Lakes 水海
恋ひわぶる人にあふみの海といへどみるめはおひぬ物にぞありける
| koiwaburu hito ni ōmi no umi to iedo mirume wa oinu mono ni zo arikeru | Suffering with love’s pains Folk meet at Ōmi Sea, they say, though No prying eyes arise from midst the seaweed there – ‘Tis true to say! |
Daishin
Lakes 水海
にほの海はみるめもおひぬ浦にてやむベかづきする海人なかりけり
| nio no umi wa mirume mo oinu ura nite ya mube kazuki suru ama nakarikeri | At the Sea of Grebes No prying eyes arise from midst the seaweed, On the beach: is that why Truly slipping beneath the waters There are no fishermen at all? |
Higo
Lakes 水海
近江の海みちくるしほもなきものをたれからさきといひ初めけん
| ōmi no umi michikuru shio mo naki mono o tare karasaki to iihajimeken | The sea at Ōmi Swelling tides Does lack, so Who was that to Karasaki – a pointless point – Did first give the name, I wonder? |
Tadafusa
Hotsprings 出
わたつ海ははるけきものをいかにしてありまの山にしほゆいづらん
| wata tsu umi wa harukeki mono o ika ni shite arima no yama ni shioyu izuran | The broad sea sweep Lies far away, so Why is it that On Arima Mountain A salty hotspring should bubble forth? |
Kanemasa
Left (Win)
さざ浪や志賀津の海士になりにけりみるめはなくて袖のしほるる
| sazanami ya shigatsu no ama ni narinikeri mirume wa nakute sode no shioruru | Rocked by wavelets A fisherman at Shiga Bay Have I become! Glimpsing no seaweed, How my sleeves are soaked… |
Lord Suetsune
1171
Right
伊勢の海の底までかづく海人なれやみるめに人を思ふ心は
| ise no umi no soko made kazuku ama nare ya mirume ni hito o omou kokoro wa | At Ise, to the sea Bed dive Fisher-girls: Am I one, too? A seaweed-tangled glimpse of you Lodging in my heart… |
Jakuren
1172
The Right state: the Left’s poem has no faults to mention. The Left state: neither beginning nor end is sufficiently forcefully expressed.
In judgement: the conception and configuration of the Left’s ‘fisherman at Shiga Bay’ (shigatsu no ama) certainly seem splendid. That is really all there is to say about this poem. To make a deliberate point of seeking out elements which sound difficult is a pointless activity for the Way of Poetry and an individual poet. As for the Right’s poem, diving ‘to the sea bed’ (soko made) is just something that fisher-girls do. The Left must win.
A poem by Her Majesty, the Dowager Empress.
鯨魚取り 近江の海を 沖放けて 漕ぎ来る船 辺付きて 漕ぎ来る船 沖つ櫂 いたくな撥ねそ 辺つ櫂 いたくな撥ねそ 若草の 夫の 思ふ鳥立つ
| isana tori opomi no umi wo oki sakete kogikitaru pune pe tu kite kogikuru pune oki tu kai itaku na pane so pe tu kai itaku na pane so wakakusa no tuma no omopu tori tatu |
In the whale-hunting Sea of Ōmi From far off in the offing Boats come rowing; Nearing the shore, Boats come rowing; Off in the offing, oars Beat not so hard! By the shore, oars Beat not so hard! A fresh blade of grass – My husband’s Beloved birds you’ll start to flight! |
Yamato Hime no Ōkimi
倭皇后
An ancient poem composed about a location.
武庫の海の庭よくあらし漁りする海人の釣舟波の上ゆ見ゆ
| muko no umi no nipayokuarasi izarisuru ama no turibune nami no upe yu miyu |
The sea at Muko Seems a rich estate: Trawling, The sea-folk’s fisher boats Do I see upon the waves. |
Kakinomoto no Hitomaro
柿本人麻呂
Left (Win).
與謝の海の沖つ潮風浦に吹けまつなりけりと人に聞かせん
| yosa no umi no oki tsu shio kaze ura ni fuke matsunarikeri to hito ni kikasen |
By the sea at Yosa, Tidewinds on the offing, Blow across the bay! That I am waiting without end, Tell him! |
A Servant Girl
983
Right.
浪かくるさしでの磯の岩根松ねにあらはれてかはくまもなし
| nami kakuru sashide no iso no iwane matsu ne ni arawarete kawaku ma mo nashi |
Waves beat Upon the shore at Sashide, where The pine trees on the crags Roots are bared and Never dry for but a moment. |
The Supernumerary Master of the Empress’ Household Office
984
The Right state: the Left’s poem lacks any faults. The Left state: the Right’s poem is pedestrian.
In judgement: the configuration of the Left’s ‘Blow across the bay!’ (ura ni fuke) and its links with the preceding and subsequent lines, sounds charming. The Right’s poem is stylistically elegant, but the poem more closely resembles a poem on the topic of ‘Love and Pine Trees’. Thus, the Left wins.
Left (Tie).
雲井まで續きて見ゆわたつ海の行衛知られぬ物思かな
| kumoi made tsuzukite miyu wata tsu umi no yukue shirarenu mono’omoi kana |
Beyond the clouds My gaze goes on and on; The endless sea: What lies beyond is unknown As my gloomy thoughts… |
Lord Suetsune.
979
Right.
伊勢の海の潮瀬にさはぐさざれ石の砕けて物を思ふ比かな
| ise no umi no shiose ni sawagu sazare’ishi no kudakete mono o omou koro kana |
The sea at Ise: Raging rapids with the tides, Where pebbles Shatter, gloom Filling my thoughts these days… |
Ietaka.
980
The Right state: the Left’s poem is clichéd. The Left state: the Right’s poem is that of Shigeyuki.
In judgement: the Left’s poem is clichéd, but in addition to this uses ‘goes on and on’ (tsuzukite), which is not something one should say. The Right’s poem is, indeed, overly close to Shigeyuki’s, so both Left and Right poem are deficient and lacking in any element allowing a win.
Left.
鯨取るさかしき海の底までも君だに住まば浪路しのがん
| kujira toru sakashiki umi no soko made mo kimi dani sumaba namij shinoga |
The whale-hunting Savage sea’s Depths: even there, Should it be your dwelling, Would I endure the waves… |
Kenshō.
973
Right (Win).
石見潟千尋の底もたとふれば淺き瀬になる身の恨かな
| iwamigata chihiro no soko mo tatoureba asaki se ni naru mi o urami kana |
Iwamigata: Your thousand fathom depths I take as A shallow shoal For my despite. |
Jakuren.
974
The Right state: the Left’s poem leaves a fearsome impression, does it not? The Left state: we find no fault with the Right’s poem.
In judgement: The Left’s ‘whale hunting’ (kujira toran) I remember occurring in the Man’yōshū, but among many of that collection’s oddly-styled poems. However, it does sound extremely fearsome. When Emperor Qin Shihuang sought Mount Penglai, although he said to ‘shoot’ (iyo) great fish, I have not heard that he went so far as to ‘hunt’ (tore) them. Generally speaking, poems should evoke delicacy and charm, and what purpose is served, for the way of poetry, or for the individual, by frightening people deliberately? The Right’s Iwamigata and ‘For my despite’ (mi no urami kana) recalls an official complaining over being passed over for promotion. However, I cannot accept the Left’s poem. Thus, the Right wins.