Kakinomoto no Hitomaro Manyoshu Stele
Pause beside a roadside Manyoshu monument where Kakinomoto no Hitomaro’s grief poem is read against Mount Ryuo.
Verified site photographs are being prepared.Discover Kakinomoto no Hitomaro Manyoshu Stele
This small outdoor stop brings a Manyoshu poem into the landscape that helps explain it. The Tenri Tourism Association identifies the stone as Kakinomoto no Hitomaro’s monument to the poem beginning “Fusuma Road, at Mount Hikite…” and places it beside the Yamanobe-no-Michi in Nakayama-cho. The verse remembers leaving a wife in the mountain and walking on without feeling alive. The association links the poem’s Mount Hikite with Mount Ryuo, visible behind the monument, and identifies the nearby Fusumada Mausoleum as the place associated with the poem’s “Fusuma Road.” The poem is an ancient literary source; the precise historical identification of every named landscape should be read as local tradition, not a proven account of the poet’s route.
Read the poem in its setting
The Tenri Tourism Association gives the verse as “衾道を引手の山に妹を置きて 山路を行けば生けりともなし” (Manyoshu, book 2, poem 212). Its interpretation is that the speaker has left his wife in the mountain and walks on feeling no longer alive. The poem’s “妹” means wife in this context. The association explains “Fusuma Road” through the nearby Fusumada Mausoleum and says Mount Hikite is identified with Mount Ryuo. These are the association’s place interpretations; the poem itself does not provide a modern map coordinate.
Notice the relationship between stone, trail and mountain
The monument stands on the Yamanobe-no-Michi beside a rest spot, with Mount Ryuo as the backdrop described by the local tourism association. Rather than a large built attraction, this is a quiet pause on a rural walking route. The tourism association's route description places the stele between Chogaku-ji and Fusumada Mausoleum; use its mapped public trail and do not cross into the separately managed mausoleum grounds.
Understand the author without turning legend into fact
The Tenri Tourism Association describes Hitomaro as a major court poet of the late seventh and early eighth centuries, with poems in the Manyoshu and a long-standing reputation as a master poet. His birth year is unknown; the association records his death in 707 in Iwami Province. Its account of the poem’s bereavement is a literary reading, not a verified biography of the event. A separate “Uta-zuka” associated with Hitomaro stands near Wanishita Shrine in Ichinomoto; it is a different monument at another location.
Keep this stele distinct from other poetry monuments
The Tenri Tourism Association’s “Ancient Poetry Stele Walk” lists many separate monuments across the city, including this Hitomaro poem stele on the Yamanobe-no-Michi and the different Uta-zuka near Wanishita Shrine. Treat each as its own stop: the poem, setting and access information on this page refer specifically to the Nakayama-cho monument, not to every Hitomaro-related stone in Tenri.
Make this a stop on a longer countryside walk
The association lists access from JR Yanagimoto Station with about a 30-minute eastward walk, or from the Nakayama bus stop on National Route 169 with about a 15-minute walk east. Its page also describes a roughly five-minute car approach east from the Route 169 stop and lists free parking and a toilet. These are route estimates and facility listings, not live service guarantees. Follow local signs, do not stop on the narrow rural road, keep clear of private fields and homes, and check current transport and route notices before setting out.
Give the place room and care
The stele is beside an active walking route and rural settlement. Keep to the path, leave the stone and surrounding fields untouched, and avoid blocking the route or rest area. No specific photography restriction is listed by the tourism association; be considerate of nearby residents and other walkers. The nearby Fusumada Mausoleum is a separate Imperial Household Agency-managed site: do not enter or cross its boundary unless an official public route explicitly permits it.
What to look for
A Manyoshu poem stone on the Yamanobe-no-Michi
A landscape reading of Mount Hikite, locally identified with Mount Ryuo
A quiet rest point along a rural walk between Chogaku-ji and Fusumada Mausoleum
Photo notes
No site-specific photography ban is listed on the official tourism page, rechecked 2026-10-24. Keep photography unobtrusive and do not cross into private or Imperial Household Agency-managed grounds. No third-party image is licensed for MyNara.
Make a day of it
Explore guides close to this map point, then check the actual route before travelling. Distances below are straight lines, not walking distances or travel times; map points may not be entrances.
Sources & editorial status
Original MyNara draft based on the linked sources. Sources reviewed 24 October 2026. Opening arrangements, prices and offers may change; use the operator's current information before travelling.
- Tenri Tourism Association — Fusuma Road, the Hitomaro poem, the stele, Mount Ryuo and access facts
- Tenri Tourism Association — Ancient Poetry Stele Walk, listing the city's separate monuments
- Tenri Tourism Association — Yamanobe-no-Michi, route history and present-day trail context
- Nara Prefecture — Ryuo South Castle Scenic Heritage, Mount Hikite interpretation and mountain context
- Tenri Tourism Association — Chogaku-ji, official temple history and visitor details