Poetry contest between poets of different periods, Ise and Fujiwara Kiyosuke

Poetry competitions pitting the skills of two teams of players were a popular feature of court life during the Heian period (794–1185). The painting shown here illustrates an imagined match between contestants of different eras, the courtier Fujiwara Kiyosuke (1104–1177, at left) and Ise (active approx. 935, at right), a court lady famous for her love of poetry. Above the portraits three pairs of poems are written within decorated squares representing three rounds of the contest. The poems in the final round, at left, use images from nature—like froth on a stream and moonlight on withered leaves—to express human emotions like doubt and desolation.

Ise team’s final poem
Am I but froth
a bubble on the water
of the ever-flowing
stream of love, to be so fragile
as to vanish ere we meet?

omoi gawa
taezu nagaruru
mizu no awa no
utakata hito ni
awade kieme ya

—Translated by Edwin A. Cranston

Kiyosuke team’s final poem
In winter-withered
groves carpeted with layers
of frost-covered leaves
fallen from the trees the cold
light of the moon now descends

fuyugare no
mori no kuchiba no
shimo no ue ni
ochitaru tsuki no
kage no samukesa

—Translated by Edwin A. Cranston