Hyakunin Isshu, Poem 69
Translation and comments by Ad Blankestijn
(version September 2022)
the maple leaves
torn from Mount Mimuro
by the storm's blast
turn the Tatsuta River
into a rich brocade
arashi fuku
Mimuro no yama no
momijiba wa
Tatsuta no kawa no
nishiki narikeri
あらし吹く
三室の山の
もみぢ葉は
龍田の川の
にしきなりけり
Noin 能因 (988-1051)
[Tatsuta River, Ikaruga, Nara]
The above poem was written for a palace poetry contest held in 1049. It is not based on actual observation, for the distance between the famous mountain and equally famous river (both utamakura) is about 25 kilometers, much too far for Mt Miwa's maple leaves to be blown into the Tatsuta river. The confusion between maple leaves and brocade is a conventional one. Poem 17 by Ariwara no Narihira also treats the association between maple leaves and the Tatsuta river.
Notes
- A direct and straightforward poem.
- Mt Mimuro is another name for Mt Miwa, which is a mountain located in the city of Sakurai, Nara Prefecture. It has through the ages been an important religious spot and is home to one of the earliest Shinto shrines, Omiwa Shrine.
- The River Tatsuta in Heguri, Ikoma District, Nara Prefecture was famous for its fiery red momiji (autumn leaves) and appears frequently in classical poetry,
The Poet
Tachibana no Nagayasu (988 – c. 1051), also known as Master of the Law Noin, was a Japanese poet and monk of the late Heian period. After studying at the imperial university, at age 26 he took vows and started traveling throughout Japan, writing poems about the scenes he visited. He studied poetry under Fujiwara no Nagato. A collection of his poetry is extant, as well as a poetic treatise. Sixty-five of his poems have been included in the Go-Shuishu and later imperial collections.Visiting
A visit to the Tatsuta River has been introduced under Poem 17, to which I here refer.
More worthy of a visit is the Omiwa Shrine, one of Japan's oldest and most beautiful Shinto shrines, standing at the foot of 467m high Mt Miwa. The handsome structure in the shrine court is the Haiden, or oratory. There is no hall to house the kami because the kami dwells on the mountain itself. According to ancient legend, it appears in the form of a snake. The Omiwa Srhine also has deep connections with sake brewing: the brew was handed down to mankind by Omononushi, the deity of the shrine, and continues to be offered to him as a way of thanksgiving. In the Manyoshu, "umazake," "delicious sake," is employed as an epithet for the Omiwa Shrine, and the term "miwa" itself was used to designate sake in the past. See my detailed article about the Omiwa Shrine at this blog, also for directions.
Hyakunin Isshu Index
More worthy of a visit is the Omiwa Shrine, one of Japan's oldest and most beautiful Shinto shrines, standing at the foot of 467m high Mt Miwa. The handsome structure in the shrine court is the Haiden, or oratory. There is no hall to house the kami because the kami dwells on the mountain itself. According to ancient legend, it appears in the form of a snake. The Omiwa Srhine also has deep connections with sake brewing: the brew was handed down to mankind by Omononushi, the deity of the shrine, and continues to be offered to him as a way of thanksgiving. In the Manyoshu, "umazake," "delicious sake," is employed as an epithet for the Omiwa Shrine, and the term "miwa" itself was used to designate sake in the past. See my detailed article about the Omiwa Shrine at this blog, also for directions.
References: Pictures of the Heart, The Hyakunin Isshu in Word and Image by Joshua S. Mostow (University of Hawai'i Press, 1996); One Hundred Poets, One Poem Each, by Peter MacMIllan (Penguin Classics); Traditional Japanese Poetry, An Anthology, by Steven D. Carter (Stanford University Press, 1991); Hyakunin Isshu by Inoue Muneo, etc. (Shinchosha, 1990); Genshoku Hyakunin Isshu by Suzuki Hideo, etc. (Buneido, 1997); Chishiki Zero kara no Hyakunin Isshu, by Ariyoshi Tamotsu (Gentosha); Hyakunin Isshu Kaibo Zukan, by Tani Tomoko (X-Knowledge); Ogura Hyakunin Isshu at Japanese Text Initiative (University of Virginia Library Etext Center); Hyakunin Isshu wo aruku by Shimaoka Shin (Kofusha Shuppan); Hyakunin Isshu, Ocho waka kara chusei waka e by Inoue Muneo (Chikuma Shoin, 2004); Basho's Haiku (2 vols) by Toshiharu Oseko (Maruzen, 1990); The Ise Stories by Joshua S. Mostow and Royall Tyler (University of Hawai'i Press, 2010); Kokin Wakashu, The First Imperial Anthology of Japanese Poetry by Helen Craig McCullough (Stanford University Press, 1985); Kokinshu, A Collection of Poems Ancient and Modern by Laurel Rasplica Rodd and Mary Catherine Henkenius (University of Tokyo Press, 1984); Kokin Wakashu (Shogakkan, 1994); Shinkokin Wakashu (Shogakkan, 1995); Taketori Monogatari-Ise Monogatari-Yamato Monogatari-Heichu Monogatari (Shogakkan, 1994).
Photo: Wikipedia
Hyakunin Isshu Index