Round Four

Left

いとどしく照りこそまされもみぢばに日影うつろふ天のかご山

itodoshiku teri koso masare momijiba ni hikage utsurou ama no kagoyama

All the more Brightly do shine The scarlet leaves Reflecting the sunshine On heavenly Mount Kago!

Minor Captain Lord Kin’nori, Fourth Rank
7

Right

天の原時雨にくもるけふしもぞ紅葉の色はてりまさりける

ama no hara shigure ni kumoru kyō shimo zo momiji no iro wa terimasarikeru

The plain of heaven is Clouded with showers, but Today for certain The hues of the scarlet leaves Shine most bright.

The Daughter of His Excellency, the Head
8

Considering the Left’s ‘Reflecting the sunshine / On heavenly Mount Kago’ about scarlet leaves reflecting the sun’s light, gives me the feeling that this must be a mistaken reference to the garlands of scarlet clubmoss worn by minor officiants at the Great Thanksgiving Service. In addition, among all of the many mountains in various places whose leaves turn scarlet, it seems something of a stretch to go so far as to mention Heavenly Mount Kago, considering it is an archaic expression found in the Collection of a Myriad Leaves, among other places. The Right’s ‘Clouded with showers, but / Today for certain’ is an expression perfectly in tune with the topic, making one wonder whether the leaves’ hue is the result of single drenching which has dyed them superbly.