat. It is believed that there existed shrines devoted to this ancient art where ritual dances took place where humans wrestled with divine Shinto spirits called Kami. This was a ritual that was practiced in the imperial court where representatives from all corners of the land were ordered to congregate to fight.

Over a period of time, various rulers amended and added rules and modified the forms of combat according to their personal whims, however the primary aim was to throw the opponent. It was gradually modified to pushing the opponent out of a designated area. This “area” was much later converted into a ring. The Sumo Wrestlers normally wore just loose loincloths. A wrestler is considered a winner if he is the first to force the opponent to step out of the ring, or if he can force the opponent touch the ground with any other part of his body other than his feet. If both wrestlers happen to fall and touch the ground, it is left to the referee or the judges to decide who the winner is based on which wrestler ...
... fell first and who had a better chance to have won. Any sort of foul play or usage of illegal techniques would automatically result in losing as also a wrestler who fails to turn up for the bout. Matches can last a few minutes and sometimes could end in a few seconds. The matches are preceded by elaborate rituals. Though body mass is crucial for winning, there have been instances where smaller made wrestlers have defeated much huger opponents.

Professional Sumo is organized by the registered association, the members being former wrestlers. Only association members are entitled to train new wrestlers. All trainees are members of a group called “heya”. All wrestlers are supposed to take wrestling names called ‘shikona’ and the name could be unrelated to their real names, and these names are given to them by their trainers or masters. A name can be changed several times if so desired. The ranking is done based on the sporting merit. The wrestlers can either be promoted or demoted based on their performance during the year. Sumo wrestling consists of 6 divisions; with each division have a fixed number of wrestlers. A wrestler needs to work his way up through the 6 divisions based o n his performance and consistence.

Though Sumo is restricted to Japan, wrestlers from other nationalities are allowed to participate. There are several such foreign wrestlers registered with the association. A few of these foreign wrestlers have achieved success in the upper ranks. A Sumo wrestler has to lead a highly disciplined way of life. The association prescribes the dos and don’ts in detail. For instance, the wrestlers are banned from driving their own cars. They are expected to grow their hair long enough to be tied up in a tuft which is called a chonmage. While under training the juniors are expected to get up earliest, as early as 5-00 am while the seniors could get up as late as 7-00 am. The juniors are also expected to do various chores and assist in cooking, cleaning, preparing the bath. The order of training, bathing and eating lunch would depend on the seniority. They normally do not eat breakfast and are expected to eat a large meal for lunch followed by a brief nap. The food consists of meat, vegetables and rice that is washed down with beer. This practice of skipping breakfast and having a hearty lunch and nap is to help put on a lot of weight which is essential for a Sumo wrestler. More such related programs can be viewed in programs aired by popular service providers like Charter WDC.

Randy Collins is a freelance author who has a keen interest in ancient martial arts and the rigorous training schedules associated with them. He keenly follows related programs aired by service providers like Charter Cable