sumiyoshi no kishikata no yo ni hikikaete hana saku matsu no mi tomo naraba ya
On Sumiyoshi’s Shore, for the coming world I would exchange— Waiting for blossom to bloom upon the pines— Myself, that’s what I long for…
Koretsuna 135
Right
たのみこしかみのしるしにうきよをもすみよしとだにおもひなりせば
tanomikoshi kami no shirushi ni ukiyo o mo sumiyoshi to dani omoinariseba
I have come to rely On a sign from the God, That this cruel world, too, Even become a pleasant place to dwell— Or so I have come to think…
Suesada 136
Both the Left and Right this round only appear skilled in their use of diction. The poem on blossom probably needs a little more work, I think, but they really are about the same.
sa mo koso wa yorube no mizu ni mizukusa ime kyō no kazashi yo na sae wasururu
That may be, but In the jars of proffered water Waterweed grows old, perhaps, yet To say that the blossom in your hair today Has had its name forgotten? Really…
furusato no kasuga no nobe no kusa mo ki mo haru ni futatabi au kotoshi kana
At the ancient capital Upon Kasuga’s plain, Grasses and trees, both, Springtime have twice Met this year! [1]
Mitsune 34
Left (Win)
はるながらまたはるにあふかすがのにおひぬくさきはねたくやあるらん
haru nagara mata haru ni au kasugano ni oinu kusaki wa netaku ya aruran
‘Tis spring, but That springtime once more has come To Kasuga Plain, Won’t the grasses and trees growing there Be envied, indeed?
35
Right
ゆきかへるみちのやどりかかすがののくさきにはなのたびかさぬらむ
yukikaeru michi no yadori ka kasugano no kusaki ni hana no tabikasanuramu
Is it that arriving and departing, The lodging on spring’s path lies On Kasuga Plain, so On the grasses and trees, blossom Appears time and time again?
36
[1] This poem occurs in Mitsune-shū (322) with the same headnote as for poem (22), above. It was also included in Shinsenzaishū (X: 980), with the headnote, ‘Composed in place of the Governor of Yamato in Engi 21, on the day when the Kyōgoku Lady of the Bedchamber visited the shrine at Kasuga.’
sakurabana yukitourumeri mikasayama iza tachiyoramu nani kakuru ya to
The cherry blossom Seems to pass as falling snow On Mikasa Mountain— Say, let’s shelter ‘neath umbrellas there, Whether they’ll conceal us or not…[1]
Mitsune 28
Left (Tie)
やまのなにたちしもよらじさくらばなゆきとふるともいろにぬれめや
yama no na ni tachishi mo yoraji sakurabana yukitouru to mo iro ni nureme ya
Based on the mountain’s name, I would take no shelter from The cherry blossoms, for Even should they pass as falling snow Would their hues wet my sleeves?
29
Right
かくるれどやまずゆきこそふりかかれみかさのやまははなやもるらん
kakururedo yamazu yuki koso furikakare mikasa no yama wa hana ya moruran
I have concealed myself, yet Incessantly those snows Do fall; From Mikasa Mountain, will The blossom drip, I wonder?
30
[1] This poem occurs in Mitsune-shū (328) with the same headnote as that for poem 22 (above). This is a somewhat facetious poem in that Mitsune is punning on the name of the mountain, Mikasa, which could be read to mean ‘honoured umbrella’. Both of the ladies composing this round pick up on his wordplay, with the author of (29) saying that there’s no need to take shelter as blossom will not leave a stain, as snow would, and the author of (30) wondering rhetorically if the blossom would drip from an umbrella as melting snow would.
shiokaze no kumo fukiharau aki no yo wa tsuki sumiwataru ama no hashidate
The tidewinds Blow away the clouds On an autumn night The moon crossing clear above Ama-no-hashidate…
Tamechika 59
Right (Win)
あかざりし花にたとへてながむれば月は心ぞすみまさりける
akazarishi hana ni tatoete nagamureba tsuki wa kokoro zo sumimasarikeru
A never sating Blossom do I imagine it, When gazing at The moon, my heart is Most wonderfully clear.
Lord Yorimasa 60
The Left: it is not possible to determine where the wind is blowing, yet saying ‘the tidewinds blow the clouds away’ conveys a different impression. The Right’s use of ‘imagine’ is unsatisfactory as a piece of diction, but this is not a significant fault, so it should win, I think.
wakana tsumu toshi wa henuredo kasugano no nomori wa kyō ya haru o shiruramu
Plucking fresh herbs do The years pass by, yet On Kasuga Plain, The wardens today Must truly know ‘tis spring. [1]
Mitsune 19
Left (Tie)
けふ見てぞわれはしりぬるはなはなほかすがののべのものにぞありける
kyō mite zo ware wa shirinuru hana wa nao kasuga no nobe no mono ni zo arikeru
Today did I see, and Understood it well, that Blossom, truly, Upon the meadows of Kasuga Is best of all.
20
Right
ありへてもかすがののもりはるにあふはとしもわかなもつめるしるしか
arihete mo kasuga no nomori haru ni au wa toshi mo wakana mo tsumeru shirushi ka
Over passing ages, For the wardens of Kasuga, Encountering the springtime, The years and the fresh herbs, both, Have garnered as a sign, perhaps.
21
[1] A variant of this poem occurs in Shokugosenshū: In the twenty-first year of the same era, on a day when the Kyōgoku Lady of the Bedchamber visited the shrine at Kasuga, he composed this in place of the official from the province of Yamato. としごとにわかなつみつつかすが野ののもりもけふやはるをしるらん toshi goto ni / wakana tsumitsutsu / kasugano no / nomori mo kyō ya / haru o shiruran ‘Every single year / Ever plucking fresh herbs / On Kasuga Plain / The wardens, too, today / Must truly know ‘tis spring.’Mitsune (XVI: 1032/1029)
