Composed on the conception of celebration.
君が代はあまのかご山いづる日のてらむかぎりはつきじとぞ思ふ
| kimi ga yo wa ama no kagoyama izuru hi no teramu kagiri wa tsukiji to zo omou | My Lord’s reign: until Above heavenly Mount Kago The rising sun’s Shining is bound Shall never end, I feel! |
The Former Ōmiya Chancellor
Round Four
Left (Win)
あけぬるか霞の衣たちかへり猶君が代の春をまつかな
| akenuru ka kasumi no koromo tachikaeri nao kimi ga yo no haru o matsu kana | Is it the breaking dawn that Hazy raiment Casts back? Ever for my Lord’s reign’s Springtime do I pine! |
Novice Dōchin
7
Right
天の戸のあけゆく空はうれしきを猶はれやらず立つ霞かな
| ama no to no akeyuku sora wa ureshiki o nao hareyarazu tatsu kasumi kana | That Heaven’s door Opens to brighten the sky— What joy, but Still, never clearing is The rising haze! |
Dharma Master Nyogan
8
The Left poem’s links with celebration are certainly not something praiseworthy, but I am unable to accept the Right’s ‘joy’. Thus, the Left wins.
On the conception of blossom having a pleasing hue, when various people were in attendance on His Majesty, during the reign of former emperor Nijō.
君が代にあへるはたれもうれしきを花はいろにもいでにけるかな
| kimi ga yo ni aeru wa tare mo ureshiki o hana wa iro ni mo idenikeru kana | My Lord’s reign Has everyone greeted With joy, and The blossom in such hues Has appeared! |
Minister of Justice Norikane
Composed for the Palace Poetry Match in Shōryaku 2 [1078].
君が世はつきじとぞおもふかみかぜやみもすそ川のすまむかぎりは
| kimi ga yo wa tsukiji to zo omou kamikaze ya mimosusogawa no sumamu kagiri wa | My Lord’s reign Shall never end, I feel! While beneath the divine winds The Mimosuso River[i] Is clear! |
Minister of Justice Tsunenobu
[i] The Mimosuso River (mimosugawa 御裳濯川) is the name given to the Isuzu River (isuzugawa 五十鈴川) as it flows past the Grand Shrine of Ise, which is dedicated to the ancestral deity of the imperial house, Amaterasu ōmikami 天照大神.
朝ごとに山にたちまふ朝霧は紅葉みせじとをしむなりけり
| asagoto ni yama ni tachimau asagiri wa momiji miseji to oshimu narikeri | With every morning Twining round the mountains The morning mists – that They cannot reveal the scarlet leaves Is regrettable, indeed! |
7
秋の夜は人をしづめてつれづれと掻きなす琴の音にぞたてつる
| aki no yo wa hito o shizumete tsurezure to kakinasu koto no ne ni zo tatetsuru | On an autumn night When folk are all abed, Idly Plucked a zither’s Strains sound out. |
8
An ancient-styled poem to supplement a long poem.
君が世に相坂山の岩清水木隠れたりと思ける哉
| kimi ga yo ni aFusakayama no iFasimidu kogakuretari to omoFikeru kana |
Your Majesty’s reign Is welcome so, as on the mount of Meeting Hill, Spring water from the crags Is hidden in the trees, thus I am I sunk in thought! |
Mibu no Tadamine