[sumo] Fwd: [Sumo news] - Rikishi humor..

[Jeff A]

Moti


Best regards,
G

For of all sad words of tongue or pen,
The saddest are these:
It might have been.
- John Greenleaf Whittier

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Moti Dichne <niramiai at gmail.com>
Date: Sat, Aug 1, 2026 at 9:58 AM
Subject: [Sumo news] - Rikishi humor..
To: Sumo Newsletter2 <sumo-newsletter2 at googlegroups.com>


It's often said that when two people from Osaka, or Kansai, get together,
they can turn it into a comedy routine. They know exactly when to interject
and get a laugh, and they do it skillfully. Laughter is the lubricant of
life, the vitamin of life. But the timing of that interjection is
difficult. One wrong move and you could offend the other person and it
could turn into a fight. Why are people from Osaka so good at getting
laughs? Rikishi are often thought of as taciturn and not very quick-witted,
but that's not the case at all. There are plenty of rikishi who can have a
conversation that puts even Osaka locals to shame. What kind of sense of
humor do they have? Well, just listen. And laugh.

Tanabata Wishes: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanabata>

Have you ever made a wish to the heavens? Rikishi are always self-reliant.
They forge their own destiny with their own strength. Perhaps that's why,
when they do make a wish, something incredible happens. Although it was
canceled during the COVID-19 pandemic, every year at the Nagoya basho held
during the Tanabata season, bamboo branches are decorated at the entrance,
and it is customary for the rikishi to hang strips of paper on which they
have written their wishes. Here are two masterpieces among them. In 2018,
when he was still a Sekiwake, Mitakeumi wrote: "I want to become handsome."
It's understandable, but let's not delve too deeply into it as it may hurt
his feelings. However, on the 13th day of that tournament, after defeating
Ozeki Goueidou and putting himself one win away from his first yusho,
Mitakeumi did indeed become handsome. Mitakeumi explained this "handsome
man" as follows: "A handsome man is someone who is cool when he rises in
rank and wins. I wanted to see myself looking cool (so I wrote it). Nobody
wants to see Ultraman lose, right?"

The tanzaku <https://www.japansociety.org.uk/tanzaku> written by
Chiyotairyuu the following year, 2019, was even more outrageous: "I want an
oil tycoon as my patron." Chiyotairyuu commented on this rather blunt
tanzaku as follows: "It's a genuine wish, to be honest." I'm sure everyone
thinks so



*OK, maybe humor is a geographical thing- I'm just the translator..

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