Composed on the moon.
玉垂之 小簾之間通 独居而 見験無 暮月夜鴨
たまだれの をすのまとほし ひとりゐて みるしるしなき ゆふづくよかも
| tamadare no wosu no matoposi pitori wite miru sirusinaki yupudukuyo kamo | Hung with jewels The blinds’ gaps reveal Me sitting here alone How pointless to be gazing out At the rising moon tonight! |
Anonymous
When the Lay Priest Regent came to call and sent in to say that he was going to go away unhappy, because she had been slow in opening the gate.
なげきつつひとりぬるよのあくるまはいかに久しき物とかはしる
| nagekitutu Fitori nuru yo no akuru ma Fa ika ni Fisasiki mono to ka wa shiru | Ever grieving, Sleeping solo all night until The gates of dawn do open: What an eternity that is— I wonder if you know! |
The Mother of Michitsuna, Major Captain of the Right
いまよりはなでておほさむをみなへしときあるあきにあふとおもへば
| ima yori wa nadete ōsamu ominaeshi toki aru aki ni au to omoeba | From this point on With gentle caresses will I raise This maidenflower, That an auspicious autumn She would meet—I thought… |
Nochikata
31
あきぎりにゆくへやまどふをみなへしはかなくのべにひとりほのめく
| akigiri ni yukue ya madou ominaeshi hakanaku nobe ni hitori honomeku | In the autumn mists Has she lost her way? A maidenflower Fleetingly in the meadows Did I faintly glimpse alone… |
Susugu
32
Left
ひとりぬる我が手枕を昼はほし夜はぬらして幾代へぬらん
| hitori nuru wa ga tamakura o hiru wa hoshi yo wa nurashite iku yo henuran | Sleeping alone, Pillowed on my arm, In daytime it’s dry, and At night it’s drenched— How many ages will pass by so? |
184[1]
Right
ほのに見し人におもひをつけそめて心からこそしたにこがるれ
| hono ni mishi hito ni omoi o tsukesomete kokoro kara koso shita ni kogarure | Faintly did I see Her, and the fires of passion First ignited; From within my heart, I secretly smoulder. |
185[2]
[1] Shinsenzaishū XII: 1251/This poem is also included in Mandaishū (XII: 2360) with the headnote, ‘A poem from the Poetry Contest in One Hundred Rounds held by the Tōin Empress’.
[2] A minor variant of this poem, with a headnote attributing it to this contest, appears in Shokukokinshū (XI: 1038): よそにみし人におもひをつけそめてこころからこそしたにこがるれ yoso ni mishi / hito ni omoi o / tsukesomete / kokoro kara koso / shita ni kogarure ‘Casually did I see / Her, and the fires of passion / First ignited; / From within my heart, / I secretly smoulder.’
Left
ひとりぬる身の衣ではうみなれやみるに涙ぞまなくよせけれ
| hitori nuru mi no koromode wa umi nare ya miru ni namida zo ma naku yosekere | Sleeping alone Is my sleeve The sea? For looking upon it, waves of tears Break there ceaselessly. |
180
Right
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. |
181[1]
[1] Shikashū VII: 202/Shinchokusenshū XII: 710
Left (Tie).
我戀や晴れゆくままの空の雲よそにのみして消ぬべき哉
| wa ga koi ya hareyuku mama no sora no kumo yoso ni nomi shite kienubeki kana |
Is my love As the clearing Clouds with within the skies? While you remain distant Must I fade away… |
Lord Ari’ie.
921
Right.
をのづから閨もる月も影消えてひとりかなしき浮雲の空
| onozukara neya moru tsuki mo kage kiete hitori kanashiki ukigumo no sora |
From my Bedchamber the flooding moon Light has vanish; To be alone is sad, as The heartless drifting, clouds. |
Lord Takanobu.
922
The Right state: the central line of the Left’s poem is stiff. The Left state: the Right’s poem has no particular faults.
In judgement: the statements in regard to both poems are at variance with my own opinion. I will refrain from expressing that here, although I do regret that, somewhat. If, indeed, a central line is core, then it is better for it to lack connection with the remainder of the poem. In the case of the Left’s poem, however, it seems well linked with what follows. As for the Right’s poem, ‘bedchamber the flooding moon’ (neya moru tsuki) is not phrasing which is acceptable to me. However, the Left’s initial section seems pleasant, and the Right’s final section is elegant. Thus, the round is a tie.