Hyakunin Isshu No.24 of Yoga Promenade
The poet is Kanke. “Kanke” means Sugawara family. He is Sugawara-no Michizane who is known as the god of learning. He was highly valued by Emperor Uda. The abolition of envoys to China was based on his advice.
After Emperor Uda's abdication, he was involved in a power struggle within the imperial court and was demoted to Dazaifu in Kyushu. He died there. Then, people who had chased him down died one after another, and the emperor's residence was hit by lightning. People rumored that it was the haunting of Michizane, and he was enshrined at Kitano Tenmangu. A photo of mine “Tenjin-mae Railroad Crossing” shows a railroad crossing near Yaho Tenmangu Shrine. It is one of the shrines dedicated to him. It is said that one of his sons was exiled to Yaho and built a mausoleum for him after his death.
In this poem, the author didn't bring a tool to pray to a god (a fluttering stick) on this trip to a mountain, so he prayed with a maple branch with red leaves and left the rest to god's will. The poem itself describes a beautiful scenery, but it also reminds us that he later became a god.
Hyakunin Isshu No.24 of Yoga Promenade
The poet is Kanke. “Kanke” means Sugawara family. He is Sugawara-no Michizane who is known as the god of learning. He was highly valued by Emperor Uda. The abolition of envoys to China was based on his advice.
After Emperor Uda's abdication, he was involved in a power struggle within the imperial court and was demoted to Dazaifu in Kyushu. He died there. Then, people who had chased him down died one after another, and the emperor's residence was hit by lightning. People rumored that it was the haunting of Michizane, and he was enshrined at Kitano Tenmangu. A photo of mine “Tenjin-mae Railroad Crossing” shows a railroad crossing near Yaho Tenmangu Shrine. It is one of the shrines dedicated to him. It is said that one of his sons was exiled to Yaho and built a mausoleum for him after his death.
In this poem, the author didn't bring a tool to pray to a god (a fluttering stick) on this trip to a mountain, so he prayed with a maple branch with red leaves and left the rest to god's will. The poem itself describes a beautiful scenery, but it also reminds us that he later became a god.