Fujiwara no Teika

Japanese: 藤原定家 - ふじわらのていか

Year of death: 20th August 1241 (26th September 1241)
Year of birth: 1162
A poet of the early Kamakura period. Born as the second son of the poet Shunzei and the daughter of Wakasa no Kami Fujiwara Chikatada (Bifukumon'in Kaga). It is believed that he began his career as a poet around 1178, when he participated in a poetry contest at Kamo Wakeikazuchi Shrine in March of that year. In the same year, his father became the poetry teacher of Kujo Kanezane, a regent of the Sekkanke clan, and he inherited his father's passion for poetry. The following year, he was allowed to enter the palace, and from this time on he began to keep his diary, Meigetsuki. He soon entered the Jisho-Juei era of civil war, but in his diary he wrote, "The red flag and the conquest of the barbarians are not my business." Emperor Takakura, whom he had served closely, passed away in January 1181, and although he was overcome with deep sadness, he was able to receive care from the Kujo family thanks to his father's consideration, and he also gained the protection of Hachijo-in, where his mother served, and he began to devote himself to waka poetry, which resulted in him composing Shogaku Hyakushu. In 1183, his father was ordered by the retired Emperor Goshirakawa to compile the Senzai Wakashu, and while helping out, he aimed to take over the family of waka. In 1185, when the Genpei War ended, he caused a brawl at the Imperial Court and was expelled from the family register, but his father mediated and he was able to avoid this incident, and the following year, when Kujo Kanezane became regent, he began serving the Kujo family. Within the Kujo family, he had connections with Kanezane's son Yoshitsune and Kanezane's younger brother Jien, and furthermore, he devoted himself to the study of waka through connections with the lady-in-waiting who served Inpumon-in, and people connected to the Tokudaiji family with whom his father had long been associated, especially the poet Saigyo. He was a member of the Kujo family's waka circle, which was centered around Yoshitsune and included Shunzei, Jien, Jakuren, and Fujiwara Ietaka, and brought about a new style of poetry. He studied classics such as "The Tale of Genji" and "Collection of Baiji's Works," and his poems, which made full use of techniques such as honkadori, were even criticized as "new, unbased Bodhidharma poems." Eventually, Emperor Gotoba became interested in waka poetry, and after planning a 100-poem contest in 1200, he was discovered by the retired emperor, and when the Wakadokoro was established on July 27, 1201, not only was he selected as a member of the Wakadokoro, but he was also ordered to compile the "Shin Kokin Wakashu" along with Fujiwara no Ariie, Minamoto no Michitomo, Fujiwara no Ietaka and Masatsune, and Jakuren, and thus his waka blossomed. He was also asked by Minamoto no Sanetomo of Kamakura to teach him waka poetry, and he presented him with "Kindai Shuka," which increased his popularity. However, his promotion in official rank was slow, and he was promoted to Chujo in 1202, and it was not until he was 50 years old in 1211 that he became a nobleman. Just before the Jokyu War, he was punished by the retired Emperor Gotoba, but fortunately he did not take part in the rebellion. After the war, his fame as a poet increased and he was called the greatest poet of the Middle Ages, for example by editing the Shinchokusen Wakashu. In 1232, he became a provisional Chunagon (second vice-councillor) and was called Kyogoku Chunagon. The following year, he fell ill and became a monk, taking the Buddhist name Myosei. Teika, who aimed to revive the court's waka and culture, was also passionate about waka studies and created various waka anthologies and waka treatises. In Kindai Shuka (Modern Masterpieces), he called his own poems "a body of lingering emotion and bewitching charm," and in Monthly Sho (Monthly Collection), he called them "a body of heart." His self-selected collection of waka includes Shui Gusou (Shui Gusou). His diary Meigetsuki (Meigetsuki) is a highly unique diary that reveals the true face of a poet who was obsessed with official rank, was stubborn and easily angered, and is full of slander against others. From this, we can see his strong attachment to the family of waka poets, and his dedication to research and detailed knowledge of public affairs. The Noh play "Teika" describes his love affair with Princess Shikishi, but the facts are unknown. <References> Yoshisada Ishida, "Research on Fujiwara Teika," Fumihiko Gomi, "The Era of Fujiwara Teika"

(Fumihiko Gomi)

Source: Asahi Japanese Historical Biography: Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. About Asahi Japanese Historical Biography

Japanese:

没年：仁治2.8.20(1241.9.26)
生年：応保2(1162)
鎌倉前期の歌人。歌人俊成と若狭守藤原親忠の娘(美福門院加賀)の次男として生まれる。歌人として出発したのは治承2(1178)年のころと考えられ,その年の3月の賀茂別雷社の歌合に出詠しているが,同じ年に父が摂関家の九条兼実の歌の師範になったことから,父の歌の家への情熱を一身に受ける。翌年に内の昇殿が認められ,このころから日記『明月記』をつけ始めた。やがて治承・寿永の内乱の時代にあうが,定家は「紅旗・征戎,吾が事にあらず」と日記に記している。親しく仕えていた高倉天皇が養和1(1181)年1月にこの世を去り,深い悲しみに襲われたものの,父の配慮から九条家の保養を得,また母が仕えた八条院の庇護も得て,和歌に専念し始めた結果,『初学百首』を詠んでいる。次いで寿永2(1183)年に父が後白河上皇の命によって『千載和歌集』の編纂を行うことになり,その手伝いをするなかで歌の家の継承を目指していった。源平の争乱も終わった文治1(1185)年には殿上において闘乱事件を起こし除籍される失敗もあったが,これも父のとりなしで事なきを得て,翌年に九条兼実が摂政になると,九条家に仕えるようになった。九条家では兼実の子の良経や兼実の弟慈円との交流があり,さらに殷富門院に仕える女房大輔や古くから父の関係していた徳大寺家に連なる人々,殊に歌人西行などとの交流から和歌の研鑽に励む。なかでも良経を中心にして俊成や慈円,寂蓮,藤原家隆などの集まった九条家の歌壇に属し新風を起こしていった。『源氏物語』や『白氏文集』などの古典に学び,本歌取りの技法を駆使した歌は「新儀非拠の達磨歌」との非難さえ浴びた。やがて後鳥羽上皇が和歌に執心し始め正治2(1200)年に百首歌を企画してからは後鳥羽上皇に見出され,建仁1(1201)年7月27日に和歌所が置かれると,寄人に選ばれたばかりか,さらに『新古今和歌集』の編纂を藤原有家,源通具,藤原家隆・雅経,寂蓮らと共に命じられ,こうしてその和歌は大いに開花した。また鎌倉の源実朝からは和歌の指導を求められて『近代秀歌』を贈るなどして声望はあがった。ただ官位の昇進は遅く,建仁2年に中将となり,公卿になったのは建暦1(1211)年の50歳のときであった。承久の乱直前には後鳥羽上皇から勅勘を被る事件もあったが,それが幸いして乱にはくみすることなく,乱後に歌人の名声はいよいよ高まって『新勅撰和歌集』を編集するなど,中世最高の歌人と評されるところとなった。貞永1(1232)年に権中納言になって京極中納言と称され,その翌年病を得て出家,法名は明静。王朝和歌と文化の再興を目指していた定家は,歌学にも熱心で様々な和歌集や歌論書を作っている。『近代秀歌』では自分の歌を「余情妖艶の体」と,また『毎月抄』では「有心体」と称している。和歌の自選集に『拾遺愚草』がある。日記『明月記』は,官位へのこだわりが強く狷介で激しやすい歌人の素顔が窺え,また他人への悪口が満ちているなど極めて個性的な日記である。そこからは歌の家への強い執着心が読み取れ,公事に詳しく研究熱心な様も浮かんでくる。謡曲「定家」は式子内親王との恋を描いているが,事実は不明である。<参考文献>石田吉貞『藤原定家の研究』,五味文彦『藤原定家の時代』

(五味文彦)

出典　朝日日本歴史人物事典：（株）朝日新聞出版朝日日本歴史人物事典について　情報

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