Plum blossom at an ancient estate.
年ふればやどはあれにけり梅のはな花はむかしの香ににほへども
toshi fureba yado wa arenikeri ume no hana hana wa mukashi no ka ni nioedomo The years have passed, so The house has into ruin fallen, yet The plum’s blossoming Flowers, as in days long gone Scent the air with fragrance.
30
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Created with Soan .
When the Kyōgoku Lady of the Bedchamber became a nun and, saying she wished for him to administer her vows, came over to the Ninna Temple.
ひとりのみながめて年をふる里の荒れたる様をいかに見るらん
Fitori nomi nagamete tosi wo furu sato no aretaru sama wo ika ni miruran All alone Have I gazed these years Past upon my retreat’s Ruined appearance, but How must it appear within your sight?
Prince Atsumi
When Ki no Tomonori had not yet been bestowed with any official position, in connection with this when he was asked how old he was and replied that he was forty.
今までになどかは花のさかずしてよそとせあまり年ぎりはする
ima made ni nado ka Fa Fana no sakazusite yoso tose amari tosigiri Fa suru Up to this moment Why is it that blossoms Have yet to bloom? After as much as forty years Absent a year they are…
The Posthumous Chancellor
Dwellings.
つれづれと年ふるやどはむまたまのよもひもながくなりぬべらなり
tsurezure to toshi furu yado wa mumatama no yo mo hi mo nagaku narinubernari Ever unchanging Through the passing years, for this dwelling Lily-seed dark Night and daytime, too, endlessly Seem to go on and on.
A poem from the Poetry Contest held by the Empress Dowager during the Reign of the Kanpyō Emperor.
年をへてもゆてふふじの山よりもあはぬ思ひは我ぞまされる
toshi o hete moyu chō fuji no yama yori mo awanu omoi wa ware zo masareru Through all the passing years Burns Fuji; Far more than the mountain, Not meeting you, the flames of passion, Burn brightly in me.
Anonymous
Her reply
浪のうへに跡やは見ゆる水鳥のうきてへぬらん年はかずかは
nami no uFe ni ato ya Fa miyuru midutori no ukite Fenuran tosi Fa kazu ka Fa Upon the waves Can you see tracks? The waterbirds Drift and passed by have The years, but so what?
Anonymous
Sent to a lady with whom he had simply been exchanging letters for some years.
水鳥のはかなきあとに年をへてかよふばかりのえにこそ有りけれ
midutori no hakanaki ato ni tosi wo Fete kayoFu bakari no e ni koso arikere Waterbirds leave But transient traces as The years go by— This simple back-and-forth is All we truly have!
Anonymous
The same Major Counsellor, writing vertically upon delicate scarlet paper.
年ふともいはで朽ちぬる埋木の下の心はふりぬ恋かな
toshi futomo iwade kuchinuru umoregi no shita no kokoro wa furinu koi kana The years pass by, yet Without a word, has rotted The drowned tree— Beneath it, my heart Has grown old with love!
3
In reply
ふかからぬ水無瀬の川の埋木はしたの恋路は年ふりぬとも
fukakaranu minase no kawa no umoregi wa shita no koiji wa toshi furinu tomo There’s no depth to The River Minase, where Drowned trees lie— Beneath, the paths of love Have grown old in years, and yet…
Chikuzen, Daughter of Prince Yasusuke 4
Cranes in a garden (庭上鶴馴)
Left
庭の面に人になれたるあしたづはよはひをきみにゆづるなるべし
niwa no omo ni hito ni naretaru ashitazu wa yowai o kimi ni yuzurunarubeshi Upon this garden’s face stands, Accustomed to folk, A crane; His years to my Lord Will he bestow, no doubt!
A Court Lady 31
Right
千とせふるやどのけしきやしるからん汀のたづのなれにけるかな
chitose furu yado no keshiki ya shirukaran migiwa no tazu no narenikeru kana Is it that a thousand years old This dwelling does appear? For to the muddy Water’s edge the cranes Have become accustomed!
A Court Lady 32
Next Door 隣
色かへてふりぬる物は年たかきとなりの松とわれとなりけり
iro kaete furinuru mono wa toshi takaki tonari no matsu to ware to narikeri Hues do change as Age falls upon one: Towering with years have Both the pines next door and I become.
Nakazane
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