yumitori (Re: in Tokyo)

[abe@kaleida.com (Masumi Abe)]

Lynnette:

I'm glad you liked the tape.

Yumitori or Yumitori-shiki is the very last event of sumo performance every
day during basho.
It used to be performed only the very end of Senshuraku. If you remember,
before the last three matches of Senshuraku (that means last three matches
of basho, also) are specially treated and called "Kore yori San-yaku (ni
gozari-masuru)" and three rikishi of each side perform "shiko" as "San-yaku
Soroi-bumi".

The winner of the first of these three matches wins a bowstring as a
Komusubi winner.
The winner of the second match wins a arrow as a Sekiwake winner.
The winner of the last match wins a bow as an Ozeki winner.

The winner of the last match used to perform an appreciation ceremony
performance with the bow. Later, only a specifically trained rikishi
performed the "yumitori" ceremony representing the winner of the last
match.

Only after the WW-II, and I believed the influence of TV broadcasting,
Kyokai started the "yumitori-shiki" at the end of every day.

The official closing time of sumo performance is the time when yobidashi
hit "ki" or wooden clappers right after Yumitori-shiki. Then, another
yobidashi starts drumming the last taiko with the rythm sounded like
"ten-den bara-bara, ten-den bara-bara" to encourage people to go home and
come back next time.

-Masumi

At 12:10 AM 2/1/95 -0600, Lynnette Cardenas wrote:
>Welcome back, Abe-san!  I have a question.
>
>On Tue, 31 Jan 1995, Masumi Abe wrote:
>
>> Usually, yumitori is performed by a Makushita rikishi and they are not
>> expected to be in higher rank. When Ohtayama was promoted to Juryo, he kept
>> yumitori duty. After a while, he was even promoted to Maegashira. This was
>> very rare case for yumitori rikishi.
>
>What is "yumitori" and the respective "duty" that goes along with it?
>
>Lynnette