Cherry blossom in the rain.
雨ふるとたちかくるれば山桜花のしづくにそほちぬるかな
| ame furu to tachi kakurureba yamazakura hana no shizuku ni sōchinuru kana | In the falling rain When I stood to shelter beneath A mountain cherry, Droplets from the blossom Did drench me! |
Bracken.
さわらびのもえいづる春に成りぬればのべのかすみもたなびきにけり
| sawarabi no moe’izuru ame ni narinureba nobe no kasumi mo tanabikinikeri | The bracken Bursts into bud when rain Does fall, and Across the meadows The haze is drifting. |
The Beginning of Autumn
Left (Win—in a certain book Tie)
しぐれにもあめにもあらぬはつぎりのたつにもそらはさしくもりけり
| shigure ni mo ame ni mo aranu hatsugiri no tatsu ni mo sora wa sashikumorikeri | Neither a shower Nor rain, The first mists Simply rise into the skies And cover all with cloud. |
11
Right
としごとにあふとはすれどたなばたのぬるよのかずぞすくなかりける
| toshi goto ni au to suredo tanabata no nuru yo no kazu zo sukunakarikeru | Every year She meets him, yet The Weaver Maid’s Nights of passion Are few indeed. |
Mitsune
12
On love in the rain, when she presented a hundred poem sequence for the Hōji hyakushu [1248].
おもひきやなみだにしぼる袖に猶身をしる雨をそへん物とは
| omoiki ya namida ni shiboru sode ni nao mi o shiru ame o soen mono to wa | Never did I think, that I would wring the tears From my sleeves yet still The rain upon my misery Would add to it… |
Tsuchimikado-in no Kosaishō
土御門院小宰相
Rain on a spring evening.
つれづれと雨ふりくらす春の日はつねよりながき物にぞ有りける
| tsurezure to ame furikurasu haru no hi wa tsune yori nagaki mono ni zo arikeru | Idly The rain falls, darkening The springtime sun— How much longer than normal It does seem to last… |
Shōgimon’in[1]
[1] Shōgimon’in 章義門院 (?-1336) was the title given to Imperial Princess Yoshiko 誉子, the second daughter of Emperor Fushimi.
Left
あき風にほころびぬらむ藤ばかまつづりさせてふきりぎりす鳴く
| akikaze ni hokorobinuramu fujibakama tsuzurisase chō kirigirisu naku | The autumn wind Seems to have burst the buds of The asters ‘Sew them back together!’ say The crickets’ cries. |
Ariwara no Muneyana
94
Right
秋の夜のあめときこえて降りつるは風に散りつる紅葉なりけり
| aki no yo no ame to kikoete furitsuru wa kaze ni chiritsuru momiji narikeri | On an autumn night The sound of rain Falling is The wind scattered Scarlet leaves. |
95
Left
水のうへにあやおりみだる春雨や山のみどりをなべてそむらん
| mizu no ue ni aya orimidaru harusame ya yama no midori o nabete somuran | Upon the waters A confusing pattern paints The rain of spring— Will it now the mountains All dye with green, I wonder? |
19[1]
Right
色ふかくみる野辺だにも常ならば春は行くともかたみならまし
| iro fukaku miru nobe dani mo tsune naraba haru wa yuku tomo katami naramashi | Deep the hues On display within the meadows—if that Should be the norm, then Even when the spring is gone A keepsake they would be. |
20[2]
[1] Shinsen man’yōshū 1/Kokin rokujō I: 460/A minor variant of this poem also occurs in Shinkokinshū (I: 65), where it is attributed to Ise: 水のおもにあやおりみだる春雨や山のみどりをなべてそむらん mizu no omo ni / aya orimidaru / harusame ya / yama no midori o / nabete somuran ‘Upon the water’s surface / A confusing pattern paints / The rain of spring— / Will it now the mountains / All dye with green, I wonder?’
[2] Shinchokusenshū II: 89