Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
The prize-fights of the West were represented by
sumō,
Japanese wrestling (
103
). This
was an ancient sport, which was originally performed at shrines and temples as part of re-
ligious festivals. The first bouts to which audiences paid for admission were in aid of the
rebuilding funds of the religious centers where they were held. Later the takings went to
defray the cost of the presentation and to pay the wrestlers. The basis of the sport is that
two men dressed only in elaborate loincloths fight in a small ring to see who can throw the
other to the ground or force him out of the ring. Bouts were preceded by much ritual, but
were short and sharp once the wrestling started. Winners were judged by a referee and re-
ceived prizes; their overall performance was considered in the promotions and demotions
in the ranking lists, positions in which were indicated by a series of ranks.
Sumō
meetings
wereliketheatres inthatatowerwasraisedattheentrance,fromwhichadrumwasplayed
during the fights. This tower indicated that the meeting had official approval. From about
1780
sumō
meetings lasted for ten fine days; since they were not under cover, rain brought
themtoatemporaryhalt.Then,asnow,
sumō-fighters
grewverylarge,andweretherecipi-
ents of much popular acclaim, counting women as well as men, not to mention
daimyō
and
the Shogun himself, among their fans.
A big problem remains about everyday life in Tokugawa Japan. On the one hand, the gov-
ernments, central and local, were continually issuing edicts to restrict the freedom of the
populace, yet, on the other hand, the inhabitants often seemed to do more or less as they
liked. Countrymen were not allowed to leave their land, yet they constantly migrated to
the towns; in the great towns attempts were made to control dress and almost every other
aspect of daily life, but the mere fact that such directives were issued again and again in-
dicates their ineffectiveness. One thing that seems clear is that money talked. Even in the
country, where it was relatively scarce, officials could be bribed to overlook, for example,
new fields, so that the farmers could keep their crops for themselves. In towns, there were
many favors that merchants and craftsmen could make to
samurai,
and the system of gifts,
which were nearly always given to a superior, is difficult to distinguish from a system of
bribes. Many officials were no doubt honest, but they were probably overworked and un-
able to keep uniform control of the large population. It was in the castle-towns that life
was the most rigorously controlled, and in Edo, where the control was laxest, for though
it was strictly speaking a castle-town it was too large; Osaka was also a large town where
life was freer than elsewhere, because there
samurai
were few. And, after all, it was be-
neaththedignityofa
samurai
toconcernhimselfovermuchwiththeanticsoftownsmenas
long as they offered no threat to their superiors. So, the motivation of the townsmen lay in
their own moral values, and in their human search for pleasures. It was a struggle between
a puritanical and obsessive desire to earn money and increase the fortune of the family by
thrift,whichbroughtintobeingacomplexmercantile society,andanalmostequallystrong
demand for enjoyment, which brought into being a vast entertainment industry. It is the
