Re: How to mawashi (Halloween)

[abe@kaleida.com (Masumi Abe)]

At  9:13 AM 10/20/94 -0700, Richard Webb wrote:
>Abe-san,
>
>Doomo arigato gozaimashita!  (And that's about the limit of my
>Nihongo.)  I really appreciate the info but I have a few questions
>still.
>
>Masumi Abe writes:
>> 
>> You need to find a good size (long) cloth which is wide enough to hide your
>> area.
>
>My understanding  is that they should be about ten yards long, and
>maybe a yard wide.  Is that about right?
>
The real mawashi size is about 80 cm wide and 9 m long. You fold 6 layers
(13 cm wide) around waist, but you use wider in frontal vertical part and
narrower in rear vertical part. I should say that you fold into 3 layers
(27 cm wide) in frontal vertical part and 9 (3 x 3) layers (9 cm) in the
rear vertical part. When you change the direction to horizontal portion,
you change the layer to 6 (3 x 2) layers (13 cm).

When I was a child, I used to use a Japanese obi (a cloth belt for kimono
or yukata) for men for my "mawashi". I put it over my shorts. This mawashi
was only to hold for playing sumo.
>> 
>> You need an assistant (tsukebito if you like) to help you put on the mawashi.

Before starting you need to make sure you go bathroom and clear your water
storage. In th e case of real sumo rikishi, before actually start wearing
mawashi, they push their testicles into your main body. This procedure is
for preventing an accidental serious injuries in this area during the bout.

>> First, hold the one end of this cloth under your chin.
>> Then put it through over your crotch toward your rear.
>> Take the cloth toward your right hip and waist toward front around your
>> right side.
>> After croosing over the frontal vertical part of cloth, you can release
>> your chin, the vertical part will be hanging over the horizontal part.
>> You rap the cloth around your belly and back several times, each time you
>> cross your front, you put the vertical part over the horizontal part untill
>> you don't have extra vertical portion hanging in front of you.
>
>Does this mean that there is only one pass between the legs?  Yow,
>this could be a real expose!  

As I mentioned above, you fold the cloth into at least 3 layers first. Yes,
that is the only one passing between the legs.

>I'll have to invest in some of those
>traditional Japanese underwear you said they wear underneath just
>to be sure ;-)

Rikishi does not wear any underwear under the reagular mawashi, but wear
traditional Japanese underwear (fundoshi) only under kesho-mawashi, the
apron-like mawashi for ceremony.

They never wash mawashi. Only thing they do for cleaning is brushing. When
it getting old, they simply replace it with a new one. Kesho-mawashi cost
at least $10,000 and too much to replace too often. That is why they wear
underwear underneath.
>
>> At last you don't have enough length left to rap around you, then put the
>> cloth over the diagonal (from your butt toward your right side) portion and
>> under the back portion of horizontal part (tuching on your back) toward
>> upward.

This process will tighten up the vertical portion of mawashi and secure
your confidence. Also this process will make your rear view with complete T
shape.
>> 
>> The very last process is tie up this and you can accomplish this with again
>> put this portion down over the T shape of your back, and then put it
>> through only under the last portion (the last layer which pulling the
>> original diagonal portion) toward back of your right shoulder.
>> 
>If I understand this, I kind of wrap it around in the back now.  Is
>that correct?  I think I can figure this out (I sure hope so).
>

You need to tie it with both vertical and horizontal portion of your mawashi.
                                                                           
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-Masumi

>Richard Webb
>webb@phys3.physics.wsu.edu
>
>______________________________________________________________________
>Department of Physics                          Office:  (509) 375-4443
>Washington State University                    FAX:     (509) 
>Pullman, WA  99164-2814                        Home:    (509) 946-1826
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>
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>-- biologist Michael T. Ghiselin
sxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxsxs
Masumi Abe                               
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