[sumo] Kyokushuzan (was) Dohyo-iri

[Doreen Simmons]

On 2007/06/01, at 18:52, Achim Pawelczyk wrote:

> I think I saw Kyokushuzan also among the rikishi crowd from his 
> ichimon preparing the strings of the tsuna for Hakuho.
> The one to put on for the dohyo-iri (NHK news at noon with Tsuna-uchi 
> 1-2-3: Hi-Fu-Mi).
> I wonder if a retired rikishi usually takes part in that.
> And I somewhat missed the exact present intermediate status of 
> Kyokushuzan. He won't stay in the kyokai, so he's no oyakata - but is 
> he already out of the kyokai ?
> Apparently not as he was allowed to do tsuna-uchi help.

He quit the Kyokai when he retired from sumo, but he thoroughly 
qualifies for a full-scale dampatsushiki (hair-cutting ceremony and 
peripheral entertainment), which will start in the Kokugikan in just 
over two hours from now. So up to mid-afternoon today he still has the 
long hair, and in the past week has been on TV several times with the 
customary chon-mage (informal topknot, a simple club-style). When I was 
at a small dinner in his honor on March 17, he had his hair in a 
braided ponytail, which is what he sports when he can't get to a 
tokoyama.
Getting to the dinner was exciting, BTW -- I went straight from my Day 
7 stint at NHK, and as I was struggling with a new computer I didn't 
manage to print out the address. All I could remember was that it was 
the 53rd floor -- fortunately there was only one building oin the area 
that high!.

Today, probably round about now, Shuzan will be having his hair dressed 
for the last time in the oicho, the ginko-leaf style of the sekitori 
for formal occasions; by mid-afternoon it will have been detached, snip 
by snip.

In answer to the other question, about who takes part in the 
tsuna-uchi, the twisting of the tsuna, all members of the heya 
(Miyagino) and senior or expert members of the ichimon (Tatsunami),  
plus particular friends from other heya,  take part. Since Hakuho was 
only recruited through the intervention and good offices of 
Kyokushuzan, he would naturally be particularly welcome at the event. 
(He was also hired by one of the commercial TV companies to stand 
outside the heya and chat with a woman interviewer on the morning the 
two Kyokai reps were coming to make the official announcement of the 
promotion. Got in quite a few plugs for his dampatsu, naturally.)

And it's time for me to get the laundry on the line, clean up and get 
off to the Kokugikan.

Doreen