Nijō Tameuji (二条為氏, 1222–1286), also known as Fujiwara no Tameuji (藤原為氏), was a Japanese courtier and '' waka'' poet of the mid-

Kamakura period The is a period of History of Japan, Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the G ...

. His

Dharma name A Dharma name is a new name acquired during both lay and monastic Buddhist initiation rituals in Mahayana Buddhism and Pabbajjā, monastic ordination in Theravada Buddhism (where it is more proper to call it Dhamma or Sangha name). The name is ...

was Kakua (覚阿).

Biography

Ancestry, birth and early life

Nijō Tameuji was born in 1222. His father was

Fujiwara no Tameie was a Japanese poet and compiler of Imperial anthologies of poems. Tameie was the second son of poet Fujiwara no Teika, Teika and married Abutsu-ni. He was the central figure in a circle of Japanese poets after the Jōkyū War in 1221. His three ...

, and his mother was a daughter of Utsunomiya Yoritsuna. He was Tameie's eldest son, and a grandson of

Fujiwara no Teika was a Japanese anthologist, calligrapher, literary critic,"The high quality of poetic theory (''karon'') in this age depends chiefly upon the poetic writings of Fujiwara Shunzei and his son Teika. The other theorists of ''tanka'' writing, st ...

. He was not known as ''Nijō'' in his early life; he received this moniker from his son Tameyo.

Political career

At the height of his political career, he had attained the

Senior Second Rank The court ranks of Japan, also known in Japanese language, Japanese as ''ikai'' (位階), are indications of an individual's court rank in Japan based on the system of the Nation, state. ''Ikai'' as a system was the indication of the rank of burea ...

, and held the position of Provisional Major Counselor (''gon-

dainagon was a counselor of the first rank in the Imperial court of Japan. The role dates from the 7th century. This advisory position remained a part of the Imperial court from the 8th century until the Meiji period in the 19th century.Nussbaum, "Dainag ...

'').

Later life and death

He entered

Buddhist orders Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or 5th century BCE. It is the world's fourth ...

in 1285, acquiring the

''Kakua''. He died on 3 October 1286, or the fourteenth day of the ninth month of Kōan 9.

Descendants

He was the father of Nijō Tameyo, Nijō Tamezane and Nijō Jōi.

Poetry

Tameuji learned '' waka'' composition from his father Tameie and his grandfather Teika, who between them had compiled three of the

imperial anthologies Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor/empress, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Impe ...

. He was the founder of the conservative

Nijō poetic school The refers to descendants of Fujiwara no Tameie's eldest son, Nijō Tameuji (1222–86). The family name took after Nijō district of Kyoto where the family had resided. This hereditary house of Japanese waka poetry is generally known for its con ...

. In 1247, he took part in the '' Hyakusanjū-ban Uta-awase'' (百三十番歌合), and the following year in the '' Hōji Hyakushu'' (宝治百首). In 1278, on the command of Retired Emperor Kameyama, he compiled the ''

Shokushūi Wakashū The is a Japanese imperial anthology of waka poetry. It was finished in about 1278 CE, two years after the Retired Emperor Kameyama first ordered it around 1276. It was compiled by Fujiwara no Tameuji (grandson of Fujiwara no Teika, and eldest ...

''. He may have also compiled the '' Shin Wakashū'', although other theories as to its compiler's identity have been proposed. As the heir to the prestigious Mikohidari house, he was a central figure of the '' waka'' society of his day. His disagreements with his brother Tamenori and stepmother

Abutsu-ni Abutsu-ni (阿仏尼, c. 12221283; the ''-ni'' suffix means "nun") was a Japanese poet and nun. She served as a lady-in-waiting to Princess Kuniko, later known as Empress Ankamon-in. In approximately 1250 she married fellow poet Fujiwara no Tameie ...

, however, gave rise to the split between the Nijō, Kyōgoku and Reizei poetic schools, the latter two of which were founded by his brothers Tamenori and Tamesuke, respectively. He had a bitter dispute with his stepmother over valuable manuscripts related to the ''waka'' traditions, as well as the inheritance of his father's landholdings. Among his most famous poems is the following, which was included in the ''

Shokugosen Wakashū The ("Later Collection Continued") was an imperial anthology of Japanese waka poetry. It was finished in 1251 CE, three years after the Retired Emperor Go-Saga first ordered it in 1248. It was compiled by Fujiwara no Tameie, son of Fujiwara ...

'', compiled by his father Tameie. He left a

private collection A private collection is a privately owned collection of works (usually artworks) or valuable items. In a museum or art gallery context, the term signifies that a certain work is not owned by that institution, but is on loan from an individual ...

, the '' Dainagon Tameuji-kyō Shū'' (大納言為氏卿集), which collects the poems of both Tameuji himself and his son Tameyo.

References

Works cited

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tameuji, Nijo 1222 births 1286 deaths Fujiwara clan Nijō family 13th-century Japanese poets