春ふかみ花ちりかかる山の井はふるきし水にかはづなくなり
haru fukami hana chirikakaru hana no i wa haru fukishi mizu ni kawazu nakunari | Deep in springtime Petals scatter over The well among the blossom, where From spring’s ancient waters The frogs are crying. |

Plum blossom disliking the rain.
我がやどの梅のはなさけり春雨はいたくなふりそちらまくもをし
wa ga yado no ume no hana sakeri harusame wa itaku na furi so chiramaku mo oshi | At my house The plum blossom has bloomed, so Spring showers, Don’t fall so hard, for Scattered petals I would regret! |
Left (Tie)
何とかく結ぼほるらん君はよもあはれとだにも岩代の松
nani to kaku musubohoruran kimi wa yomo aware to dani mo iwashiro no matsu |
For what should we be so Entwined? He simply Thinks of me with pity, And says nothing, O pines of Iwashiro! |
Lord Kanemune
1037
Right
人戀ふる宿の櫻に風吹けば花も涙になりにけるかな
hito kouru yado no sakura ni kaze fukeba hana mo namida ni narinikeru kana |
Loving him, My dwelling’s cherry trees Are blown by the wind, Petals, my tears Have become… |
Nobusada
1038
The Gentlemen of the Right state: the Left’s poem has no faults to mention. The Gentlemen of the Left state: we wonder about the appropriateness of ‘petals, my tears’ (hana mo namida ni).
In judgement: the Left’s poem, with ‘he simply’ (kimi wa yomo) followed by ‘Thinks of me with pity, O pines of Iwashiro!’ (aware to dani mo iwashiro no matsu) is certainly elegant. The Right’s poem does have ‘petals, my tears’ (hana mo namida ni). It commences, ‘loving him, my dwelling’s cherry trees’ (hito kouru yado no sakura) and, when they are blown by the wind, the lady’s eyes darken with tears, and she is unable to distinguish the mass of blossom. It unclear which of the two should be winner, or loser. Thus, I shall make this a tie.