Composed for the Palace Poetry Match in Shōryaku 2 [1078].
君が世はつきじとぞおもふかみかぜやみもすそ川のすまむかぎりは
kimi ga yo wa tsukiji to zo omou kamikaze ya mimosusogawa no sumamu kagiri wa My Lord’s reign Shall never end, I feel! While beneath the divine winds The Mimosuso River[i] Is clear!
Minister of Justice Tsunenobu
Created with Soan .
[i] The Mimosuso River (mimosugawa 御裳濯川) is the name given to the Isuzu River (isuzugawa 五十鈴川) as it flows past the Grand Shrine of Ise, which is dedicated to the ancestral deity of the imperial house, Amaterasu ōmikami 天照大神.
Left (Tie)
あふことのきみにたえにしわがみよりいくらのなみだながれいでぬらむ
au koto no kimi ni taenishi wa ga mi yori ikura no namida nagare’idenuramu My meetings with You, my lord, have ceased, and From my flesh What a torrent of tears Flow out!
Ise
59
Right
きみこひのあまりにしかばしのぶれどひとのしるらんことのわびしさ
kimi koi no amari nishikaba shinoburedo hito no shiruran koto no wabishiki Loving you Beyond all measure, I kept it secret, yet That folk seem to know Is a cause of heartache.
Tsurayuki 60
On hearing His Highness, the Prince of the Right remark in irritation that the Left’s poem had appealed to His Majesty’s heart, His Majesty composed
ゆきかへりちどりなくなるはまゆふのこころへだてておもふものかは
yukikaeri chidori naku naru hamayū no kokoro hedatete omou mono ka wa Going back and forth Plovers cry from The beach among the spider lilies Do their hearts distinguish Do you think?
His Majesty 61
One day, he was summoned to the Thunder Pavilion to take wine with His Majesty; rain was falling fiercely as evening drew on and when he rose to take his leave, he took his wine-cup and…
秋はぎの花をば雨にぬらせども君をばましてをしとこそおもへ
aki Fagi no Fana woba ame ni nurasedomo kimi woba masite osi to koso omoFe The autumn bush clover’s Blooms by the raindrops Have been soaked, yet, My lord, far more Do I regret leaving you.
Tsurayuki
Composed when the former Teishi Emperor made a progress to Naniwa.
君がため波の玉しくみつの浜ゆき過ぎがたしおりてひろはん
kimi ga tame nami no tamashiku mitsu no hama yukisugigatashi orite hirowan For my Lord’s sake The waves scatter gems On the beach at Mitsu— So hard it is to pass them by I would disembark and gather them up!
Prince Sadakazu
やをとめのそでかとぞみるをみなへしきみをいはひてなではじめてき
yaotome no sode ka to zo miru ominaeshi kimi o iwaite nadehajimeteki As eight sacred maidens’ Sleeves do they appear, The maidenflowers, Celebrating our Lord’s reign With a first gentle touch.
49
うゑながらかつはたのまずをみなへしうつろふあきのほどしなければ
uenagara katsu wa tanomazu ominaeshi utsurou aki no hodo shi nakereba I planted them, yet Still unreliable are The maidenflowers, for They fade and autumn Is nothing but brief…
50
Left Final Round
をみなへしこのあきまでぞまさるべきつゆをもぬきてたまにまどはせ
ominaeshi kono aki made zo masarubeki tsuyu o mo nukite tama ni madowase The maidenflowers This autumn Have been fine, indeed— Strung with dewdrops As pearls let you be!
His Majesty 21[1]
Right
きみによりのべをはなれしをみなへしおなじこころにあきをとどめよ
kimi ni yori nobe o hanareshi ominaeshi onaji kokoro ni aki o todomeyo For My Lord Have you left your meadows, O, maidenflower, Wishing as we, Autumn—hold here!
Her Majesty, the Empress
22[2]
The flowers of the Right were inferior, but the poems of the Right won.
[1] Shinsen man’yōshū 528
[2] Shinsen man’yōshū 548
Composed at the Kameyama mansion, in the Eighth Month, Kenji 2 [September 1276], when the first topic announced was ‘the colour of pines floating on a pond’.
池水に松のちとせをうつしても君にふたたびあふがうれしさ
ikemizu ni matsu no chitose o utsushitemo kimi ni futatabi au ga ureshiki In the pond waters The pine’s thousand years Are reflected, yet Once more, my Lord, To meet you brings me joy!
The Regent and Former Prime Minister 摂政前太政大臣
[One of] Seven poems composed at a banquet at the residence of the Tachibana Minister of the Right.
この岡に小鹿踏み起しうかねらひかもかもすらく君故にこそ
kono woka ni osika pumi’okosi ukanerapi kamokamo suraku kimi yuwe ni koso Upon this hill My tread has awoken the fauns While sighting my aim; Everything and anything we do Is for you, my Lord.
Kosobe no Shitsuma 巨曽倍津嶋
Spring
Left
春のたつ霞の衣うらもなく年を経てこそ花の散りけれ
haru no tatsu kasumi no koromo ura mo naku toshi o hete koso hana no chirikere Spring does sew A robe of haze Without an underlay, The year passes by in A scattering of blossom
1
春の野の雪間をわけていつしかと君がためとぞ若菜摘みつる
haru no no no yuki ma o wakete itsushika to kimi ga tame to zo wakana tsumitsuru Across the springtime meadows Do I forge between the snows, Eagerly, so eagerly, For you, my Lord, Have I gathered fresh herbs!
2
春霞かすみこめたる山里はこほりとくともかげはみえじを
harugasumi kasumi kometaru yamazato wa kōri toku tomo kage wa mieji o The haze of spring Blurs all around A mountain retreat, Even were the ice to melt I could see no sign of it!
3
Right
梅枝にきゐる鶯年毎に花の匂ひをあかぬ声する
ume ga e ni ki’iru uguisu toshigoto ni hana no nioi o akanu koesuru Upon the plum tree’s branches Has come to rest the warbler; Every single year, that Of the blossoms’ scent He cannot get his fill he sings.
4
桜色に花さく雨はふりぬとも千しほぞそめてうつろふなそで
sakurairo ni hana saku ame wa furinu tomo chishio zo somete utsurou na sode Cherry-coloured Blossoms flower, as the rain Falls on, yet Dyed a thousand times Fade not, o, my sleeves!
5
青柳のいとはるばると緑なる行末までも思ひこそやれ
aoyagi no ito harubaru to midori naru yukusue made mo omoi koso yare The willow’s Branches dangle lengthily So green Right to the very end Will I fondly think of you.
6
The Seventh Night 七夜
君が代はながひこのかゆ七かへりいはふ心にあへざらめやは
kimi ga yo wa nagahiko no kayu nana kaeri iwau kokoro ni aezarame ya wa My Lord, your reign, with Rice-shoot porridge Seven times Hearts in celebration Will encounter, will it not?
Toshiyori
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