Influenced by the poet Saigyo becoming a priest, FUJIWARA no Toshinari himself held similar aspirations for a time, but, reflecting the fluid nature of the late Heian period, he straddled two schools of contemporary poetry: the rich lyrical poetic styles established in the traditions of the Manyoshu (Collection of Ten Thousand Leaves) and Kokin Wakashu (First Imperial Anthology of Japanese Poetry), and avant-garde literary fashions of the day given prominence amongst Rokujo-school literati.
西行（西行）の出家に影響され、自身も一時その願望を持つ事となったが、平安末期の無常観を反映しつつ、万葉集や古今和歌集の伝統を踏まえた抒情性の豊かな歌風を確立し、当世風の新奇性を重視した六条流の歌風と当時の歌壇を二分した。