是程と牡丹の仕方する子哉
kore hodo to
botan no shikata
suru ko kana |
‘It was this big!’
Hands making a peony
Says the child. |
On peonies.
虹を吐いてひらかんとする牡丹哉
niji o haite
hirakan to suru
botan kana |
As vital as a rainbow,
On the cusp of opening
Are the peonies. |
On peonies.
ちりて後おもかげにたつぼたん哉
chirite ato
omokage ni tatsu
botan kana |
All fallen,
Yet your form remains before my eyes,
O peonies. |
On peonies.
牡丹切て氣のおとろひし夕かな
botan kitte
ki no otoroishi
yū kana |
Plucking a peony
I gaze upon it in dejection
This evening. |
On peonies: presented to Tôrin on his moving to a new house.
寒からぬ露や牡丹の花の密
samukaranu
tsuyu ya botan no
hana no mitsu |
Not chill at all
Is the dew upon the peonies:
Nectar from the blooms. |
(1694)
'Simply moving and elegant'