A poem from the Poetry Contest held by the Dowager Empress during the Reign of the Kanpyō Emperor.

琴の音にひびきかよへる松風をしらべてもなく蝉のこゑかな

koto no ne ni hibikikayoeru matsukaze wa shirabetemo naku semi no koe kana

A zither’s strains Echoing back and forth: The wind through the pines, In tune with the cries In the cicadas’ song!

Anonymous