What attracts/intrigues/baffles/exasperates me about this game is that Fujisawa Hideyuki, who first published it himself, was unsure of how he got the opportunity to play the Meijin - his only time.
Let me repeat that: he got to play the Mejin, Honinbo Shusai, and just once in his life (and he won!!!), and he couldn't remember the occasion. OK, he was 11 at the time, and probably more interested in playing with his marbles, but he didn't have someone he could ask who had paid more attention to such a great honour? He presumably felt himself it was some sort of honour as he kept the record of the game (and even dated it precisely). Maybe this was part of what made him so distinctive in later life.
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