A love poem, from when he presented a hundred poem sequence.
しられじなおさふる袖のなみだ川したにははやき水のこころを
shirareji na osauru sode no namidagawa shita ni wa hayaki mizu no kokoro o | No one knows, it seems— As I wipe away with my sleeves A river of tears Beneath it, swift, are The waters of my heart. |
The Regent and Minister of the Right
From among his love poems.
ちぎりありてかかる思ひやつくばねのみねども人のやがて恋しき
chigiri arite kakaru omoi ya tsukubane no minedomo hito no yagate koishiki | Do we have a bond, that Arouses such passions? Though As the peak of Tsukuba I see her not, yet am Filled with constant longing. |
Supernumerary Major Counsellor Kin’kage
On the conception of love.
けふはもし人もやわれを思ひいづる我もつねより人のこひしき
kyō wa moshi hito mo ya ware o omoi’izuru ware mo tsune yori hito no koishiki | Is it that today He has of me With passion thought, that I, too, far more than normal Yearn for him? |
Eifukumon’in
On waiting for love, night after night.
われも人もあはれつれなきよなよなよたのめもやまず待ちもよわらず
ware mo hito mo aware tsurenaki yonayona yo tanome mo yamazu machi mo yowarazu | Me and him— How moving is our hard-heartedness Night after night! Endlessly he makes me believe him, Never weakening in waiting for him! |
Eifukumon’in
On lightning.
いなづまのしばしもとめぬひかりにも草葉のつゆのかずはみえけり
inazuma no shibashi mo tomenu hikari ni mo kusaba no tsuyu no kazu wa miekeri | The lightning Fails to linger for even a moment, yet In its flash of light Upon every blade of grass Appear numerous dewdrops. |
Lord Fujiwara no Tamehide
On wind, from among His Former Majesty’s Miscellaneous poems.
ひびきくる松のうれより吹きおちて草にこゑやむ山の下風
hibikikuru matsu no ure yori fuki’ochite kusa ni koe yamu yama no shitakaze | Echoes come From the pine-branch tips, as Gusting down and Losing its voice among the grass Is the wind from off the mountains |
His Former Majesty [Fushimi]
Topic unknown.
跡もなきしづが家ゐの竹のかきいぬのこゑのみおくふかくして
ato mo naki shizu ga iei no take no kaki inu no koe nomi oku fukakushite | Not a trace remains Of the peasants’ huts’ Bamboo fences, Simply a dog barking From deep within. |
His Former Majesty [Hanazono]
From among his miscellaneous poems.
くれぬるかまがきの竹のむらすずめねぐらあらそふ声さわぐなり
kurenuru ka magaki no take no murasuzume negura arasou koe sawagunari | Is it dusk? Along the bamboo of my lattice fence A flock of sparrows Quarrelling over roosts Is chirping noisily, indeed! |
The Jōmyōji Minister of the Left
浄妙寺左大臣
From among his summer poems.
枝にもる朝日のかげのすくなさにすずしさふかき竹のおくかな
eda ni moru asahi no kage mo sukunasa ni suzushisa fukaki take no oku kana | Leaking through the branches The morning sunlight is Scanty upon The depths of coolness Deep within the bamboo grove! |
Former Major Counsellor Tamekane
Left
みよりまたおもひはことになつむしのなりてもまたもたのみけるかな
mi yori mata omoi wa koto ni natsumushi no narite mo mata mo tanomikeru kana | From my flesh, once more Passion’s flame, especially, into A firefly Has made me still— On that you can rely! |
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Right
なつむしのわがたましひにみをかへてこころごころにこがれけるかな
natsumushi no wa ga tamashii ni mi o kaete kokoro gokoro ni kogarekeru kana | Into a firefly Soul has My flesh transformed— Every corner of my heart Is smouldering! |
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'Simply moving and elegant'