Greetings,

Can anyone tell me if any of the contemporary professionals still wear traditional ceremonial clothing at their matches?

Thanks,
Desmond

From what I've seens so far, todays professionals wear suits mostly.

Yes. in Japan, Yoda is a big fan, for example. (And, irrationally, I've always suspected he goes commando). But nowadays not only do most players wear western-style clothes, they have the option - which many take - of playing on tables and chairs. In Japan, also, some male players often dress the old way when they go to award ceremonies or appear on tv. For females, a kimono is almost de rigueur in public, even for non-Japanese players, but only a tiny handful of older players such as Mrs Sugiuchi play in a kimono regularly.

Traditional clothing costs a bomb, makes it hard to have a pee and requires constant attention not to let the sleeves sweep pieces off the board. But it does look good.

In Korea, Cho Hun-hyeon sometimes goes native, and Yu Ch'ang-hyeok is fond of the traditional style. There is also the modern fashion in Korea and China of players dressing up in really ancient costumes for quasi-ceremonial games, e.g. on mountain tops, to please sponsors.

For some events. Check this out from the 20th Mingren final.

I especially love how deadly serious everybody is, despite the hats.

Some pictures of Yoda Norimoto playing in traditional dress:

http://www.361points.com/blog/tag/yoda-norimoto/

Greetings,

Thank you for the replies. Traditional dress does not seem popular any longer in the professional Go world. This is, of course, an unfortunate side effect of the destruction of various elements of traditional culture through modernism and westernization. Some of the qualities of Go that have always been particularly appealing to me are its aesthetics and the refined craftsmanship of its playing materials. The Japanese in particular have historically emphasized also the ambiance in which the game is played through the furnishings of a dedicated room and the very clothes that are worn. Such factors, now a rarity, would go a long way toward transforming the casual game amongst acquaintances into an event of great meaning and importance, something more akin to the dignity and sagacity of the tea ceremony as opposed to an idle pastime.

Desmond

In the World Mind Sports Games, Beijing 2008, Yoda Norimoto went to play several times in ceremonial-traditional clothes.

Recently in the last WAGC, Otake Hideo played an exhibition game with a high school student both using traditional japanese clothes. By the way the student was a girl that look like an angel.

GolRammit John!! I've always liked seeing Yoda play in traditional clothes and now I'll never be able to look at him with out thinking about that!!

Or perhaps an emphasis on pomp and circumstance (e.g. traditional clothing) could cause people to see the game as an artifact of times past, rather than a living, approachable game. I have no objection to traditional clothing (though I think it looks nice), but maybe there is something positive about the more relaxed image: some, indeed, may see it as merely an "idle pastime," while others may see the game as more accessible. Just a thought.

Greetings Judicata,

I was admittedly exaggerating quite a bit when I referred to the game as capable of being viewed as idle. In fact, I can hardly conceive of any situation in which Go can be conceived as idle. In contrast to many other pastimes, there is perhaps no situation that can nullify its fundamental dignity, and I have played in cafes, sidewalks, expos, and primarily these days on my iPhone. My point is simply that there are great aesthetic and contemplative potentialities within Go that are accessed through a traditional worldview and lifestyle that are virtually inaccessible to modernized sensibilities. External factors such as traditional clothing and a congenial ambiance may contribute toward making Go something of a sacred activity not unlike the Japanese Tea ceremony which to outward appearances is merely a very formalized way of making and sharing tea but which in reality is a ritual practice that transforms the otherwise casual encounter into a sacred and cosmic act.

I have written a few words on the symbolism of Go that are not out of place here - see The Way of Go: http://sites.google.com/site/shusakugoc ... -way-of-go

For those who may be skeptical of the importance of clothes in particular, I would suggest taking a look at Marco Pallis' Do the clothes Make The Man: http://vlal.bol.ucla.edu/multiversity/R ... PS-Pal.pdf

Sincerely,
Desmond

Desmond, what clothes are you suggesting for a Scottish for exemple? Should he play in a kilt ? Should he dress up as a chinese/japanese/korean? Or only the Japanese/Chinese/Korean could experience the "sacred and cosmic act"?

sure, why not. for example at International Amateur Pair Go Championship all participants are encouraged to wear their traditional national dress... i don't know about official photos, but here is a sample gallery

though if i wanted something special for go, i would personally stick with a Japanese kimono, like practitioners of martial arts do

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Spilling gasoline feels good.

I might be wrong, but probably not.

Thanks, Desmond. I certainly appreciate your perspective.

Greetings Tryss,

By no means did I wish to imply that only the Japanese, Chinese, and Koreans can experience the sacred or otherwise that the contemplative depths of Go are dependent upon the prevailing ambience. What I did mean to imply, however, is that someone immersed within a traditional civilization and worldview and making adequate use of aesthetic supports is going to have a easier time of it and perhap a greater appreciation of the game.

Japanese style equipment is designed to be harmonious with, or we might also say it emerges from, the very beautiful and natural Japanese cultural ambience and decor. See for example some of these old photographs:

http://www.gobooks.info/mihori.html

Of course, this is not to say that the same equipment is out of place in other environments. They would harmonize beautifully with the traditional Turkish or Morrocan coffee houses, perhaps accompanied by a nargila pipe, as in the following artistic rendering:

http://www.casadimartino.com/summersend/coffeehouse.jpg

It is also important to note that coffee and hence the coffee house emerged from Islamic Civilization. Some attribute the origins of the latter to Shams al-Din Tabizi, the beloved teacher of the popular poet Jalal ad-Din Rumi. In some places, especially in Turkey, the preparation and serving of Coffee is traditionally involved with a meticulous ceremony not unlike the Japanese Tea Ceremony. Of course, games such as chess and backgammon are much more prevalent in the Islamic world, but Go could easily and harmoniously be integrated into such an environment.

Unfortunately, I am not very knowledgable about the intricacies of Scottish culture, although I do find Highland dress to be very dignified, so I will have to concede to someone more informed than myself. I will say however that the kilt may be very appropriate to the fans of Yoda Norimoto as the lack of undergarments among the Highland warriors is likely the origin of the phrase "going commando." Judging by his inspiring performance in the last Honinbo Tournament, he seems to have something going for him here and we might all do well to follow suit.

Sincerely,
Desmond

I think it's unfair to take away go's "idleness".

The game's aesthetics may be highlighted by stylistic choices (which do not need to be traditional, although some traditional aesthetics work well), but I think go is sometimes best when it is idle and minimalist.

Go is a conversation, and at sometimes the best conversations are idle, Wildian, flights of fancy.

As I see it, there is much to lose from a confucian devotion to ceremony, if it is not occasionally balanced by a taoist devotion to fluidity.

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Tactics yes, Tact no...

Greetings Laman,

Thank you very much for sharing these photos. That is a very wonderful practice on the part of the participants.

Sincerely,
Desmond

Dear Shapenaji,

My exagerated expressions aside, I think that we are largely in agreement with regard to the naturally minimalist aesthetics of the game. It is this quality of an outward simplicity veiling an inward complexity that I find very appealing in Go, as well as the Japanese ambience or for that matter American Shaker furniture. For my part, I do not possess a dedicated room for Go, nor do I wear ceremonial robes while playing. I have found that simply having a clean and empty corner with some floor cushions is perfectly adequate and very suitable to my appreciation for the minimalist style. What I do find lamentable, however, is that so many of the more refined traditional supports that were once not just a possibility, but rather the norm, have been discontinued due to the influence of modernism. I have great admiration for those who take advantage of such supports when they are accessible. They lend a greater dignity to the professional games that we all appreciate and aspire to. Professional Go players do not only play for themselves, they play to instruct and inspire all of us while representing the full possibilities of the beauty and artistry of our game to the world. Perhaps Yoda Norimoto and others who avail themselves of traditional dress have taken this to heart, presenting themselves in a manner that pays homage to ther cultural heritage, while also showing respect for the game, their opponent, and themselves.

Sincerely,
Desmond

I think we agree that there is value in the ritual, I think I place less value in it than you do.

I wonder if it's the influence of modernism or simply of convenience? Ritual can get out of hand, and become a burden rather than a guide. I think Japan still struggles with ferreting out those rituals which are valuable from those which were overly constrictive.

The Tao of Shiva if you will, sometimes things must be destroyed in order to create anew.

As John Fairbairn pointed out, there are many obvious utilitarian reasons to not wear traditional dress regularly.

I guess I just don't feel that Japanese professionals' choices in dress necessarily reflect an absence of traditional aesthetic. There is still, I think, an appreciation for the beauty of the traditional forms.

But it's like a Japanese Wedding, are they gorgeous to behold? certainly, but when my older brother got married in Japan, I was somewhat relieved that I couldn't make it out there for the formal ceremony, and would have to content myself with pictures (they had another ceremony in the states for their friends and family here)

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Tactics yes, Tact no...

This discussion reminds me of the golfer Payne Stewart--there was something about his "traditional" style dress that I thought conveyed (and instilled) a heightened respect for the game. A most untimely and unfortunate death.

EDIT: (just to add an example: http://www.life.com/image/1218915 )

The ascription of "pomp and circumstance", or even tradition, to Japanese players wearing Japanese clothes is often due to people looking at Japan through chrysanthemum-tinted glasses. Whilst it is true that if, say, a player becomes a Honinbo, he is likely to turn up at the accession ceremony in Japanese dress as a nod to the long history of the title, for the most part they are merely showing their age-old genius for absorbing what they think is best from different cultures. They also change with the times. All very sensible, and nothing new.

If you look at photos of famous games played almost a century ago, you will typically see the players sitting on the floor in Japanese garb, while others (sponsors, commentators but also other players) would be sitting watching on chairs, and would be dressed in what was then western garb - suits and wing-collar shirts with co-respondents' shoes. The reporters would also use a fountain pen instead of a calligraphy brush. And we may safely assume they (and the players) got to the venue by car or train, not by being carried in a palanquin.

For most people, in the days before ubiquitous air conditioning, Japanese clothing could offer practical advantages. Perhaps for go players specifically, the advantages were greater in days when games required marathon sessions at the board, or just felt more natural in the countryside venues where major games were played for quietness. There was also the very practical point in those days that western clothing was usually rather more expensive.

Apart from increasing western cultural influence, there were also events that had a major impact on fashion. A fire in a Tokyo department store in the 1920s supposedly led to many deaths of people dressed in Japanese clothes who could not quickly access ladders and stairs. This appears to have changed attitudes almost overnight. Even earlier there were experiences such as the first train in Japan. Dignitaries were invited for the first trip, and took off their sandals as they boarded the carriage, as they would when entering any room. But they were highly disconcerted when the train chugged off, leaving their footwear behind.

Nowadays, most Japanese, going with the flow, find western-style clothing more practical and cheaper, and their homes may even be westernised, too (at least one room with a sofa, maybe a fixed bed, maybe hardwood floors. But they happily revert to yukatas in the evening or on holiday at the spa. It is natural. They are certainly not feeling the need to appear in a period piece just for the sake of sentimental westerners, though we might envy them their ability to have the best of both worlds.