Tag Archives: blossoms

Kanpyō no ōntoki chūgū uta’awase 4

Summer

Round Four

Left

匂ふよりここちあだなる花ゆゑにのどけきはるの風もうらみじ

niou yori
kokochi adanaru
hana yue ni
nodokeki haru no
kaze mo uramiji
From their fragrance
Fickle feelings
Do these blossoms have, so
Peaceful spring’s
Breezes I would likely not resent.

7

Right (Win)

夏の夜のぬるほどもなく明けぬればあしたのまをぞかこちよせつる

natsu no yo no
nuru hodo mo naku
akenureba
ashita no ma o zo
kakochiyosetsuru
On a summer night
I’ve lacked time to sleep, and
Dawn has come, so
I’ll do it on the morrow—
That is my excuse!

8

Kanpyō no ōntoki chūgū uta’awase 3

Round Three

Left

氷とくはるたちくらしみよしののよしののたきのこゑまさるなり

kōri toku
haru tachikurashi
miyoshino no
yoshino no taki no
koe masarunari
Ice melting
Spring has come on scene, it seems;
In fair Yoshino,
Yoshino Falls’
Roar is fine, indeed!

5

Right (Win)

はなの色はかすみにこめてみえずともかをだにぬすめ春の山風

hana no iro wa
kasumi ni komete
miezu tomo
ka o dani nusume
haru no yamakaze
The blossoms’ hues
Have blended with the haze, so
I see them not, yet
Their very scent is plundered by
Spring’s breezes from the mountains.

6

Shiki koi sanshu uta’awase – Winter

Winter

Left

冬くれば紅葉ふりしく神無月佐保の山辺はむべもりぬらん

fuyu kureba
momiji furishiku
kaminazuki
saho no yamabe wa
mube morinuran
When the winter comes,
Scarlet leaves, falling and scattering
In the Godless Month,
Upon the slopes of Mount Saho,
Indeed, are at their finest.

19

冬ごもりかれてみゆらん梅がえは今はた花の春はにほはん

fuyugomori
karete miyuran
ume ga e wa
ima hata hana no
haru wa niowan
Sealed in winter, and
All withered seeming,
The plum tree’s branches,
Now, for sure, the blossoms’
Spring will scent.

20

冬みれば水もまかせぬ小山田にいつすき返し種をまきけん

fuyu mireba
mizu mo makasenu
oyamada ni
itsu sukikaeshi
tane o makiken
‘Tis winter, I see, so
There’s no water to draw for
The little mountain paddies:
O, when might I till them, and
Sow my seeds, I wonder?

21

Right

時雨降る宿にすまへば冬の夜に錦とみゆる木木の花かな

shigure furu
yado ni sumaeba
fuyu no yo ni
nishiki to miyuru
kigi no hana kana
Showers fall
Upon the house where I do dwell, so
Upon a winter’s night
As brocade do seem
The blossoming trees!

22

ゆふだすき神の社にかけつればしもし降るにもたのもしきかな

yūdasuki
kami no yashiro ni
kaketsureba
shimo shi furu ni mo
tanomashiki kana
Sacred mulberry cords
Around the God’s shrine
Are hung, so
Even amidst the frost fall,
The future does seem bright!

23

白雲のふたへふりしくときは山うらはへとしはみどりなりけれ

shiragumo no
futae furishiku
tokiwa yama
ura hae toshi wa
midori narikere
Clouds of white
Lie scattered, twofold, upon
The unchanging mountain:
Stretching out behind, the year
Is simply green.

24

KKS II: 118

A poem from a poetry competition held by Her Majesty, the Empress, during the Kanpyō period.

吹風と谷の水としなかりせば深山がくれの花を見ましや

Fuku kaze to
tani no midu to si
nakariseba
miyama gakure no
Fana wo mimasi ya
The gusting wind and
The valley’s waters
Were there none, then
Hidden in the mountains’ depths
These blossoms – would any wish to see them?

Tsurayuki

KKS II: 107

Topic unknown.

散る花のなくにし止まる物ならば我におとらましやは

tiru Fana no
nakunisi tomaru
mono naraba
ware uguFisu ni
otoramasi ya Fa
If the scattering blossoms
Halted by cries
Could be,
Would mine to the warbler’s
Lose out? Surely not!

Assistant Handmaid [Harusumi no] Amaneiko[1]


[1] Amaneiko 洽子 (dates unknown) was the daughter of Harusumi no Yoshitada 春澄善縄 (797-870), a regional noble from Inaba in Ise, who was granted the name of Harusumi in 828. Her original name was Takaiko 高子, but this was changed in 877, as it was the same as that of Fujiwara no Takaiko 藤原高子 (842-910) , the consort of Emperor Seiwa 清和 (850-880; r. 858-876) and mother of Emperor Yōzei 陽成 (869-949; r. 876-884). Yoshitada had four children, of whom Amaneiko was the only one to enjoy any success at court, meaning that the family line ended after her death. Amaneiko had a respectable court career, serving five emperors, and eventually reaching Junior Third Rank in 902, a remarkable achievement for a court lady from a provincial background. Emperor Uda 宇多 (867-931; r. 887-897) regarded her extremely highly, singling her out for mention in his Kanpyō no go-yukai 寛平御遺誡 (897), a set of instructions and advice he wrote for Emperor Daigo 醍醐 (885-930; 897-930), when he abdicated and Daigo took the throne at the age of thirteen.

KKS II: 102

A poem from a poetry competition held by Her Majesty, the Empress, during the Kanpyō period.

春霞色のちぐさに見えつるはたなびく山の花のかげかも

Farugasumi
iro no tigusa ni
mieturu Fa
tanabiku yama no
Fana no kage kamo
The haze of spring has
Countless hues
It does appear;
Streaming across the mountains with
The blossoms’ glow.

Fujiwara no Okikaze