When converting the Man’yōshū to Japanese.
涙河底のみくづとなりはてて恋しきせぜに流れこそすれ
namidagaFa
soko no mikudu to
nariFatete
koFisiki seze ni
nagare koso sure |
A river of tears:
As flotsam on the bed
Will I finally become, should
Love in rapids
Flow so much… |
Minamoto no Shitagō
竜田川岸の山吹咲きぬれば影より波ぞ折りはじめける
tatsutagawa
kishi no yamabuki
sakinureba
kage yori nami zo
orihajimekeru |
On Tatsuta River’s
Bank, the kerria
Has bloomed, so
From its face
Waves have begun to weave… |
Tsunemasa
経正
竜田川紅葉葉とづる薄氷渡らばそれと中や絶えなむ
tatsutagawa
momijiba tozuru
usukōri
wataraba sore to
naka ya taenamu |
The River Tatsuta:
Scarlet leaves are sealed within
Sheet ice;
Should I cross would it
Shatter in the centre? |
Ietaka
宇治川の瀬瀬にありてふ網代木に多くのひをもわびさするかな
udigaFa no
sese ni ari teFu
aziroki ni
oFoku no Fi wo mo
wabisasuru kana |
On Uji River
Many are the rapids, they say, so
The fishing nets
Have many days
Of grief, too! |
'Simply moving and elegant'