Utamakura

Utamakura (歌枕^?, literally "poem pillow") is a rhetorical concept in Japanese poetry.

Utamakura is a category of poetic words, often involving place names, that allow for greater allusions and intertextuality across Japanese poems.

Utamakura includes locations familiar to the court of ancient Japan, such as

Utamakura serve as a significant tool to achieve yugen (mystery and depth) in Japanese poetry by adding profundity and indirect beauty in poems. Also, it can be used as a source for identifying significant figures and places in ancient Japan. Utamakura enables poets to express ideas and themes concisely and thus allowing them to stay within the confines of strict waka structures.

Some scholars see the use of geographical allusion as the evidence for a restricted scope of poetry writing. Although the poets' "true" meaning was true because the essence was initially pre-established, the poems were written within fixed topics (dai). The poet could inhabit a subjective position or persona and write about the topic, but not necessarily about his/her personal feelings. Utamakura could have suppressed poets' individuality or creativity.

The history of utamakura is found in documents on the study of poetry such as the Utamakura of Noin, by the poet and monk of the late Heian period, and lists of places in the Utamakura Nayose (Utamakura reference book).

Utamakura were first used by traveling priests. These priests collected stories from the different towns they traveled to. Since they traveled many places, it was easier to remember the details of a story by using a single, consistent reference point for each recurring type of event that occurred in their tales. Over time, the people across the Japan came to identify utamakura place names by the psychological feelings associated with the references made by the wandering priests.

After utamakura place names and people had become well established, eager waka poets went sightseeing to the sites of utamakura. Beyond becoming familiar with the actual scenery of the poems, entering the locale of a poem or story deepened one's understanding of it.

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