Composed on the instructions of His Majesty, on the way back from Sumiyoshi, when he had accompanied him there in the Third Month, Enkyū 5 [April 1073].
おきつかぜふきにけらしな住吉の松のしづえをあらふしらなみ
| okitsukaze fukinikerashi na sumiyoshi no matsu no shizue o arau shiranami | The wind in the offing Is gusting, it seems, for At Sumiyoshi The pines’ low branches Are washed by whitecaps. |
Minister of Justice Tsunenobu
Composed for the Palace Poetry Match in Shōryaku 2 [1078].
君が世はつきじとぞおもふかみかぜやみもすそ川のすまむかぎりは
| kimi ga yo wa tsukiji to zo omou kamikaze ya mimosusogawa no sumamu kagiri wa | My Lord’s reign Shall never end, I feel! While beneath the divine winds The Mimosuso River[i] Is clear! |
Minister of Justice Tsunenobu
[i] The Mimosuso River (mimosugawa 御裳濯川) is the name given to the Isuzu River (isuzugawa 五十鈴川) as it flows past the Grand Shrine of Ise, which is dedicated to the ancestral deity of the imperial house, Amaterasu ōmikami 天照大神.
Composed on seeing scattered cherry blossoms floating on the stream at his house.
ここにこぬ人もみよとてさくらばな水の心にまかせてぞやる
| koko ni konu Fito mo miyo tote sakurabana midu no kokoro ni makasete zo yaru | To folk who fail to come Here, I’d say, ‘Behold!’ O, cherry blossoms, The water’s heart I’ll trust, to send you on your way. |
Ōe no Yoshitoki
Composed on the road, when it was springtime, and he was on his way from the countryside to the capital.
みわたせばみやこはちかくなりぬらんすぎぬる山はかすみへだてつ
| miwataseba miyako Fa tikaku narinuran suginuru yama Fa kasumi Fedatetu | When I gaze across, The capital closer Has become, it seems; The mountains I have passed Lie beyond the haze. |
Minamoto no Michinari
Composed on the conception of being buried in frosty fallen leaves.
落ちつもる庭の木の葉を夜のほどにはらひてけりと見する朝霜
| otitumoru niwa no ko no Fa wo yo no hodo ni FaraFitekeri to misuru asasimo | Fallen, piled high at My estate, the leaves from the trees Within the space of a single night Have been swept away, It seems, by the morning frost. |
Anonymous
Composed on the conception of leaves falling in the rain.
木の葉散る宿は聞き分くかたぞなき時雨する夜も時雨せぬ夜も
| ko no Fa chiru yado Fa kikiwaku kata zo naki siguresuru yo mo siguresenu yo mo | Leaves falling from the trees At my house: listening, I Have no way to tell between Nights when showers fall, and Nights when showers fall not… |
Minamoto no Yorizane