Tag Archives: mori

Naidaijin-ke uta’awase 08

Round Eight

Left (Both Judges – Tie)

神無月三室の山の紅葉ばも色に出でぬべく降るしぐれかな

kaminazuki
mimuro no yama no
momijaba mo
iro ni idenubeku
furu shigure kana
In the Godless Month
On Mount Mimuro
The autumn leaves
Show no hues at all, despite
The falling showers!

Lord Morikata
15

Right

かみな月時雨れてわたるたびごとに生田の杜をおもひこそやれ

kaminazuki
shigurete wataru
tabi goto ni
ikuta no mori o
omoi koso yare
In the Godless Month
Showers pass by and
Every time
The sacred grove at Ikuta
I do recall.

Lord Tadataka
16

Toshiyori states: ‘Godless Month’ is the name given to a specific month of the year. It’s somewhat unclear why one would use ‘Godless Month’ in conjunction with ‘Mount Mimuro’ – is there a prior poem to evidence this? It’s quite normal for lines which would normally have five syllables to be written with six, or those with seven to have eight, and this can sound fine in some cases. Here, though, it does sound obviously excessive and I do wonder about that. The second poem is plainly based on an earlier work, and is not at all clear, but as it has precedent, these two are about the same.

Mototoshi states: neither of these poems appears bad, so I say they tie.

Naidaijin-ke uta’awase 07

Round Seven

Left (Both Judges – Win)

音にさへ袂をぬらす時雨かな槙の板屋のよはの寝覚に

oto ni sae
tamoto o nurasu
shigure kana
maki no itaya ni
yowa no nezame ni
Even the sound
Does soak my sleeves with
A shower
Striking my roof of cedar boards,
Awaking at midnight…

Lord Sadanobu
13

Right

しぐれとて柞の杜にたちよれば木のはとともに降りかかるかな

shigure tote
hahaso no mori ni
tachiyoreba
ko no ha to tomo ni
furikakaru kana
When with a shower’s fall
Within the oak forest
I head to stand
Together with the leaves,
It strikes me as it falls!

Lord Munekuni
14

Toshiyori states: the first poem’s composition on one’s sleeves getting soaked on hearing a sound is extremely charming. It sounds like that’s really how it is. The latter poem, too, is smooth, and the final line appears to have had some thought put into it, so I dread having to say that the first poem wins.

Mototoshi states: ‘a shower at midnight upon a roof of cedar boards’ is a particularly superlative image, and that this would drench one’s sleeves is also extremely charming. While ‘the oak forest’ does not appear bad, it’s not that remarkable, and ‘waking at midnight’ is something that certainly occurs, I feel.

Daikōtaigōgū no suke taira no tsunemori-ason ke uta’awase 43

Round Seven

Left (Tie)

色色にそむる紅葉に立田姫心のほどのみえもするかな

iroiro ni
somuru momiji ni
tatsutahime
kokoro no hodo no
mie mo suru kana
In the multitude of shades
Dyeing the scarlet leaves,
Princess Tatsuta’s
Deep thought and care
Can be seen!

Sadanaga
85

Right

いろいろにとり染めてけり立田姫はしむらごなる衣手の杜

iroiro ni
torisometekeri
tatsutahime
hashi muragonaru
koromode no mori
In a multitude of shades
Has her dye taken;
Princess Tatsuta stains
The edges dark and light of
The sacred grove at Koromode.

Lord Suetsune
86

The Left has nothing remarkable about it, and its ending is old-fashioned, I think. The Right, too, seems to be in the eccentric style, and so it’s impossible for me to say anything else about either of them.

Daikōtaigōgū no suke taira no tsunemori-ason ke uta’awase 37

Scarlet Leaves

Round One

Left (Win)

山姫やきてふる郷へ帰るらんにしきとみゆる衣手の杜

yamahime ya
kite furusato e
kaeruran
nishiki to miyuru
koromode no mori
Does the mountain princess
Wear it, when to her ancient home
Returning?
As brocade does seem
The sacred grove at Koromode…

Lord Shige’ie

73

Right

色色の木木のにしきを立田川ひとつはたにもおりながすかな

iroiro no
kigi no nishiki o
tatsutagawa
hitotsu hata ni mo
orinagasu kana
Many hued is
The trees brocade that
The Tatsuta River’s
Loom into one
Does weave and float along!

Shun’e
74

The Left’s ‘mountain princess’ is normally used, but where is the ‘ancient estate’? As for the Right, when the trees’ brocade is scattered, only then, indeed, can it be woven and made to flow along by a river. A long time ago there was a poem composed which, indeed, began, ‘The scarlet leaves in such confusion / Drift’ and then continued, ‘Were I to ford across, this brocade / Would be split in two, I’d say…’[1] Furthermore, what are we to make of ‘Tatsuta River’s / Loom into one’? There should be reference to a location which has some connection with looms, but to simply shoehorn in ‘Tatsuta River’s / Loom into one’ smacks of pleasing oneself. There is the earlier poem ‘Without a loom / Are brocade’,[2] too. The way in which this poem is constructed is charming, but these features are difficult to ignore, so thus the Left should win, I think.


[1] The poem is Kokinshū V: 283, with the headnote, ‘Topic unknown’. It is officially anonymous, but is accompanied by an endnote stating ‘It is said by some that this poem was composed by the Nara Emperor.’

[2] Topic unknown. から衣たつたの山のもみぢばははた物もなき錦なりけり karakoromo / Tatsuta no yama no / momijiba wa / hatamono mo naki / nishiki narikeri ‘A Cathay robe— / Tatsuta Mountain’s / Scarlet leaves, / Without a loom / Are brocade.’ Anonymous (GSS VII: 386)

SKKS VI: 607

Topic unknown.

冬がれのもりのくちばの霜のうへにおちたる月の影のさむけさ

fuyugare no
mori no kuchiba no
shimo no ue ni
ochitaru tsuki no
kage no samukesa
Withered by winter,
The forests’ rotting leaves are
Frost covered, upon them
The fallen moon
Light is cold, indeed.[i]

Lord Kiyosuke

A kuzushiji version of the poem's text.
Created with Soan.

[i] This poem is an allusive variation on a variant of KKS IV: 184, which appears in some Kokinshū manuscripts: Topic unknown. このまよりおちたる月の影見れば心づくしの秋はきにけり ko no ma yori / ochitaru tsuki no / kage mireba / kokorozukushi no / aki wa kinikeri ‘Between the trees / Dropped moon / Light, seeing it I know / Heart draining / Autumn, has come at last.’ Anonymous.

Yōzei-in uta’awase (Engi jūsan-nen kugatsu kokonoka) 04

Left

神南備のもりによをへて鳴く鹿はすぎゆく秋ををしみとめなん

kamunabi no
mori ni yo o hete
naku shika wa
sugiyuku aki o
oshimi tomenan
In sacred
Forests spending his nights
The belling stag
The passing autumn,
Regretfully, does seem to stay!

7

Right (Win)

こゑたててなくしかばかりをしめどもすぎゆく秋はとまらざらまし

koe tatete
naku shika bakari
oshimedomo
sugiyuku aki wa
tomarazaramashi
Belling out
The crying stag is, simply,
Filled with regret, yet
Autumn, passing by,
I would not have linger on!

8