息子：「お父さん、この頃将棋が弱くなりましたね」
父：「おまえこそ強くなったね。いよいよ本腰をいれることにするか」
Hongoshi wo Ireru
(Chichi to musuko ga shogi wo shiteiru)
Musuko: Otoosan, kono goro shoogi ga yowaku narimashita ne.
Chichi: Omae koso tsuyoku natta ne. lyoiyo hongoshi wo ireru koto ni suru ka.
(A father and son are playing shogi.)
Son: You usedtobe a strongerplayer, Dad.
Father: And you didn't use to be so good. I guess it's time I showed you a thing or two about how this game is really played.
* * *
Hongoshi wo ireru means to do something wholeheartedly, to make an earnest effort, to give something all one's got/one's best shot. The idiom comes from the fact that we often concentrate a lot of energy in our hips (koshi/goshi) when we move.
To be good at shogi (the Japanese game whose rules resemble those of chess) requires, as does chess, both a logical mind and a lot of free time-it's possible to spend hours quietly struggling over a match or even over just one move. Unlike chess, however, there's nothing quite like the sound of a flat, wooden shogi piece being slapped down onto the playing board; the sound always signals that the two players are caught up in heated battle.
Since the 15-year-old son whose shogi game has shown so much improvement has been playing since elementary school, it's only natural that he's now quite an accomplished player and that failure to take him seriously is an invitation for defeat.
According to his father, "Hongoshi wo irete kakarimashita ga musuko ni wa kateso mo arimasen" ("Though I gave the match everything I had, there was no way I could beat him.") The father, taking more and more time deliberating before each move, irritated his son: "Otosan sorosoro hongoshi wo irete kudasai" ( "Dad, stop holding back. Go ahead and play your best.") The son's sarcastic remark didn't help. "I've been trying my hardest since this morning!" ("Mo tokku ni hongoshi wo irete iru'n desu.") The two had started playing after breakfast and were still at it in the evening. The sun had set in the west and the smell of dinner had begun to drift out from the kitchen. Mother called out, "Would you two please stop playing and come in here and eat. The game is a draw." And so, in the end, the father was unable to win despite trying his hardest (hongoshi wo irete kakattemo katemasen deshita.) Though he appeared quite upset about how the game turned out, he was actually very satisfied with his son's progress. If the truth were told, however, he probably still didn't realize just how good his son had become. Musuko ga hongoshi wo irete kakatte itara chichioya wa makete ita kamo shiremasen (Had his son really taken the game seriously, the father most likely would have been beaten. )
The idiom can also be used when talking about such things as work, study, and sports. For example, to a student attempting to pass college entrance exams, ''Hongoshi wo irete kakaranakereba gokaku shimasen." ("Unless you buckle down and give it your very best shot, there's no way you'll pass.") In a business situation, "Hongoshi wo irete shigoto wo shinai tokono mama de wa shusse no mikomi ga nai." ("At this rate, unless you work harder, you are not likely to be promoted.") And as for me, though up to now, I've had the freedpmjo do many of the things I've always wanted to do, kore EarsTwa hongoslii wo irete nihongo kyoiku ni torikumo to omotte imasu (from now on I plan to concentrate all my energies on doing my very best in the field of Japanese language education. )