Left.
手にならす夏の扇と思へどもたゞ秋風のすみかなりけり
| te ni narasu natsu no ōgi to omoedomo tada aki kaze no sumika narikeri |
Wafting in hand My fan in summer And wonder if ‘Tis just here that the autumn breeze Has found his lodging… |
253
Right (Win).
夕まぐれならす扇の風にこそかつがつ秋は立ちはじめけれ
| yūmagure narasu ōgi no kaze ni koso katsugatsu aki wa tachihajimekere |
At eventide Wafting a fan; With the breeze An early autumn Rises, begun. |
254
The Right complain that in the Left’s poem ‘my fan in summer’ (natsu no ōgi) sounds old-fashioned, while ‘the autumn breeze has found his lodging’ (kaze no sumika) sounds modern. The Left comment, ‘The expression ‘rises begun’ (tachihajimu) seems to have little connection with fans,’ to which the Right reply, ‘It is normal to imply a relationship with autumn. There is also the example of “Lady Pan’s Fan” to build on.
Shunzei’s judgement short, and to the point, ‘The Left’s “‘Tis just here that the autumn breeze” (tada aki kaze no) is not as good as the Right’s “An early autumn” (katsugatsu aki wa) and so the latter wins.’’