Composed by his mother, on the night the Sugawara Minister came of age.
ひさかたの月のかつらもをるばかりいへの風をもふかせてしかな
hisakata no tsuki no katsura mo oru bakari ie no kaze o mo fukaseteshi kana | The eternal Moon’s silver trees Will simply break With the wind this house Has caused to blow! |
Autumn
Left
秋の夜の有明にみれど久堅の月のかつらはうつろはぬかな
aki no yo no ariake ni miredo hisakata no tsuki no katsura wa utsurouwanu kana | An autumn night’s Dawn I see, yet The eternal Moon’s silver trees Show no sign of fading! |
13
秋萩の花咲く比の白露は下ばのためとわきて置くべし
aki hagi no hana saku koro no shiratsuyu wa shitaba no tame to wakite okubeshi | In autumn, the bush clover Flowers bloom—just then Silver dewdrops For the under-leaves Do fall, marking every one. |
14
秋風はいなばもそよとふきつめりかりみる程と成りやしぬらん
akikaze wa inaba mo soyo to fukitsumeri kari miru hodo to nari ya shinuran | The autumn breeze Seems to rustle the rice stalks As it blows; Seeing if ‘tis time to reap them— Is that what it is, I wonder? |
15
Right
銀河とわたる舟は花薄ほにいづるほどぞかげもみゆべき
ama no kawa towataru fune wa hanasusuki ho ni izuru hodo zo kage mo miyubeki | Across the River of Heaven A boat goes ferrying: When the silver grass Ears burst into bloom, Can its shape be seen. |
16
女郎花さがの花をば色ながら秋をさかりといはれずもがな
ominaeshi saga no hana oba iro nagara aki o sakari to iwarezu mogana | Maidenflowers: Blossoms from Saga Reveal their hues, and In autumn are most fine—that Goes without saying! |
17
小男鹿の朝たつ霧にうりふ山嶺の梢は色こかりけり
saoshika no asa tatsu kiri ni urifuyama mine no kozue wa iro kokarikeri | Stags Within the rising morning mist on Urifu Moutain, where The treetops on the peak Have taken darker hues. |
18
いりひさす山とぞ見ゆるもみぢばのあきのことごとてらすなりけり
irihi sasu yama to zo miyuru momijiba no aki no kotogoto terasu narikeri | The setting sun shines On the mountains, and it seems The scarlet leaves All of autumn Do illuminate. |
57
ひさかたのつきのかつらもあきはなほもみぢすればやてりまさるらん[1]
hisakata no tsuki no katsura mo aki wa nao momiji sureba ya terimasaruran | On the eternal Moon the silver trees too In Autumn Change their hues; Is that why you shine so bright? |
58
[1] This poem was included in Kokinshū (IV: 194), where it is attributed to Mibu no Tadamine.
[One of] two poems sent by Prince Yuhara to a maiden.
目には見て手には取らえぬ月の内の楓のごとき妹をいかにせむ
me ni pa mite te ni pa toraenu tuki no uti no katura no gotoki imo wo ika ni semu | You fill my gaze, yet My hand can never reach you As the moon’s Silver trees O, darling, what am I to do? |
Katsura 桂
久かたの月のかつらはとことはに色もかはらぬ物とこそきけ
hisakata no tsuki no katsura wa tokotowa ni iro mo kawaranu mono to koso kike | The eternal Moon’s silver trees: Everlastingly Unchanged are their hues, Or so I’ve heard! |
Daishin
Katsura 桂
神山のかつらを折るは月のうちに我がおもふことならざらめやは
kamiyama no katsura o oru wa tsuki no uchi ni wa ga omou koto narazarame ya wa | On a mountain where deities dwell, I break a katsura branch – though Upon the moon The object of my thoughts Does not seem to be? |
Higo
Katsura 桂
なが月の月の光のさゆるかなかつらの枝にしもやおくらん
nagatsuki no tsuki no hikari no sayuru kana katsura no eda ni shimo ya okuran | In the longest month The moonlight is Chill, indeed! Upon the branches of the silver trees I wonder, does frost fall? |
Kanemasa
Katsura 桂
はれまなき心のやみにまよひつつえこそたをらね月のかつらを
harema naki kokoro no yami ni mayoitsutsu e koso taorane tsuki no katsura o | No parting of the clouds Of darkness in my heart, so I am ever lost – No branch will I break from A silver tree upon the moon… |
Tadafusa
Katsura 桂
人しれずけふをしまつと風はやみかつらの枝を折りもよわらず
hito shirezu kyō o shimatsu to kaze hayami katsura no eda o ori mo yowarazu | Unknown to all For today have I made ready – Amid the rushing wind The katsura branches will I break without hesitation! |
Toshiyori
Katsura 桂
我が身には吹くべき風も吹きこねばかつらの枝もをらずぞ有りける
wa ga mi ni wa fukubeki kaze mo fukikoneba katsura no eda mo orazu zo arikeru | Upon my flesh I expect the touch of wind, but Not a gust does come, so The katsura branches, too, Have remained unbroken. |
Nakazane
'Simply moving and elegant'