The ‘Eastward Journey’ of the Ariwara no Narihira

The Ise Monogatari (The Tales of Ise) is a 125-stanza poem-like account of the life of the dandy Narihira no Arihira, who is known for his poem, “Once upon a time there was a man”, with a travelogue called ‘eastward journey’ at its centre, which had a profound influence on later generations. The ‘eastward journey’ refers to a journey from Kyoto, the capital of Japan, to the eastern part of the country, and Narihira travelled down to Musashi Province and admired the Sumida River. The events and customs of his travels on the Mikawa, Suruga, Fuji and elsewhere were later made into various waka versions, Noh plays, picture scrolls, and even fakes and parodies, demonstrating their great influence. Narihira was a handsome, love-loving, ukiyo-loving man, but his decision to live in the East rather than in the fancy capital was a popular one. The ‘eastward journey’ has its roots in the route bus journeys.