Left
空蝉の侘びしきものを夏草の露にかかれる身にこそ有りけれ
| utsusemi no wabishiki mono o natsukusa no tsuyu ni kakareru mi ni koso arikere | A cicada’s empty shell Is so sorrowful; To a stalk of summer grass, All draped with dewdrops, It’s form does cling. |
43
Right
なつの夜の月はほどなく明けながらあしたの間をぞかこちよせける
| natsu no yo no tsuki wa hodonaku akenagara ashita no ma o zo kakochiyosekeru | On a summer night, The moon lacks time To brighten, so It will do it on the morrow— That is its excuse! |
44
さらぬだになみだのかかる我袖をかくれぬらしぞ道芝の露
| saranu dani namida no kakaru wa ga sode o kakurenurashi zo michishiba no tsuyu | ‘Tis not that Tears hanging on My sleeves have Secretly drenched them—‘tis Dewdrops from the roadside grasses. |
The Minister of Justice
43
I don’t think this is particularly moving; the conjecture is brief, and the greater than normal pivot is lacking in realism.
玉さかに相坂山の真葛原まだうらわかし恨みはてじな
| tamasaka ni aisakayama no makuzuwara mada urawakashi uramihateji na | By chance, On Aisaka Mountain The fields of arrowroot are Still so young— O, do not end up despising them! |
Lady Tsu, in service to the Former Kamo Virgin
33
夏山の下はふくずのうらわかみまだきに露の心おくらん
| natsuyama no shita hau kuzu no urawakami madaki ni tsuyu no kokoro okuran | On the summer mountains The arrowroot, creeping beneath, Seems so young that Swiftly will the dewdrops Fall upon its heart. |
The Minister of Justice
34
人しれぬ袖ぞ露けき逢ふことはかれのみまさる山のした草
| hito shirenu sode zo tsuyukeki au koto wa kare nomi masaru yama no shitagusa | Unknown to all My sleeves are drenched with dew; For our meetings Excel only in being withered As the scrub grass on the mountainside. |
[Nakako,] The Suō Handmaid
29
In reply.
おく山の下かげ草はかれやする軒ばにのみはおのれなりつつ
| oku yama no shitakagegusa wa kare ya suru nokiba ni nomi wa onore naritsutsu | Deep within the mountains, have The grasses growing in the trees’ dark shade Really withered away? Simply beneath your eaves, Is where I ever am… |
The Consultant Middle Captain
30
しらたまのあきのこのはにやどれると見つるは露のはかるなりけり[1]
| shiratama no aki no ko no ha ni yadoreru to mitsuru wa tsuyu no hakaru narikeri | Pearls Upon the leaves of the autumn trees Have found lodging: At the sight, the dewdrops I’ll measure! |
51
ゆきかへりここもかしこもかりなれやあきくるごとにねをばなくらん
| yukikaeri koko mo kashiko mo kari nare ya aki kuru koto ni ne oba nakuran | Going back and forth, Hither and thither Are the geese? That autumn’s coming Is in their cries, it seems. |
52
[1] This poem was included in Gosenshū (VI: 311).
かりのみとうはのそらなるなみだこそあきのたもとのつゆとおくらめ
| kari nomi to uwa no sora naru namida koso aki no tamoto no tsuyu to okurame | The geese simply from The skies above Do drop their tears; It is in autumn that my sleeves Seem to gather dewdrops. |
49
山がはのたきつせしばしよどまなむあきのもみぢのいろとめて見む
| yamagawa no takitsuse shibashi yodomanamu aki no momiji no iro tomete mimu | The mountain river’s Rapids seem briefly Stilled; Autumn’s scarlet leaves’ Hues have halted it, I see. |
50