Composed and sent to the Monk Shoku (ca. 917-1007).
暗より暗道にぞ入ぬべき遙に照せ山の葉の月
| kurasa yori kuraki miti ni zo irinubeki Faruka ni terase yama no Fa no tuki | From darkness On a shadowed path I must make my way; Let it faintly shine, The moon upon the mountain’s edge. |
Masamune’s Daughter [Izumi] Shikibu
和泉式部
Is 山の葉 a standard expression? It seems to suggest that the moon lights up a sliver of the mountain as slender as a blade of grass or a pine needle.
It’s a bit of orthographic play: it would normally be written 山の端, meaning the ‘edge’, that is, ridgeline of the mountains, which the moon sinks towards when it sets. By using 葉 ‘leaf’ instead, it suggests the more blurred line of the mountains around the capital and in the Yamato region, which aren’t rocky, knife-edged peak, but covered with trees.
You made this translation and transcription in 2015, seven years ago. I’d be interested to see how you would do it now and a comparison (by you) of the differences, if you have time.
That’s a good question. I think I would change the final two ‘lines’ to make them a more direct address, and pluralise the mountains (this is more appropriate given the topography around Kyoto): ‘Faintly shine, / O, moon upon the mountains’ edge!’
The change would give the poem a more personal tone, which would be in keeping with its allegorical nature – a plea by Izumi Shikibu for the light of Buddhist salvation.
Thank you.
Ivan Morris recounts in his book The World of the Shining Prince (p. 111) that the first two lines refer to a passage in the Lotus Sutra, “out of darkness we enter into darkness.”