Poetry—Japan

Poetry—Japan

According to legend, the first poem in Japan was spoken by the god Susanoo no Mikoto when he built his palace in the land of Izumo. In his preface to the Kokinwakashu (c. 905), the first imperial anthology of poetry written in Japanese, the poet Ki no Tsurayuki (d. c. 945) also dates poetry to the age of the gods. This essay emphasizes written poetry and covers primitive song, court poetry, renga and haikai, and modern verse.

Primitive Song

In the early eighth century Japanese primitive songs were taken down from the words of reciters (kataribe) and also preserved as prayers in Shinto ceremonies. The earliest songs have no fixed prosody, that is, no set number of syllables and no regular alternation of long and short lines. These songs celebrate the daily lives of the early Japanese and reflect themes of love, work, awe and respect for nature, victory in battle, reverence, and praise.

One of the earliest written sources of Japanese song is the Kojiki (Record of Ancient Matters, c. 712). The Kojiki was compiled and presented to the Empress Gemmei (reigned 707–715) by O no Yasumaro (d. 723) in the Nara period (710–794). Although the Kojiki was commissioned to give the imperial house added legitimacy in an account of its divine origins, it also preserves a number of uta (poems or songs), mostly on the theme of love.

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