among soldiers, priests and ordinary citizens as well as courtiers, who found that an evening of linked-verse making was pleasantly spent. Generally three or more persons took turns composing verses, either of 5, 7, and 5 syllables, or of 7 and 7 syllables. The subject matter of these verses varied from contribution to contribution, the only requirement being a link of some sort with the verse immediately preceding. This is illustrated by one of the earliest examples of the linked-verse by three people (from the Mirror of the Present of 1170 A.D.):
| Nara no miyako wo | My thoughts go out |
| omoi koso yare | To the capital at Nara. |
| Fujiwara no Kinnori. | |
| yaezakura | The double-cherry blossoms |
| aki no momiki ya | And the red leaves of autumn |
| ika naramu | What are they like? |
| Minamoto no Arihito. | |
| shigururu tabi ni | With each autumnal shower |
| iro ya kasanaru | The colours multiply. |
| Echigo no Menoto. |
Here, the second verse is linked to the first by the fact that the capital city of Nara was famous for its cherry-blossoms and bright autumn leaves. The third verse links to the second in its reference to the colour of the leaves changing after the autumnal showers. But no apparent connection exists between the first and third verses. It was, in fact, considered undesirable to pursue the same subject beyond a few verses.
The existence of a superficially similar type of poetry in China has led some people to believe that the linked-verse was not an indigenous Japanese product. However, a careful examination of the Chinese lien-chü, as it was called, shows that no
