Born Sato Norikiyo (?? ??) in Kyoto to a noble family; Saigyo lived during the traumatic transition of power between the old court nobles and the new samurai warriors. After the start of the Age of Mappo (1052); Buddhism was considered to be in decline and no longer as effective a means of salvation.

These cultural shifts during his lifetime led to a sense of melancholy in his poetry. As a youth; he worked as a guard to retired Emperor Toba; but in 1140 at age 22; for reasons now unknown; he quit worldly life to become a monk; taking the religious name En'i (??). He later took the pen name; 'Saigyo' meaning Western Journey; a reference to Amida Buddha and the Western paradise. He lived alone for long periods in his life in Saga; Mt Koya; Mt Yoshino; Ise; and many other places; but he is more known for the many long; poetic journeys he took to Northern Honshu that would later inspire Basho in his Narrow Road to the Interior.

He was a good friend of Fujiwara no Teika. Some main collections of Saigyo's work are in the Sankashu; Shin Kokin Wakashu; and Shika Wakashu. He died in Hirokawa Temple in Kawachi Province (present-day Osaka Prefecture) at age 72. Pictures From History