HEIAN PERIOD (794 - 1185)
Throughout history, sumo has been an extremely poular form of entertainment, especially at the Imperial Court. The earliest known bout performed for an Imperial presence is thought to have taken place in 642, for Empress Kogyoku, who reigned from 642-645. It was reportedly performed for the envoys from the Paekche Court of Korea who were visiting at the time.
The Heian period, however, was a period in which Sumo was immensely popular, with both the noble classes and the common people, but it was the performances at the Imperial Court that are the most well known from that period
The practice of holding regular tournaments came into being in the early 8th century under the rule of Emperor Shomu (who reigned 724-749). He held lavish tournaments, for which officials were responsible for travelling all around even the most remote provinces of Japan in order to recruit the best possible sumobaito (wrestlers) to perform. These wrestlers were ordered back to the capital, where they took part in the festival called Sechie, which took place in the Imperial garden, on the seventh day of the seventh month each year.
These tournaments were quite elaborate, with not only sumo matches, but cultural entertainments such as poetry readings also taking place. The purpose of them was a religious one, with the aim being to pray for the nations prosperity, and they marked the first time that large-scale tournaments such as these had ever been held.
In 784, the capital was moved from Nara to Nagaoka, then again in 793 moved to what was then known as Heian (now Kyoto). It was during this period that Emperor Kanmu (reigned 781-806) made sechie-zumo an annual event at his court. He held the tournaments at the Imperial residence in the garden of the Shishinden, the main inner-palace building. These tournaments were even more elaborate than those held by the previous emperor, with the Emperor and the aristocracy striving to imitate the grandeur of the Chinese Sui and T'ang court ceremonies. It was at this time that the techniques of sumo were reviewed, and developed into a more refined, sophisticated game fit for the noble classes. Previously, it had been quite rough in that techniques such as kicking, boxing and punching had been allowed, but these were eventually banned. In 821 it was declared an important tournament, and included as the third of the official set of three tournaments, with the other two being equestrian and archery.
The power and wealth of the Imperial court dramatically declined by the end of the 10th century, which subsequently led to the decline in the frequency tournaments were held. It was around this time that sumo began to be included in military training, with tournament banquets being discontinued completely by 1185, after a sparodic and listless final few years of unsuccessful tournaments and declining popularity.
The wrestlers were also brought to the court from around the country, and assigned to either the left or the right garrison of the Imperial guard, who then played each other. The wrestlers were pitted against each other according to rank, and the matches were accompanied by musicians and dancers. There was no official ring area as there is today, with the wrestlers performing in a cleared area in the centre of the court in front of the Emperor. At the close of the tournaments celebratory banquets and various other forms of entertainment were held.
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