Original
さくらばなゆきとふるめりみかさやまいざたちよらむなにかくるやと
| sakurabana yukitourumeri mikasayama iza tachiyoramu nani kakuru ya to | The cherry blossom Seems to pass as falling snow On Mikasa Mountain— Say, let’s shelter ‘neath umbrellas there, Whether they’ll conceal us or not…[1] |
Mitsune
28
Left (Tie)
やまのなにたちしもよらじさくらばなゆきとふるともいろにぬれめや
| yama no na ni tachishi mo yoraji sakurabana yukitouru to mo iro ni nureme ya | Based on the mountain’s name, I would take no shelter from The cherry blossoms, for Even should they pass as falling snow Would their hues wet my sleeves? |
29
Right
かくるれどやまずゆきこそふりかかれみかさのやまははなやもるらん
| kakururedo yamazu yuki koso furikakare mikasa no yama wa hana ya moruran | I have concealed myself, yet Incessantly those snows Do fall; From Mikasa Mountain, will The blossom drip, I wonder? |
30
[1] This poem occurs in Mitsune-shū (328) with the same headnote as that for poem 22 (above). This is a somewhat facetious poem in that Mitsune is punning on the name of the mountain, Mikasa, which could be read to mean ‘honoured umbrella’. Both of the ladies composing this round pick up on his wordplay, with the author of (29) saying that there’s no need to take shelter as blossom will not leave a stain, as snow would, and the author of (30) wondering rhetorically if the blossom would drip from an umbrella as melting snow would.
Round Nine
Left
影きよく月をよこぎるうき雲は秋の名をさへけがしつるかな
| kage kiyoku tsuki yokogiru ukigumo wa aki no na sae kegashitsuru kana | The pure light of The moon crossing go The drifting clouds— The very name of autumn Have they besmirched! |
Arifusa
65
Right (Win)
照る月を浪のうへにてみる時ぞますみのかがみいる心ちする
| teru tsuki o nami no ue nite miru toki zo masumi no kagami iru kokochisuru | The shining moon Rests atop the waves, and When I gaze upon it, Within the clearest of mirrors Does it lie, I feel. |
Narinaka
66
What to make of the sound of the Left’s ‘besmirched the very name of autumn’? The Right does not seem to differ markedly from the conception of ‘Hundredfold Polished Mirror’[1] where it says that the moon ‘atop the waves’ is ‘all apiece with the autumn waters’ deeps’, does it. The Right should win.
[1] This is a reference to a poem by Bai Juyi, Bailianjing 百練鏡, contained in the Collected Works of Master Bai (Hakushi monjū 白氏文集), about a mirror which had been polished a hundred times. Kiyosuke quotes from the poem in his judgement, referring to the following passage: 江心波上舟中鋳 五月五日日午時 瓊粉金膏磨瑩已 化為一片秋潭水 jiangxinbo shang zhou zhong zhu / wu yue wu ri ri wushi / qiong fen jin gao mo ying yi / hua wei yipian qiu tan shui ‘In a boat atop the waves at the heart of the Yangtse / At noon on the 5th day of the Fifth Month / Polished with gemmed powdered seashells in golden oil / ‘Tis transformed and becomes all apiece with the autumn waters’ deeps.’
Round Six
Left (Tie)
むつごともいはまほしきを女郎花くちなし色のつらくもあるかな
| mutsugoto mo iwamahoshiki o ominaeshi kuchinashi iro no tsuraku mo aru kana | A lover’s whisper is What I wish you’d say to me, O, maidenflower, but Your silent yellow hue Is cruel, indeed! |
Minamoto no Moromitsu, Supernumerary Master of the Right Capital Office
11
Right
女郎花はなの心はしらねども名をきくにこそをらまほしけれ
| ominaeshi hana no kokoro wa shiranedomo na o kiku ni koso oramahoshikere | O, maidenflower, A flower’s heart, I cannot know, yet Simply on hearing your name, How I wish to pick you! |
Hōribe no Narinaka, Hiyoshi Shrine Priest
12
The Left is charming. However, would a flower which is not ‘silent yellow’ be saying something? It’s more common to say that flowers say nothing. Even so, this is not a profound fault, so it’s better to evaluate this poem as charming. The Right is elegantly composed—saying ‘simply on hearing your name’, just sounds skillful, so it’s impossible for me to state a winner or loser this round.
Mountain Cherries
Round Nine
Left (Tie)
人心うつりはてぬる花の色に昔ながらの山の名もをし
| hitogokoro utsurihatenuru hana no iro ni mukashi nagara no yama no na mo oshi | As a human heart All faded are The blossoms’ hues upon Ever unchanged Nagara Mountain—even its name brings regret.[1] |
A Court Lady
17
Right
なぞもかく思ひそめけむ桜花やまとしたかく成りはつるまで
| nazo mo kaku omoisomekemu sakurabana yama toshi takaku narihatsuru made | Why is it that I seem so Absorbed in thought of Cherry blossom that The mountain higher Has grown? [2] |
Lord Ietaka
18
The Right’s poem mentioning ‘Grief as hard as felling trees upon a mountain higher’ has charming diction. As for the Left’s poem, while I have heard it strongly stated that using a ‘human heart’ is not diction that should be composed with these days, as this is not a poem for public circulation, for the moment I make this a tie.
[1] An allusive variation on KKS XV: 797.
[2] An allusive variation on KKS XIX: 1056.
When a large number of people had gone to Daikakuji and were composing on the old waterfall.
たきの糸はたえてひさしく成りぬれど名こそ流れて猶きこえけれ
| taki no ito Fa taete Fisasiku narinuredo na koso nagarete naFo kikoekere | The cataract’s threads Snapped so long Ago, yet Its name flows on and Is yet heard. |
Kintō, Captain of the Outer Palace Guards, Right Division
Composed when he had gone to the Saga Daigakuji and was composing on a variety of topics.
たきのおとはたえて久しくなりぬれど名こそながれてなほきこえけれ
| taki no oto Fa taete Fisasiku narinuredo na koso nagarete naFo kikoekere | The cataract’s sound Faded so long Ago, yet Its name flows on and Is yet heard. |
Former Major Counsellor Kintō
