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27-516: The Suzakumon ( 朱雀門 , Suzakumon or Shujakumon ) was the main gate built in the center of the south end of the imperial palaces in the Japanese ancient capitals of Fujiwara-kyō ( Kashihara ), Heijō-kyō ( Nara ), and later Heian-kyō ( Kyoto ). The placement followed the ancient Chinese palace model requirements at the time, where Suzaku ( 朱雀 , Suzaku ) , the Vermilion Bird

54-694: A Special Historic Site of Japan, and excavations of the Fujiwara Palace are still ongoing. In January 2007, the Japanese government included "Asuka-Fujiwara: Archaeological Sites of Japan's Ancient Capitals and Related Properties" on the tentative list, which is a prerequisite for World Heritage registration. Since 2006, with the cooperation of the Asuka-Fujiwara Site Development Cooperation Committee comprising five neighboring towns (Daigo-cho, Kinomoto-cho, Nawate-cho, Bessho-cho, and Takadono-cho),

81-691: A preface in Japanese prose by Fujiwara no Yoshitsune and a preface in Chinese—the scholarly language of the Court—by Fujiwara no Chikatsune , in a manner reminiscent of the Kokinshū . The significance of the Shin Kokinshū lies prominently in the technical expertise of the compilers, their novel and extensive use of the honkadori literary technique, and the effect that each of these elements had on Japanese poetry after its publication. Even though

108-741: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Fujiwara-ky%C5%8D Fujiwara-kyō ( 藤原京 ) was the Imperial capital of Japan for sixteen years, between 694 and 710. It was located in Yamato Province (present-day Kashihara in Nara Prefecture ), having been moved from nearby Asuka . However, the name itself was never used in the Nihon Shoki ; during those times it was recorded as Aramashi-kyō ( 新益京 ) . As of 2006, ongoing excavations have revealed construction on

135-528: Is when robes of pure white are aired on heavenly Mount Kagu. ( Shin Kokin Wakashū 3:175; Hyakunin Isshu 2) Empress Genmei (661–721) moved the capital from Fujiwara-kyō to Nara (then Heijō-kyō ) in 710 mainly to carry out the wishes of her son Emperor Monmu (683–707), who was the previous occupant of the throne and had ordered in 697 to search for a new proper capital site. According to Delmer Brown,

162-649: The Shin Kokinshū ( 新古今集 ) or even conversationally as the Shin Kokin , is the eighth imperial anthology of waka poetry compiled by the Japanese court, beginning with the Kokin Wakashū circa 905 and ending with the Shinshokukokin Wakashū circa 1439. The name can be literally translated as "New Collection of Ancient and Modern Poems" and bears an intentional resemblance to that of

189-448: The Kokinshū is famous in part for its organization throughout the anthology, as each poem is generally given as a lead-in to the next, the Shin Kokinshū goes above and beyond the standard created by the original collection. The Kokinshū editors used linking poems as a general guide, but the Shin Kokinshū editors created "an anthology that may be read from beginning to end as a single long structure divided into books". For example, in

216-477: The Shin Kokinshū echoes that of the Kokinshū in many ways, but it also shows the influence of the intervening imperial anthologies. As can be seen in the table below, the Shin Kokinshū omits certain books from the original anthology, and includes others on poetic topics that gained prominence only after the publication of the Kokinshū . The 20 books of the Shin Kokinshū contain nearly 2,000 waka , with

243-464: The Shin Kokinshū to its honka, or original poem, in the Kokinshū . Samushiro ya matsu yo no aki no kaze fukete tsuki wo katashiku uji no hashihime How cold! waiting out the autumn’s weary night deepening as the wind blows she spreads out the moon’s light the Princess of Uji Bridge. Samushiro ni koromo katashiki koyoi mo ya ware wo matsuramu uji no hashihime On

270-545: The Shin Kokinshū . Instead of mimicking only the horizontal flow of the Kokinshū , the poems in the New Collection also make vertical links to the poetic traditions of the past, and by borrowing from specific poems and not simply from stock phrases, the authors and editors of the poems in the Shin Kokinshū were able to step away from overused and more clearly unoriginal topics that ancient poems had popularized. The following example compares one of Teika’s own poems in

297-999: The Fujiwara Palace Site Flower Garden Planting Project has been carried out to raise awareness of the Fujiwara Palace site among a wider audience. In spring, approximately 2.5 million Nanohana blossoms are planted on about 20,000 square meters. In summer, about 1 million yellow cosmos flowers are planted on approximately 7,000 square meters, along with 11 varieties of lotus on around 3,000 square meters. In autumn, about 3 million cosmos flowers are planted on approximately 30,000 square meters. 34°30′08″N 135°48′26″E  /  34.50222°N 135.80722°E  / 34.50222; 135.80722 Shin Kokin Wakash%C5%AB The Shin Kokin Wakashū ( 新古今和歌集 , "New Collection of Poems Ancient and Modern") , also known in abbreviated form as

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324-636: The center of the south wall. The Daigokuden ( 大極殿 ) and other palace buildings were the first palace structures in Japan to have a tile roof in the Chinese style. The area had previously been the domain of the Nakatomi clan , who oversaw the observation of Shintō rituals and ceremonies on behalf of the Imperial court. The city burnt down in 711, one year after the move to Nara, and was not rebuilt. Archaeological excavations began in 1934, and some portions of

351-416: The cold mat spreading out her gown, this night too will she wait for me— the Princess of Uji Bridge? Although the poems are written on the same subject, with the newer one drawing directly from the older, Fujiwara no Teika’s interpretation both modernizes the poem and provides it with greater subtlety. It also accomplishes a connection between the Kokinshū and the Shin Kokinshū . The structure of

378-443: The development of the renga or "linked verse" form, in which poets wrote a series of verses together in turns by continuing the image of the previous verse and introducing something new for the next poet to work with. Renga also made frequent use of the honkadori technique, since each poet had only a short phrase to work with and the ability to use allusions to prior, complete poems was an important one. The term "Honkadori" refers to

405-504: The first anthology. Together with the Man'yōshū and the Kokinshū , the Shin Kokinshū is widely considered to be one of the three most influential poetic anthologies in Japanese literary history. It was commissioned in 1201 by the retired emperor Go-Toba (r. 1183–1198), who established a new Bureau of Poetry at his Nijō palace with eleven Fellows, headed by Fujiwara no Yoshitsune , for

432-424: The honor of having forty-six of his own poems included in the anthology less satisfactory. Individual egos aside, the result was a composition that not only spanned centuries of Japanese literary tradition and evolving literary styles but also provided a veritable textbook on what well and poorly written poems looked like. The elaborate linking format developed by the editors was also picked up and carried forward with

459-437: The palace were reconstructed. Close to 10,000 wooden tablets, known as mokkan , have been found, inscribed with Chinese characters. This waka poem, written by Empress Jitō , describes Fujiwara in the summer: 春すぎて夏来にけらし白妙の      衣ほすてふ天の香具山 haru sugite natsu kinikerashi shirotae no koromo hosu chō Ama no Kaguyama Spring has passed, it seems, and now summer has arrived; For this, they say,

486-517: The poems included in the anthology as well as the order in which they were presented, he assigned the task of compilation to six of the Fellows of the Bureau of Poetry. These were Fujiwara no Teika (1162–1241), Fujiwara no Ariie (1155–1216), Fujiwara no Ietaka (1158–1237), Jakuren (c. 1139–1202), Minamoto no Michitomo (1171–1237) and Asukai Masatsune (1170–1221). The anthology was also given

513-409: The practice of "allusive variation," and can be literally translated as "taking from an original poem". Even though allusions to older poems were common in the poetic discourse of the day, following the 11th century and prior to Fujiwara no Teika’s experimentation with honkadori, it was frowned upon to make obvious borrowings from past writers. However, that changed significantly with the publication of

540-429: The purpose of conducting poetry contests and compiling the anthology. Despite its emphasis on contemporary poets, the Shin Kokinshū covered a broader range of poetic ages than the Kokinshū , including ancient poems that the editors of the first anthology had deliberately excluded. It was officially presented in 1205, on the 300th anniversary of the completion of the Kokinshū . Although Go-Toba retained veto power over

567-481: The reason for Monmu to found a new capital may be that he was influenced by the ancient belief that a new Emperor should reign at a new capital and that Nara was intended to be the capital for his son Shōmu . The earthen platform of the Daigokuden of Fujiwara Palace remains, and the surrounding area has been developed into a historical site park. Approximately 60% of the Fujiwara Palace site has been designated as

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594-414: The sections on the topic of Spring, the editors pieced together a detailed representation in poetic form of the advancement of spring and the passage of time, using similar words and expressions to link each poem to the next. In the section on travel poems, the progression is from ancient poets and styles to modern ones, and as is common in Japanese waka anthologies, the sections on Love are arranged to show

621-522: The site of Fujiwara-kyō as early as 682, near the end of the reign of Emperor Tenmu . With a brief halt upon Emperor Tenmu's death, construction resumed under Empress Jitō , who officially moved the capital in 694. Fujiwara-kyō remained the capital for the reigns of Emperor Monmu and Empress Genmei , but in 710 the Imperial court moved to the Heijō Palace in Nara , beginning the Nara period . Fujiwara

648-410: The stages of an affair from first love to bitter parting. This kind of detailed manipulation resulted in an anthology that did not necessarily contain all of the best works of the day. As Fujiwara no Teika complained, Go-Toba’s insistence on including the works of old, obscure or even unaccomplished composers in the anthology in order to maintain appropriate links to those poems that were worthwhile made

675-407: Was Japan's first capital built in a grid pattern on the Chinese model ( 条坊制 , jōbō-sei ) ; recent investigation has revealed that the city covered an area of roughly 5 km, much larger than previously thought. The palace occupied a plot measuring about 1 km , and was surrounded by walls roughly 5 m high. Each of the four walls had three gates; Suzakumon , the main gate, stood at

702-473: Was developed, based on comparable architecture elsewhere, and the new gate was constructed from a mixture of traditional building materials ( Japanese cypress wood and tiles) and concrete, in order to resist earthquakes. The reconstructed gate was opened in 1998. Most of the gate was constructed by the Takenaka Corporation . This article about a Japanese building- or structure-related topic

729-606: Was the Guardian of the South. ( See Four Symbols for more. ) It was said to be the site where foreign dignitaries were received by the Emperor. All of them were destroyed centuries ago along with the old imperial residences. In 1993, it was decided that the gate of Nara would be reconstructed. It proved extremely difficult to work out what Suzakumon had looked like, as there were no surviving structural remnants. A conjectural model

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