Learn Sumo

Ritual & Etiquette

A sumo bout rarely lasts more than a few seconds — but the ceremony surrounding it can take several minutes. Almost none of it is decoration; nearly every gesture has Shinto roots.

The Dohyo: A Sacred Ring

The dohyo is a raised platform of clay topped with a circle of embedded rice-straw bales. Before every basho, it is consecrated in a Shinto ceremony (dohyo-matsuri) where offerings — including salt, rice, and dried squid — are buried at its center. Because of its sacred status, tradition has long held that only men may step onto the dohyo itself.

Before the Bout

Shiko

The high leg-stomping exercise performed before a bout, believed to drive evil spirits out of the ring.

Chikara-mizu & Chikara-gami

"Power water" and "power paper" — a wrestler rinses their mouth with water handed to them by the previous winning wrestler, then blots their lips with a paper square, symbolically entering the bout purified.

Shio (Salt Throw)

Wrestlers toss a handful of salt onto the dohyo before crouching for the charge — a Shinto act of purification that clears the ring of impurity and, tradition holds, helps prevent injury.

Tachi-ai

The initial charge — both wrestlers must touch both fists to the clay at the same moment before exploding forward. A mistimed or false start restarts the bout.

The Dohyo-iri (Ring-Entering Ceremony)

Before each day's Makuuchi and Juryo bouts begin, wrestlers parade to the ring wearing ornamental aprons (kesho-mawashi) in a formal ring-entering ceremony. The Yokozuna performs a separate, more elaborate solo dohyo-iri, wearing a massive braided rope (tsuna) around the waist and stamping through a ritual sequence that is considered a martial art performance in its own right.

Officials in the Ring

Gyoji (Referee)

Dressed in ornate robes echoing Heian-period court dress, the gyoji directs the bout and points a war fan (gunbai) toward the winner. Senior gyoji even carry a short sword, a symbolic pledge to resign by ritual suicide should they make a serious misjudgment — a tradition no longer literally enforced, but still symbolically worn.

Shimpan (Ringside Judges)

Five judges seated at the corners of the dohyo may call for a conference (mono-ii) to review a close decision.

Yobidashi

Ring announcers who call each wrestler to the dohyo in a distinctive drawn-out chant, maintain the ring's clay surface between bouts, and beat the ceremonial drums.

Kensho: Prize Envelopes

For high-profile bouts, sponsors put up prize money (kensho-kin). Before the match, the yobidashi carries a lap of branded banners around the ring advertising each sponsor; the winner is handed the corresponding cash envelopes directly by the gyoji.