Hyakunin Isshu, Poem 100
Translation and comments by Ad Blankestijn
(version September 2022)
when I see the "memory ferns"
growing on the old eaves
of the imperial palace
my longing grows the more I long
for the glorious rule of the past
momoshiki ya
furuki nokiba no
shinobu ni mo
nao amari aru
mukashi nari keri
古き軒端の
しのぶにも
なほあまりある
むかしなりけり
Cloistered Emperor Juntoku 順徳院 (1197-1242)
A poem about the loss of imperial power, written in 1216. Also echoes the first poem that opens the Hyakunin Isshu, by Emperor Tenji: the opening poem of the collection shows us a benevolent emperor ruling over the people, but this one is filled with nostalgia for the past glories of the imperial house.
Notes
- momoshiki: an utamakura for palaces, here used independently: "the imperial court".
- nokiba no shinobu: a pun (kakekotoba). It means both "the memory ferns (shinobu) growing on the eaves" and "to long for the past (shinobu)."
- nao: here the same as "yahari", after all, all the same.
- amari aru: "shinonde mo shinobikirenai", "no matter how much I yearn for it, my yearning never ends."
- mukashi narikeri: "the glorious reign of old." -keri is an exclamation.
The Poet
Emperor
Juntoku (1197 – 1242) was the 84th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 1210 through 1221. He was the third son of Emperor Go-Toba (poem 99). In actuality, Emperor Go-Toba wielded effective power as a cloistered emperor during the years of Juntoku's reign. In 1221, Emperor Juntoku was forced to abdicate because of his participation in Go-Toba's unsuccessful attempt to displace the Kamakura bakufu with re-asserted Imperial power. This political and military struggle was called the Jokyu War. After the imperial side lost the war, Juntoku was sent into exile on Sado Island, where he remained until his death in 1242.
Juntoku studied poetry under Teika and was a frequent participant in the poetry events sponsored by Go-Toba. Juntoku has a personal poetry collection and 159 of his poems were included in imperial anthologies.
Visiting
(1) Mano Goryo Mausoleum, Sado Island. Sado Island is part of Niigata prefecture and can be reached by ferry from Niigata to Ryotsu. Emperor Juntoku was forced into exile on Sado in 1221, when he and his father, Go-Toba, lost the military struggle with the Hojo regents. After twenty-two years, he passed away in 1242, at the age of forty-six. His body was cremated the following day, and pines and cherry trees were planted on the site to mark the spot. His ashes were returned to Kyoto the following year, and buried in the imperial mausoleum of his father, Emperor Go-Toba. The cremation spot on Sado Island mound is handled as an imperial mausoleum under the management of the Imperial Household Agency. It lies in a beautiful grove. The nearby Manogu Shrine enshrines Emperor Juntoku. The Kuroki Gosho at Izumi served as the abode for the unlucky emperor for 22 years (10 km SW of Ryotsu). Mano was the center of government on the island from the earliest times to the Kamakura period and most of Sado's historical relics are scattered here. Other famous exiles to Sado were the priest Nichiren and the No master Zeami. See the Sado Tourism website.
(2) The Ohara Mausoleum near Sanzenin temple in Ohara, Kyoto, is dedicated to both Juntoku and his father Go-Toba, who both died after long years in exile.
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).
Illustration: Wikipedia.
Hyakunin Isshu Index