Round Three
Left
氷とくはるたちくらしみよしののよしののたきのこゑまさるなり
| kōri toku haru tachikurashi miyoshino no yoshino no taki no koe masarunari | Ice melting Spring has come on scene, it seems; In fair Yoshino, Yoshino Falls’ Roar is fine, indeed! |
5
Right (Win)
はなの色はかすみにこめてみえずともかをだにぬすめ春の山風
| hana no iro wa kasumi ni komete miezu tomo ka o dani nusume haru no yamakaze | The blossoms’ hues Have blended with the haze, so I see them not, yet Their very scent is plundered by Spring’s breezes from the mountains. |
6
Spring
Left
春のたつ霞の衣うらもなく年を経てこそ花の散りけれ
| haru no tatsu kasumi no koromo ura mo naku toshi o hete koso hana no chirikere | Spring does sew A robe of haze Without an underlay, The year passes by in A scattering of blossom |
1
春の野の雪間をわけていつしかと君がためとぞ若菜摘みつる
| haru no no no yuki ma o wakete itsushika to kimi ga tame to zo wakana tsumitsuru | Across the springtime meadows Do I forge between the snows, Eagerly, so eagerly, For you, my Lord, Have I gathered fresh herbs! |
2
春霞かすみこめたる山里はこほりとくともかげはみえじを
| harugasumi kasumi kometaru yamazato wa kōri toku tomo kage wa mieji o | The haze of spring Blurs all around A mountain retreat, Even were the ice to melt I could see no sign of it! |
3
Right
梅枝にきゐる鶯年毎に花の匂ひをあかぬ声する
| ume ga e ni ki’iru uguisu toshigoto ni hana no nioi o akanu koesuru | Upon the plum tree’s branches Has come to rest the warbler; Every single year, that Of the blossoms’ scent He cannot get his fill he sings. |
4
桜色に花さく雨はふりぬとも千しほぞそめてうつろふなそで
| sakurairo ni hana saku ame wa furinu tomo chishio zo somete utsurou na sode | Cherry-coloured Blossoms flower, as the rain Falls on, yet Dyed a thousand times Fade not, o, my sleeves! |
5
青柳のいとはるばると緑なる行末までも思ひこそやれ
| aoyagi no ito harubaru to midori naru yukusue made mo omoi koso yare | The willow’s Branches dangle lengthily So green Right to the very end Will I fondly think of you. |
6
Singing Girls 妓女
あけぼのにかすみこめたる花よりもあかぬはいもがにほひなりけり
| akebono ni kasumi kometaru hana yori mo akanu wa imo ga nioi narikeri | At the dawning Mingled with the hazes are The blossoms, yet far more Unsated am I by my darling’s Scent. |
Daishin
Ancient Estates 故郷
よもぎ分けたづねぞきぬる古郷は花たちばなのかをしるべにて
| yomogi wake tazune zo kinuru furusato wa hanatachibana no ka o shirube nite | Forging through the mugwort To visit have I come To this ancient estate, with Orange blossom’s Scent as my guide… |
Daishin
A poem from a poetry competition held by Her Majesty, the Empress, during the Kanpyō period.
霞立春の山辺はとをけれど吹くる風は花の香ぞする
| kasumi tatu Faru no yamabe Fa towokeredo Fukikuru kaze Fa Fana no ka zo suru | Hazes rise Round the mountains’ sides, So far away, and yet The gusting breeze comes Bearing the scent of blossom. |
Ariwara no Motokata
Grieving that he had grown old, while seated beneath the cherry blossoms.
色も香もおなじ昔にさくらめど年ふる人ぞあらたまりける
| iro mo ka mo onadi mukasi ni sakuramedo tosi Furu Fito zo aratamarikeru | In both hue and scent Just as in days long gone Do they seem to bloom, yet A man with years laid upon him Has changed beyond all measure. |
Ki no Tomonori
Composed on plum blossoms on a spring night.
春の夜の闇はあやなし梅花色こそ見えね香やはかくるる
| Faru no yo no yami Fa ayanasi ume no Fana iro koso miene ka ya Fa kakururu | On nights in springtime How strange the darkness is! The plum blossoms’ Hues do go unseen, but Can their scent still be concealed? |
Mitsune
On a moonlit night, when someone said they were going to pick plum blossoms, he composed this to say, ‘Pluck them.’
月夜にはそれとも見えず梅花香をたづねてぞしるべかりける
| tukiyo ni Fa sore to mo miezu ume no Fana ka wo tadunete zo sirubekarikeru | On a moonlit night Indistinguishable is The plum blossom – By scent, then seek it, And you shall know it well. |
Mitsune
Breaking off a branch of plum blossom, he sent it to a certain person.
君ならで誰にかみせん梅花色をも香をも知る人ぞ知る
| kimi narade tare ni ka misen mume no Fana iro wo mo ka wo mo siru Fito zo siru | If not to you Then to whom should I present Plum blossoms? For their shades and their scent both, It is you who know them best of all… |
Tomonori
秋果てて冬はとなりになりぬとて飽かねば菊を匂ひくはふる
| aki Fatete Fuyu Fa tonari ni narinu tote akaneba kiku wo nioFi kuFaFuru |
Autumn is done, and Winter is close At hand, they say; When I am left wanting more, the chrysanthemums’ Scent grows thicker. |
18