Left.
行方無き秋の思ひぞせかれぬる村雨なびく雲の遠方
| yukue naki aki no omoi zo sekarenuru murasame nabiku kumo no ochikata |
My endless Thoughts of autumn Have been interrupted by The showers streaming from The far-off clouds. |
363
Right.
日に添へて秋の涼しさ集ふ也時雨はまだし夕暮の雨
| hi ni soete aki no suzushisa tsudounari shigure wa madashi yūgure no ame |
With the setting of the sun Comes the cool of Autumn; ‘Tis not yet shower season, Yet evening brings the rain… |
364
The Right complain that the Left’s ‘far-off clouds’ (kumo no ochikata) is ‘difficult to understand’. The Left initially query the meaning of madashi, and then say it’s ‘not a good expression’.
Shunzei states, ‘The gentlemen of the Right have stated that “far-off clouds” is difficult to grasp, and this is certainly the case. Moreover, it is difficult to determine the voice of the speaker here. Madashi is unproblematic. It’s usual sense in poetry is “not yet” – as can be seen from the Kokinshu’s “were I to hear words yet unspoken”. The final section of the Right’s poem is particularly charming. It must win.’