was a Japanese philosophy student and

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

, largely remembered due to his farewell poem.

Biography

Fujimura was born in

Hokkaidō is the second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by railway via the Seikan Tunnel. The ...

. His grandfather was a former

samurai The samurai () were members of the warrior class in Japan. They were originally provincial warriors who came from wealthy landowning families who could afford to train their men to be mounted archers. In the 8th century AD, the imperial court d ...

of the

Morioka Domain 300px, Ruins of Morioka Castle was a '' tozama'' feudal domain of Edo period Japan. It was ruled throughout its history by the Nanbu clan. It was called during the early part of its history. It was located in northern Mutsu Province, Honshū ...

, and his father relocated to Hokkaidō after the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...

as a director of the forerunner of Hokkaido Bank. Fujimura graduated from middle school in

Sapporo is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in Hokkaido, Japan. Located in the southwest of Hokkaido, it lies within the alluvial fan of the Toyohira River, a tributary of the Ishikari River. Sapporo is the capital ...

, and then relocated to

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

where he attended a preparatory school for entry into

Tokyo Imperial University The University of Tokyo (, abbreviated as in Japanese and UTokyo in English) is a public university, public research university in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1877 as the nation's first modern university by the merger of several Edo peri ...

. He later traveled to Kegon Falls in Nikko, a famed scenic area, and wrote his farewell poem directly on the trunk of a tree before committing suicide.Suicide Note
His grave is at Aoyama Cemetery in Tokyo. The story was soon sensationalized in contemporary newspapers, and was commented upon by the famed writer

Natsume Sōseki , born , was a Japanese novelist. He is best known for his novels ''Kokoro'', ''Botchan'', ''I Am a Cat'', ''Kusamakura (novel), Kusamakura'' and his unfinished work ''Light and Darkness (novel), Light and Darkness''. He was also a scholar of Br ...

, an English teacher at Fujimura's high school. Sōseki later wrote on his death in '' Kusamakura''.

Poem

References

土門公記（Domon Kouki）: 藤村操の手紙－華厳の滝に眠る16歳のメッセージ. Shimotsuke Shimbunsha, 2002, {{DEFAULTSORT:Fujimura Misao 1886 births 1903 suicides 1903 deaths Writers from Sapporo Writers from Tokyo Youth suicides College students who died by suicide Suicides by drowning in Japan 20th-century Japanese poets 19th-century Japanese poets Burials at Aoyama Cemetery