Tag Archives: Nageki

Love X: 24

Left (Win)
山深み歎きこる男のをのれのみ苦しくまどふ恋の道かな

yama fukami
nageki koru o no
onore nomi
kurushiku madou
koi no michi kana
Deep within the mountains
Felling trees, a woodsman’s
Axe, my grief
Leaves me in pained confusion
On the paths of love…

Lord Sada’ie
1187

Right
山人の帰る家路を思ふにも逢はぬ歎きぞ休むまもなき

yamabito no
kaeru ieji o
omou ni mo
awanu nageki zo
yasumu ma mo naki
A mountain man,
Homeward bound,
Is in my thoughts, but
Unable to meet with you grief
Gives me no respite.

Ietaka
1188

Left and Right together state: no faults to mention.

In judgement: the Left has a profound conception of love. The Right’s ‘homeward bound’ (kaeru ieji) and ‘unable to meet with you grief’ (awanu nageki) are extremely difficult to grasp, I think. The Left should win.

Love X: 19

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.

KYS VIII: 448

Composed gazing at the moon when there were baseless rumours about her.

如何にせむ歎の杜は茂けれど木の間の月の隱れなき世を

ika ni semu
nageki no mori Fa
sigekeredo
ko no ma no tuki no
kakurenaki yo wo
What am I to do?
The sacred groves of Nageki with grief
Grow lush, yet
Between the trees, from the moon
There is no hiding in this world.

The Daughter of Tachibana no Toshimune
橘俊宗女

Love VII: 1

Left (Tie).
年を經て茂るなげきをこりもせでなど深からん物思ひの山

toshi o hete
shigeru nageki o
kori mo sede
nado fukakaran
mono’omoi no yama
The years go by and
My ever verdant grief
Is never felled;
Why am I so deep
In mountains of gloomy thought?

Kenshō.
961

Right.
君にわれ深く心を筑波山しげきなげきにこりはてぬ哉

kimi ni ware
fukaku kokoro o
tsukubayama
shigeki nageki ni
korihatenu kana
You for me
Had deep thoughts once –
All gone now, yet on Tsukuba Mountain
My ever verdant grief
Remains unfelled…

The Supernumerary Master of the Empress’ Household Office.
962

The Right state: we are not familiar with the expression ‘mountains of gloomy thought’ (mono’omoi no yama) used in the Left’s poem. The Left state: the Right’s poem has nothing significant to say.

In judgement: both poems use the wordplay of ‘ever verdant grief’ (shigeki nageki) and a ‘heart unfelled’ (korinu kokoro); they have no particular merits or faults. The round ties.