Cherry Blossom
Left (Tie)
わがそのへいざかへりなむあさがほのひとはなさくらのはなりにけり
| wa ga sono e iza kaerinamu asagao no hito hana sakura no wa narinikeri | To my garden, Well, I must return, for A morning glory’s Single bloom in flower seems To have turned it to a meadow. |
Okikaze
9
Right
はるはきぬたねにまくべきいねはなさくらのはなへにおろしはててよ
| haru wa kinu tane ni makubeki ine wa nasa kura no hanae ni oroshihateteyo | Spring has come, and The seeds must be sown; No seedlings sprout Beside the storehouse Sow them all! |
10
In the spring of the year following that in which the Sanjō Minister of the Right had passed away, on hearing that the Minister had summoned her, she sent this to the Prince who was father to the Ise Virgin.
いかでかの年ぎりもせぬたねもがなあれたるやどにうゑて見るべく
| ikade ka no tosigiri mo senu tane mogana aretaru yado ni uwete mirubeku | Why is it that Absent this year are not These seeds! At a ruined dwelling Planted, could they be seen… |
His Daughter, the Junior Consort
Winter
Left
冬くれば紅葉ふりしく神無月佐保の山辺はむべもりぬらん
| fuyu kureba momiji furishiku kaminazuki saho no yamabe wa mube morinuran | When the winter comes, Scarlet leaves, falling and scattering In the Godless Month, Upon the slopes of Mount Saho, Indeed, are at their finest. |
19
冬ごもりかれてみゆらん梅がえは今はた花の春はにほはん
| fuyugomori karete miyuran ume ga e wa ima hata hana no haru wa niowan | Sealed in winter, and All withered seeming, The plum tree’s branches, Now, for sure, the blossoms’ Spring will scent. |
20
冬みれば水もまかせぬ小山田にいつすき返し種をまきけん
| fuyu mireba mizu mo makasenu oyamada ni itsu sukikaeshi tane o makiken | ‘Tis winter, I see, so There’s no water to draw for The little mountain paddies: O, when might I till them, and Sow my seeds, I wonder? |
21
Right
時雨降る宿にすまへば冬の夜に錦とみゆる木木の花かな
| shigure furu yado ni sumaeba fuyu no yo ni nishiki to miyuru kigi no hana kana | Showers fall Upon the house where I do dwell, so Upon a winter’s night As brocade do seem The blossoming trees! |
22
ゆふだすき神の社にかけつればしもし降るにもたのもしきかな
| yūdasuki kami no yashiro ni kaketsureba shimo shi furu ni mo tanomashiki kana | Sacred mulberry cords Around the God’s shrine Are hung, so Even amidst the frost fall, The future does seem bright! |
23
白雲のふたへふりしくときは山うらはへとしはみどりなりけれ
| shiragumo no futae furishiku tokiwa yama ura hae toshi wa midori narikere | Clouds of white Lie scattered, twofold, upon The unchanging mountain: Stretching out behind, the year Is simply green. |
24
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.
Left (Tie)
いはざりき我身古屋の忍ぶ草思ひたがへて種を播けとは
| iwazariki wa ga mi furuya no shinobugusa omoitagaete tane o make to wa |
I did not tell you: My aged home’s Fond ferns To think so lightly of That you scatter seeds about! |
Lord Sada’ie
1031
Right
ながめする心の根より生ひそめて軒の忍ぶは茂る成るべし
| nagamesuru kokoro no ne yori oisomete noki no shinobu wa shigerunarubeshi |
Consoled, My heart’s depths Have grown old, as Beneath my eaves the ferns Have grown thick, indeed. |
Nobusada
1032
The Gentlemen of the Right state: we wonder about the appropriateness of sowing seeds beneath eaves? The Left, in appeal: why not compose a poem in this manner, given ‘even the grass seeds, forgotten’? The Left state: this seems little different from Toshiyori’s poem, ‘Beneath the eaves, my thoughts run wild / As the growing plants…’ (omoinoki yori ouru narikeri).
In judgement: both poems refer to ferns, and the conception of ‘my aged home’ (wa ga mi furuya no) and ‘my heart’s depths’ (kokoro no ne yori) both sound suitable. I make this a tie.