hitogokoro utsurihatenuru hana no iro ni mukashi nagara no yama no na mo oshi
As a human heart All faded are The blossoms’ hues upon Ever unchanged Nagara Mountain—even its name brings regret.[1]
A Court Lady 17
Right
なぞもかく思ひそめけむ桜花やまとしたかく成りはつるまで
nazo mo kaku omoisomekemu sakurabana yama toshi takaku narihatsuru made
Why is it that I seem so Absorbed in thought of Cherry blossom that The mountain higher Has grown? [2]
Lord Ietaka 18
The Right’s poem mentioning ‘Grief as hard as felling trees upon a mountain higher’ has charming diction. As for the Left’s poem, while I have heard it strongly stated that using a ‘human heart’ is not diction that should be composed with these days, as this is not a poem for public circulation, for the moment I make this a tie.
asa madaki tatsu ya kasumi no namima yori kinō mieshi awajishima yama
Early in the morning, Breaking, haze From between the waves, rather than Yesterday’s sight of The mountains of Awaji Isle…
Fujiwara no Tomoshige 15
Right
さえ残る雪げの春の朝霞かすむ名のみや空に立つらん
saenokoru yukige no haru no asagasumi kasumu na nomi sora ni tatsuran
Do chilly remnants of Snowmelt in spring Make morning haze’s Blur in name alone Drift into the skies?
Dharma Master Zenshin 16
The Left’s ‘Yesterday’s sight of the mountains of Awaji Isle’ sounds pleasant. The Right’s ‘Blur in name alone drift into the skies’ does not sound bad, but thinking of the conception of the topic, haze in name only is a bit inferior, isn’t it? Thus, the Left wins.
yama no ha ni ariake no tsuki no nokorazu wa kasumi ni akuru sora o mimashi ya
Upon the mountains’ edge Had the moon at dawn Not lingered, then On the brightening, hazy Sky would I have turned my gaze?
Shō 11
Right
朝戸あけてながめなれたる明ぼのの霞ばかりに春を知るかな
asa to akete nagamenaretaru akebono no kasumi baraki ni haru o shiru kana
With morn, opening my door, and Accustomed to gazing At the dawn The haze is all that Tells me ‘tis spring![1]
Nagatsuna, Ranked without Office 12
The Left’s poem has ‘would I wish to see the skies brightening with haze’, which does not seem bad, but the initial line drop ‘dawn’ and the latter part ‘brightening with haze’ which is a bit dubious; the Right’s poem really has nothing special about it. The poems are comparable and tie.
asahi kage mada ideyaranu ashihiki no yama wa kasumi no iro zo utsurou
The morning sunlight Has yet to fall upon The leg-wearying Mountains, yet the haze’s Hues are shifting.
Takasuke, Gentleman-in-Waiting 9
Right
山姫のかすみのそでも紅に光そへたる朝日影かな
yamahime no kasumi no sode mo kurenai ni hikari soetaru asahi kage kana
The mountain princess has Her sleeves of haze turned Scarlet Draped with light by The morning sunshine!
Shimotsuke 10
The Left’s poem has no faults worth pointing out; the poem of the Right’s ‘morning sunlight draping scarlet light across the sleeves of haze’ is overly gorgeous, I think, while the Left seems perfectly beautiful, so it should win.
ōhara ya oshio no sato no asagasumi yukiki ni nareshi haru zo wasurenu
In Ōhara At Oshio estate among The morning haze Accustomed to go back and forth, Never will I forget that springtime!
The Former Minister of the Centre 3
Right
浦人のしほやく里のあさ霞春の物とやわかでみるらん
urabito no shio yaku sato no asagasumi haru no mono to ya wakade miruran
Folk dwelling by the bay Roasting salt in their village: The morning haze From a scene in spring ‘tis Hard to distinguish, is it not?[1]
Kozaishō 4
The Left’s poem composes ‘Oshio estate among the morning haze accustomed to go back and forth’ and, in addition to seeming to have some feeling in it, displays fine configuration and diction, while the Right’s poem ‘From as scene in spring ‘tis hard to distinguish, is it not?’ recollects Narihira’s poem ‘a scene from spring: ever-falling rain to gaze upon all day’ and has a gentle air about it, so both are difficult to distinguish from each other. I make this a tie.
