水の泡や種となるらむ浮草のまく人なみの上に生ふれば

mizu no awa ya tane to naruramu ukikusa no maku hitonami no ue ni oureba

Might the foam upon the waters Be its seeds, perhaps? When the drifting waterweed Twines atop a wave Where it does grow…

1[i]

山里は冬ぞさびしさまさりける人めも草もかれぬとおもへば

yamazato wa fuyu zo sabishisa masarikeru hitome mo kusa mo karenu to omoeba

In a mountain retreat Winter’s loneliness Overwhelms As both folks’ gaze and the grasses, too Have withered away, I feel…

2[ii]

今日人をこふる心はあすか川流るる水に劣らざりけり

kyō hito o kouru kokoro wa asukagawa nagaruru mizu ni otorazarikeri

Today, for her The love within my heart, By the River Asuka’s Running waters Will not be outdone!

3[iii]

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[i] This poem is included in Shūishū (IX: 524) as an anonymous poem with the headnote ‘Produced but not matched in a poetry contest.’

[ii] This poem is included in Muneyuki-shū (15) with the headnote ‘For a poetry match’.

[iii] This poem is included in Muneyuki-shū (16) with the headnote ‘For a poetry match’.