Poem by Kanke

In this picture Hokusai creatively conflated two events associated with the great statesman and poet Sugawara Michizane (844-903), also known as Kan Ke. Once, when traveling in autumn with emperor Uda they stopped at a Shinto shrine renowned for its maple trees. Etiquette prevented Michizane from making an offering at the same time as the emperor, so he composed the poem recorded here in the square box in the upper left corner of the print: At the present time, since no offering could I bring Behold Mt Tamuke- a brocade of red leaves for the pleasure of the gods. Later in life, Michizane was slandered at court and sent into exile where he died. His loyality to the emperor, however, never wavered. According to legend, the faithful ox that pulled his funeral cart was overcome with sadness, stopped en route, and refused to go on. The site became Michizane's final resting-place. Here, Hokusai's image is ambiguous, referring both to Michizane's joyful excursion with the emperor and to his demise.