Editing Kakinomoto no Hitomaro (section)

== Works ==
[[Image:Kakinomoto no hitomaro.jpg|thumb|''[[Ukiyo-e]]'' print by [[Utagawa Kuniyoshi]] that depicts Kakinomoto no Hitomaro]]

Hitomaro was a court poet during the reigns of Empress Jitō and Emperor Monmu, with most of his dateable poems coming from the last decade or so of the seventh century.{{sfnm|1a1=Nakanishi|1y=1985|1p=221}} He apparently left a [[kashū (poetry)|private collection]], the so-called ''[[Kakinomoto no Ason Hitomaro Kashū]]'', which does not survive as an independent work but was cited extensively by the compilers of the ''Man'yōshū''.{{sfnm|1a1=Nakanishi|1y=1985|1p=221}}<!-- Some of this detail is not specifically given in Nakanishi 1985, but the linked article does verify it, and it's mostly BLUE description of the topic which Nakanishi himself just name-drops because of the formatting of his work. -->

18 ''[[chōka]]'' and 67 ''[[tanka]]'' (of which 36 are [[envoi|envoys]] to his long poems) are directly attributed to him in the ''Man'yōshū''.{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} All are located in the first four books of the collection.{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} Of these, six ''chōka'' and 29 ''tanka'' are classified as ''[[zōka]]'' (miscellaneous poems),{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} three ''chōka'' and 13 ''tanka'' as ''[[sōmon (poetry)|sōmon]]'' (mutual exchanges of love poetry),{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} and nine ''chōka'' and 25 ''tanka'' as ''[[banka (poetry)|banka]]'' ([[elegies]]).{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} Of note is the fact that he contributed ''chōka'' to all three categories, and that he composed so many ''banka''.{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}}

Broken down by topic, the above poems include:
*three ''chōka'' and five ''tanka'' about reigning emperors, such as hymns praising Empress Jitō's visits to Yoshino and {{interlanguage link|Ikazuchioka|ja|雷岡}}, and poems lamenting the fallen Ōmi capital;{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}}
*seven ''chōka'' and 17 ''tanka'' about imperial princes and princesses such as his elegies for Prince Kusakabe, Prince Takechi, Princess Asuka and {{interlanguage link|Prince Kawashima|ja|川島皇子}} and his songs of praise for Prince Karu, Prince Osakabe, [[Prince Naga]] and Prince Niitabe;{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}}
*seven ''chōka'' and 28 ''tanka'' about court women, including the three ''tanka'' he composed on the court women accompanying Empress Jitō on her visit to Ise while he stayed in the capital, one ''chōka'' and eight ''tanka'' mourning Kibitsu no Uneme, Hijikata no Otome and Izumo no Otome, and a number of romantic exchanges with his wife and other lovers;{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}}
*one ''chōka'' and three ''tanka'' commemorating the bodies of dead people Hitomaro encountered;{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}}
*14 ''tanka'' composed on travel topics that do not fit into any of the above categories (all of which also include travel poems).{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}}
From the above it can be said that Hitomaro's poetry was primarily about affairs of the court, but that he also showed a marked preference for poems on travel.{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}}
[[Image:Hyakuninisshu 003.jpg|thumb|Kakinomoto no Hitomaro from ''Ogura [[Hyakunin Isshu]]'']]

In addition to the 85 poems directly attributed to Hitomaro by the ''Man'yōshū'', two ''chōka'' and three ''tanka'' in books 3 and 9 are said to be traditionally attributed to Hitomaro.{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} Additionally, there is one Hitomaro ''tanka'' in book 15 said to have been recited in 736 by an envoy sent to [[Silla]].{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} Including these "traditional" Hitomaro poems, that gives 20 ''chōka'' and 71 ''tanka''.{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} It is quite possible that a significant number of these poems were incorrectly attributed to Hitomaro by tradition.{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} In addition to Hitomaro's own compositions, there are also many poems said to have been recorded by him in his [[kashū (poetry)|personal collection]], the ''[[Kakinomoto no Asomi Hitomaro Kashū]]'' (柿本朝臣人麿歌集).{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} The ''Hitomaro Kashū'' included 333 ''tanka'', 35 ''[[sedōka]]'', and two ''chōka''.{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} This adds up to a total figure of close to 500 poems directly associated with Hitomaro.{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}}<ref>Werneburg (2023)</ref>

=== Characteristic style ===
Hitomaro is known for his solemn and mournful elegies of members of the imperial family, whom he described in his courtly poems as "gods" and "children of the sun".{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} He incorporated elements of the [[Japanese mythology|national mythology]] seen in the ''Kojiki'' and ''Nihon Shoki'' and historical narrative in his poetry.{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} While he is known for his poems praising the imperial family, his poetry is also filled with human sensitivity and a new, fresh "folkiness".{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}}

His lament for the Ōmi capital is noted for its vivid, sentimental descriptions of the ruins,{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} while his elegy for Prince Takechi powerfully evokes the [[Jinshin War]].{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} His Yoshino and {{interlanguage link|Samine Island|ja|沙弥島}} poems praise splendidly the natural scenery and the divinity of the Japanese islands,{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} and his Iwami exchange vividly describes the powerful emotions of being separated from the woman he loved.{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} His romantic poems convey honest emotions,{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} and his travel poems exquisitely describe the mood of the courtiers on these trips.{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}} He shed tears for the deaths of even random commoners on country paths and court women whose names he did not even know.{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}}

Watase credits him with the creation of an ancient [[lyricism]] that expressed both human sentiment and sincere emotions across both his poems of praise and mourning.{{sfnm|1a1=Watase|1y=1983|1p=587}}