Izumi Shikibu

Izumi Shikibu, shown here in a c. 1765 Kusazōshi by Komatsuken, was a poet at Empress Shoshi's court.

was a mid-Heian period Japanese poet. She is a member of the . She was the contemporary of Murasaki Shikibu, and Akazome Emon at the court of empress Joto Mon'in.

She "is considered by many to have been the greatest woman poet of the Heian period". Her legacy includes 242 poems and two kashu.

"Torn between worldly ties and physical desire, Izumi Shikibu left a wealth of passionate love poetry, fueling rumors that purported that she was a femme fatale with numerous lovers besides her two husbands and two princely lovers."

As is standard for Heian period women, her name is a composite of "Izumi" from her husband's and her father's official designation of .

Affairs and marriages She had a sequence of affairs at the imperial court in Kyoto. In the beginning, before her marriage to Michisada, she is believed to have been the companion (some accounts say wife) of a man named Omotomaru at dowager Queen Shoko's court.

While still married to Michisada, she fell in love and had an affair with Emperor Reizei's third son, Prince Tametaka (Danjo no Miya Tametaka Shinnō:弾正宮為尊親王 977–1002). As a result of the scandal her husband divorced her and her family disowned her. The Eiga Monogatari implies that Tametaka fell ill and died because of his "continual nocturnal escapades."

She later devoted herself to Buddhism, donning Buddhist robes that she wore for the rest of her life. Her Dharma name was Seishin Insei Hōni (誠心院専意法尼).

Legacy

In contemporary arts, the Opéra National de Paris and the Grand Théâtre de Genève jointly commissioned an opera based on her poems. Titled Da gelo a gelo by Salvatore Sciarrino and sung in Italian, the work draws on 65 poems from Izumi Shikibu Nikki that features her passion for Prince Atsumichi. It was performed in early 2008 in Geneva with the Chamber Orchestra of Geneva.

Poetry