Left
住吉のきしによる波夜さへや夢のかよひ路人めよくらむ
| sumiyoshi no kishi ni yoru nami yoru sae ya yume no kayoiji hitome yokuramu | On Sumiyoshi’s Shore break waves; Even at night Upon the path of dreams Can we avoid others’ prying eyes? |
186
Right
夕附夜おぼろに人を見てしより天雲はれぬ心地こそすれ
| yūzukuyo oboro ni hito o miteshi yori amagumo harenu kokochi koso sure | On a moonlit evening Faintly, a lady Did I see, and ever since Heaven’s clouds, unclearing, Weigh on my feelings… |
187
Composed on the conception of love, when he presented a hundred poem sequence during the reign of former emperor Horikawa.
ひとり寝る我にて知りぬ池水につがはぬ鴛の思ふ心を
| hitori nuru ware nite shirinu ikemizu ni tsugawanu oshi no omou kokoro o | Sleeping alone, I know so well: Atop the pond waters An unmated mandarin’s Heartfelt feelings… |
Major Counsellor Kinzane
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
Left
いとはれて胸やすからぬ思をば人の上にぞ書きうつしつる
| itowarete mune yasukaranu omoi o ba hito no ue ni zo kakiutsushitsuru |
Being despised And my unquiet heart Filled with feelings Upon her I paint them out! |
Kenshō
1115
Right (Win)
いかにせん絵にかく妹にあらねどもまこと少き人心かな
| ika ni sen e ni kaku imo ni aranedomo makoto sukunaki hitogokoro kana |
What am I to do? A lady painted in a picture She is not, yet How lacking are Her feelings! |
Nobusada
1116
The Right state: what is the Left’s poem about? In appeal: it reflects Changkang, who, feeling a woman living next door was beautiful, painted her and was then able to meet her. The Left state: the Right’s poem has no faults to mention.
In judgement: I, too, was unsure of the meaning of ‘my unquiet heart filled with feelings upon her’ (mune yasukaranu omoi woba hito no ue ni zo), and after reading the Left’s response, I am still unclear. In general, in these cases it is customary to cite the source of such things, and to hear of such wide reading is interesting indeed, but this is simply, ‘it reflects Changkang, who, feeling a woman living next door was beautiful, painted her and was then able to meet her’, so it would be difficult to locate within the usual Three Histories; furthermore, I have no recollection of a person named in this Chinese manner, and so an ignorant old man like myself can only ask, who is this Nagayasu? More importantly, though, I do not feel the conception of this poem is particularly well-matched to the topic. The Right’s ‘a lady painted in a picture’ (e ni kaku imo) is a little over-explicit, but ‘how lacking are’ (makoto sukunaki) would seem to be in the style of the Kazan Archbishop, and as I feel this is easier to understand than Nagayasu, I make the Right the winner.
Left (Tie)
忘れじの契うらむる故郷の心も知らぬ松蟲の聲
| wasureji no chigiri uramuru furusato no kokoro mo shiranu matsumushi no koe |
Never will I forget you – Despairing of that vow At home All unknowing of my feelings Comes a bell cricket’s cry… |
Lord Sada’ie
1079
Right
來ぬ人の秋のけしきやふけぬらん恨みによはる松蟲の聲
| konu hito no aki no keshiki ya fukenuran urami ni yowaru matsumushi no koe |
He comes not, so Is all seeming done, as autumn Does wear on? How I envy the weakening Bell cricket’s song… |
Jakuren
1080
Left and Right: both poems are equally admirable.
In judgement: the Left’s poem, with ‘all unknowing of my feelings comes a bell cricket’s cry’ (kokoro mo shiranu matsumushi no koe) is fine. The Right, with ‘is all seeming done, as autumn does wear on’ (aki no keshiki ya fukenuran), is too, so both Left and Right do truly move the heart, do they not? I have no way of distinguishing superior from inferior here, so thus must make the round a tie.