Kindling 薪
しづのをがこりつむ薪我かくとたれゆゑもゆるおもひなるらん
shizu no o ga koritsumu takigi ware kaku to tare yue moyuru omoi naruran | A mountain man Sets light to kindling; I am just so: For whose sake do I burn With passion’s fire? |
Daishin
Kindling 薪
しづのをがこりつむ薪我かくとたれゆゑもゆるおもひなるらん
shizu no o ga koritsumu takigi ware kaku to tare yue moyuru omoi naruran | A mountain man Sets light to kindling; I am just so: For whose sake do I burn With passion’s fire? |
Daishin
Kindling 薪
太山柴おのがかまどにとりくべてあさけ夕けのけぶりたつめり
miyama shiba ono ga kamado ni torikubete asake yūke no keburi tatsumeri | Brushwood from the mountains’ depths To my kiln have I Taken and kindled, that Both morn and eve The smoke does seem to rise. |
Higo
Kindling 薪
折りくぶる柴さまざまにみゆれどもけぶりはひとつ色にこそたて
orikuburu shiba samazama ni miyuredomo keburi wa hitotsu iro ni koso tate | Broken for kindling, The brushwood in many shapes Does appear, yet The smoke in but one Shade does rise. |
Kanemasa
Kindling 薪
こりつみしほだなかりせば冬ふかきかた山ほらにいかですままし
koritsumishi hoda nakariseba fuyu fukaki katayama hora ni ikade sumamashi | Felled Fields were there none, then Why, in the depths of winter In a mountain cave Would any wish to dwell? |
Tadafusa
Kindling 薪
かれはててたきぎになりし昔よりたきすてらるる日をぞかぞふる
karehatete takigi ni narishi mukashi yori takisuteraruru hi zo kazouru | Dried up and withered Kindling did become; That time long past, since then have The burnt out Days I counted up… |
Toshiyori
Kindling 薪
おく山のならひとなればあなしげの雪よりさきに薪こりつめ
oku yama no narai to nareba ana shige no yuki yori saki ni takigi koritsume | Deep with the mountains, A custom it has become, so Before the fearful fall of Snow does come, Go cut kindling! |
Nakazane
Kindling 薪
ま柴かるかりばのをのに雪ふりてつま木になづむ遠の里人
mashiba karu kariba no ono ni yuki furite tsumagi ni nazumu tō no satobito | The brushwood is withered In the hunting grounds, where The snow has fallen; As fond of kindling as he is of his wife, That distant villager. |
Akinaka
Left (Tie)
我恋はしげきみ山の山人のさすがにえしもこりはてぬ哉
wa ga koi wa shigeki miyama no yamabito no sasuga ni e shimo korihatenu kana | My love is Lush as a tree in the mountains’ heart; The mountain men with Their hatchets cannot even Begin to fell it! |
Ari’ie
1185
Right
秋かけてつま木こり積む山人ももゆる思の程は知らじな
aki kakete tsumagi koritsumu yamabito mo moyuru omoi no hodo wa shiraji na | Into autumn Gathering piles of kindling Even a mountain man, The burning fires of my passion Can hardly know… |
Jakuren
1186
The Right state: in the Left’s poem, ‘hatchets’ (sasuga) fails to match properly. The Left state: the Right’s poem lacks faults to indicate.
In judgement: indeed, in the Left’s poem ‘hatchets’ does not sound like it matches properly. The Right’s poem has the initial ‘into autumn’ (aki kakete), but the conception of autumn does not sound necessary here. They are of the same quality.
Left (Win)
恋路には風やはさそふ朝夕に谷の柴舟行帰れども
koiji ni wa kaze ya wa sasou asa yū ni tani no shibabune yukikaeredomo | Along the path of love Does the wind beckon me? Morning and evening Along the valley boats of brushwood Go back and forth, yet… |
A Servant Girl
1177
Right
真柴こる賤にもあらぬ身なれども恋ゆへわれも歎きをぞ積む
mashiba koru shizu ni mo aranu mi naredomo koi yue ware mo nageki o zo tsumu | Cutting kindling as A mountain man is not My lot, yet For love do I Stack up my grief in logs! |
The Supernumerary Master of the Empress’ Household Office
1178
Left and Right together state: there is no reason to make any criticisms here.
In judgement: although ‘beckon’ (sasou) in the Left’s poem should be ‘send’ (okuru), it is certainly elegant how it evokes thoughts of Captain Cheng travelling along the valley. The Right, beginning with ‘kindling’ (mashiba) and then having ‘grief in logs’ (nageki) sounds a little too similar, I think. The Left should win.