Sone no Yoshitada (曽禰好忠)
SONE no Yoshitada (year of birth and death unknown) was a poet of the mid-Heian period. His origin is unknown. He is regarded as one of the medieval 36 Immortal Poets. Because Sone had been a local officer, Tango no jo (Secretary of Tango Province) for a long time, he was called "So-Tango" or "Sotan."
He created the 'Hyakushuka' (Hundred-Poem sequences), a new waka style at that time.
Furthermore, he composed '毎月集,' which expressed one whole year with 360 poems. Although he was friends with contemporary leading poets such as MINAMOTO no Shitago, ONAKATOMI no Yoshinobu, and MINAMOTO no Shigeyuki, because of his intolerant character and having too much pride in himself, he was not accepted by society and he grew isolated. He composed new and original waka poems using novel themes and archaic words from the 'Manyoshu' (Collection of Ten Thousand Leaves), which were re-evaluated by the innovative poets of the late Heian period.
His poems were selected for 'Shui Wakashu' (Collection of Gleanings of Japanese Poems) and other Chokusen wakashu (anthologies of Japanese poetry compiled by Imperial command) afterwards.
He left a personal collection 'Sotanshu.'
Ogura Hyakunin Isshu (the Ogura Anthology of One Hundred Tanka-poems by One Hundred Poets)
From No. 46 (also in "Shinkokin Wakashu" (New Collection of Ancient and Modern Japanese Poetry), Love-1 1071)
Like a boatman who has lost his scull and drifts at the mouth of the Yura without knowing where he is heading, the future of my love is uncertain.