Hyakunin Isshu: Meet the Poets
Sone no Yoshitada

Meaning

Like a boatman who has lost his oar on the swift straits of Yura — I drift, not knowing where my love is taking me.

Commentary

The strait of Yura, in present-day Wakayama Prefecture, was known for its treacherous currents. A boatman who loses his oar there is at the mercy of the sea — he cannot steer, cannot return, and does not know where the current will carry him. This is the poet's image for love: helpless, directionless, swept along by forces beyond control.

Sone no Yoshitada was an unconventional poet of the late Heian period, known for experimenting with poetic forms and imagery in ways that were considered irregular by his contemporaries. He appears to have lived in relative obscurity, but his bold, concrete imagery has earned him a lasting place in the tradition.

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