A poem from a poetry competition held by Her Majesty, the Empress, during the Kanpyō period.
春の野に若菜つまむと来し物をちりかふ花に道はまどひぬ
| Faru no no ni wakana tumamu to koshi mono wo tirikaFu Fana ni miti Fa madoFinu | To the meadows in springtime Thinking to pick fresh herbs Did I come, but Amongst the scattered blossom Have I lost my way. |
Tsurayuki
Left (Win)
唐国の虎臥す野邊に入るよりもまどふ戀路の末ぞあやうき
| karakuni no tora fusu nobe ni iru yori mo madou koiji no sue zo ayauki |
In far Cathay are Meadows where tigers lie, But rather than entering there, The confusing paths of love Are, at the end, more dangerous… |
Lord Ari’ie
1063
Right
我宿は人もかれ野の淺茅原通ひし駒の跡もとゞめず
| wa ga yado wa hito mo kareno no asajiwara kayoishi koma no ato mo todomezu |
At my home Is only a withered field Of cogon grass; The mount who once did cross it Has left no lingering tracks… |
Ietaka
1064
The Gentlemen of the Right state: how can love be dangerous? The Gentlemen of the Left state: the Right’s poem has no faults to mention.
In judgement: saying that the ‘paths of love are, at the end’ (koiji no sue) dangerous is perfectly commonplace. ‘Is only a withered field of cogon grass’ (hito mo kareno no asajiwara) seems to simply have taken the poem ‘Sedge fields lie / Around the estate of Fushimi, / All long overgrown; / He who passed across them / Has left no tracks at all…’ and swapped in ‘mount who once did cross it’ (kayoishi koma). Changing a man into a mount is discomposing, indeed. Again, the Left should win.
鶯の飛火野野辺の雪の内にそれかとばかり匂ふ梅が枝
| uguisu no tobubino nobe no yuki no uchi ni sore ka to bakari niou ume ga e |
The warbler on The meadows of Tobuhi Plain Among the snows Simply wonders if ‘tis the glow of branching plum… |
Gotoba
後鳥羽
Left
山深み種ある岩に生ふる松の根よりもかたき戀や何なる
| yama fukami tane aru iwa ni ouru matsu no ne yori mo kataki koi ya nani naru |
Deep with the mountains, Upon the crags where seeds Grow into pines, Rooted firmly – how hard Will our love be? |
Lord Ari’ie
1041
Right (Win)
契きなまた忘れずよ初瀬河布留川野邊の二本の杉
| chigirikina mata wasurezu yo hatsusegawa furukawa nobe no futamoto no sugi |
You vowed it, did you not. Not to forget me more. In the River Hatsuse and River Furu’s meadows Stand twin cedars. |
Jakuren
1042
Left and Right together state: we find no faults to mention.
In judgement: While there are such things in the heart of the mountains as ‘crags where seeds grow into pines’ (tane aru iwa ni ouru matsu), it is normally by the sea or on rocky coastlines that one finds firmly rooted pine trees. Surely, mountain pines are but lightly rooted? Cedars on River Hatsuse recollects ‘Nor will I ever; a solid brick-kiln’ (wasurezu yo kawaraya), but ‘You vowed it, did you not’ (chigirikina) also reminds me of the old phrase ‘Both our sleeves wringing out’ (katami ni sode o shiboritsutsu), which is most fine. Thus, the Right wins.
Imperial Visits to the Fields
冬ふかき野べの御幸のけふしもあれしらふのたかをすゑてけるかな
| fuyu fukaki nobe no miyuki no kyō shi mo are shirō no taka o suetekeru kana | In the depths of winter An imperial visit to the meadows Was there today, Hawks of white Would be ready there! |
Higo, from the Residence of the Kyōgoku Regent
京極関白家肥後
Sent to a woman at the beginning.
霜がれの冬野に立てるむら薄ほのめかさばや思ふ心を
| simogare no Fuyu no ni tateru mura susuki Fonomekasaba ya omoFu kokoro wo |
In frost-burned Winter meadows stand Clusters of silver grass; If only they would briefly reveal The feelings in my heart… |
Taira no Tsune’aki (?-1077)
平経章
Composed at the residence of the Ōmiya Former Chancellor, on the conception of when the moon in autumn seems like summer.
小萩原また花咲かぬ宮城野の鹿や今宵の月に鳴くらん
| koFagiFara mata Fana sakanu miyagino no sika ya koyoFi no tuki ni nakuran |
The young bush clover meadows Are not yet in bloom; On Miyagi plain Do the stags tonight Cry to the moon, I wonder? |
Fujiwara no Atsunaka
藤原敦仲
宮城野の秋の萩原分け行けば上葉の露に袖ぞ濡れぬる
| miyagino no aki no Fagiwara wakeyukeba uFaba no tuyu ni sode zo nurenuru |
On Miyagi plain The bush-clover meadows in autumn I press through, and Dew from the upper leaves Has soaked my sleeves. |
Ei’en
永縁
Composed on the conception of thinking about flowers in the meadows.
今はしも穂に出でぬらむ東路の石田の小野の篠の小薄
| ima wa simo Fo ni idenuramu adumadi no iFata no wono no sino no wosusuki |
Now it is that Their fronds seem to appear: On the eastern roads, Through Iwata meadows, Fresh silver-grass among the arrow bamboo. |
Fujiwara no Kore’ie
藤原伊家
Topic unknown.
霜さえて枯行く小野の岡べなる楢の廣葉に時雨ふるなり
| simo saete kareyuku wono no wokabe naru nara no Firoba ni sigure Furunari |
The frost is chill, and In the withering meadows; On the hillsides Upon the broad leaves of oak Showers fall. |
Fujiwara no Mototoshi