Scarlet leaves
Left
つねよりもはやきもみぢはしらつゆのわきて心をおけるとやみん
tsune yori mo hayaki momiji wa shiratsuyu no wakite kokoro o okeru to ya min Earlier than Usual upon the scarlet leaves Have silver dewdrops Burst—is it my heart that With them seems to fall?
15
Right
もみぢばのながれてせけばやまがははあさきよりなほみづやひぬらん
momijiba no nagarete sekeba yamagawa wa asaki yori nao mizu ya hinuran Scarlet leaves Flow down and block A mountain stream, so Shallower than ever do Its waters seem to fall?
16
The Beginning of Winter
Left (Tie)
しものうへにふるはつゆきのあさごほりとけむほどこそひさしかりけれ
shimo no ue ni furu hatsuyuki no asagōri tokemu hodo koso hisashikarikeri Upon the frost Falls first snow turning To ice with the morning; The time ‘twill take to melt Will be long, indeed.
17
Right
かみなづきもみぢのいろはふくかぜとたにのみづとぞおとしはてつる
kaminazuki momiji no iro wa fuku kaze to tani no mizu to zo otoshihatetsuru In the Godless Month The scarlet leaves’ hue With the gusting wind, and The waters in the valley, do Drop completely.
Mitsune 18
When he held a poetry match at his house.
雲ゐより照りやまさると水清み浦にてもみん秋のよの月
kumoi yori teri ya masaru to mizu kiyomi ura nite mo min aki no yo no tsuki From the clouds Does it shine most bright? In the clear waters By the shore I see The moon this autumn night.
Taira no Sadafun
From among his spring poems
河ぎしのかげ行く水にうちなびき波の玉ぬく青柳の糸
kawagishi no kage yuku mizu ni uchinabiki kawa no tama nuku aoyagi no ito By the bank’s Shade flow waters where Trailing Threaded with the river’s jewels Are the willow fronds.
Ki no Yukinaga 紀行長
The first time he spoke with Kamo no Narisuke, he took a shallow wine-cup and composed:
ききわたるみたらしがはの水きよみそこのこころをけふぞみるべき
kikiwataru mitarashigawa no mizu kiyomi soko no kokoro o kyō zo mirubeki Listening, The River Mitarashi’s Waters are so pure That to the bottom of my heart I can see today.
Kunimoto, the Governor of Tsu
This poem is said by some to be by Kakinomoto no Hitomaro.
池にすむ名ををし鳥の水をあさみかくるとすれどあらはれにけり
ike ni sumu na wo wosidori no midu wo asami kakuru to suredo araFarerinikeri The pond is the home Of the mandarins, they say; regretfully In the shallow waters They dive, yet Still plainly do appear.
A summer poem, from a hundred poem sequence.
百敷の玉のみぎりのみ川水まがふ蛍も光そへけり
momoshiki no tama no migiri no mikawamizu magau hotaru mo hikari soekeri A hundredfold the palace walls, Where jewels by the edges of Moat waters Tangle with the fireflies Trailing lights.
Teika
From the Later Hundred Poem Sequence from the Reign of Former Emperor Horikawa.
たかせぶねのぼるほりえのみづあさみみくさがくれにかはづなくなり
takasebune noboru horie no mizu asami mikusagakure ni kawazu nakunari Skips Ascend the canal’s Shallow waters; Hidden deep within the grasses, The frogs are singing.
Fujiwara no Akinaka
Blossom falls wordlessly from the trees, while the waters flow into the souless pond.
はなも水も心なぎさやいかならむ庭に浪たつはるの木のもと
hana mo mizu mo kokoro nagisa ya ikanaramu niwa ni nami tatsu haru no ko no moto Both the blossoms and the waters, too, Touch the shores of my heart— Why should that be? At my estate the breaking waves Of spring wash the bases of the trees.
Jien
Left
白露ぞ霜となりける冬のよはあまの河さへ水こほりけり
shiratsuyu zo shimo to narikeru fuyu no yo wa ama no kawa sae mizu kōrikeri Silver dewdrops Have turned to frost On this winter’s nightEven the River of Heaven’sWaters have frozen.
153
Right
冬の海に降りいる雪やそこにゐて春たつ浪の花とさくらん
fuyu no umi ni furi’iru yuki ya soko ni ite haru tatsu nami no hana to sakuran Upon the sea in winter, Falling down, is the snow: Does it rest upon the bed and With the waves breaking in springtime Bloom into blossom?
154
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