Left.
ありし夜の袖の移り香消果てゝまた逢までの形見だに無し
| arishi no yo no sode no utsurika kiehatete mata au made no katami dani nashi |
One night gone by Your fragrance passed onto my sleeves: All gone now, so Until we should meet again, I have not even that consolation… |
739
Right (Win).
かき絶えぬ情ばかりはありながら忘るゝ程の逢ふことぞ憂き
| kakitaenu nasake bakari wa arinagara wasururu hodo no au koto zo uki |
Not entirely gone Is your kindness: that is all I have, but Spending time outside your thoughts, And then to meet, is hard, indeed! |
The Provisional Master of the Empress Household Office.
740
The Gentlemen of the Right state: we wonder about saying ‘fragrance passed on to my sleeves is gone’. The Gentlemen of the Left state: concluding the poem saying things are ‘hard’ (uki) lacks impact.
In judgement: A ‘fragrance passed onto my sleeves’ ‘disappearing’ does not seem a particular fault. But, simply finishing ‘until we should meet again, I have not even that consolation…’ (au made no katami dani nashi) gives the impression the poet has not thought deeply about the situation, rather than considering it painful. ‘One night gone by’ (arishi yo) fails to connect with the remainder of the poem. The Right should win.