Ariwara no Motokata
| Ariwara no Motokata | |
|---|---|
| Native name | 在原元方 |
| Language | Japanese |
| Ethnicity | Japanese |
| Period | early Heian |
| Genre | waka |
| Relatives | Emperor Heizei (great-great grandfather), Fujii no Fujiko (great-great grandmother), Emperor Kanmu (great-great grandfather), Fujiwara no Minamiko (great-great grandmother), Prince Abo (great grandfather), Princess Ito (great grandmother), Ariwara no Narihira (paternal grandfather), Ariwara no Muneyana (father) |
Ariwara no Motokata (在原元方, dates unknown, fl. late 800s – 900s CE) was a Japanese waka poet of the early Heian period.
He was included in the Late Classical Thirty-Six Poetic Geniuses, and thirty-three of his poems were included in poetry collections commissioned by the court.
Biography
His birth and death dates are unknown, and the details of his life are also uncertain,[1] but he was the son of Ariwara no Muneyana (died 898), the first son of Ariwara no Narihira (825—880).[1] Who his mother was is also unknown.[1]
According to the Kokin Wakashū Mokuroku (古今和歌集目録), he was adopted by his brother-in-law Fujiwara no Kunitsune (藤原国経).[1]
As a courtier, he held the Senior Fifth Rank, although the 14th century Chokusen Sakusha Burui (勅撰作者部類) attributes to him the Sixth Rank.[1]
Poetry
He was listed as one of the Late Classical Thirty-Six Poetic Geniuses.[1] Thirty-three of his poems were included in court anthologies: fourteen the Kokin Wakashū, eight in the Gosen Wakashū, two in the Shūi Wakashū, and nine more in later anthologies from the Shin Kokin Wakashū on.[1]
The following poem was included as the very first entry in the Kokin Wakashū, indicating the high regard in which the compilers likely held his poetry.[1]
| Japanese text[1] | Romanized Japanese | English translation |
|---|---|---|
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Between one and three of his poems survive in the records of each of several uta-awase gatherings: the Ninna Ninomiya Uta-awase (仁和二宮歌合, 893 or earlier), the Kanpyō no Oontoki Kisai no Miya no Uta-awase (寛平御時后宮歌合, also written 寛平御時中宮歌合; 893 or earlier), the Teiji-in no Uta-awase (亭子院歌合, 913) and the Taira no Sadafun ga Ie no Uta-Awase (平定文家歌合, also read Taira no Sadafumi-ke Uta-Awase).[1] Some of these overlap with the Motokata poems preserved in court anthologies.[1]
In the middle ages there was apparently a private collection of his poems, the Motokata-kashū (元方家集),[1] but only a four-leaf fragment is known to exist today.[1]
Characteristic style
His poems are characterized by an intellectual style.[1] They make frequent use of simile (見立て mitate).[1]
His poems clearly display the features of the so-called "Kokinshū style".[1]
References
External links
- List of Narihira's poems in the International Research Center for Japanese Studies's online waka database.
- Ariwara no Motokata on Kotobank.