yo ni sumedo hito shirenu mi ya shiorisuru miyamagakure no tani no shitamizu
Dwelling within this world, yet No one knows that ‘tis as if I Were marking a trail Hidden deep within the mountains To waters flowing on the valley floor…
Hiromori 131
Right
あしからむなにはのことはかねてよりちかくてまもれすみよしのかみ
ashikaramu naniwa no koto wa kanete yori chikakute mamore sumiyoshi no kami
Reaping reeds, should ill fortune come From Naniwa, in all things Just in case Ward me closely O, God of Sumiyoshi!
Dharma Master Chikyō
132
The poem of the Right here, while it does draw on ‘reaping reeds at Naniwa’, in its phrasing sounds prosaic. As the Left’s ‘waters flowing on the valley floor’ seems to flow smoothly off the tongue, it wins.
ukiyo oba mata nani ni ka wa nagusamen hana ni sakidatsu inochi to mogana
In this cruel world Is there yet anything else To console me? Before the blossoms’ departure I would my life do the same…
Court Lady Taifu 15
Right
桜さく春の山風みねこせば雪ふりつもる谷のほそみち
sakura saku haru no yamakaze mine koseba yuki furitsumoru tani no hosomichi
When in cherry-blooming Spring, the mountain breezes Cross the peaks Snow falls and piles high Upon the narrow valley paths.
Moromitsu 16
Both poems are smooth, and on that basis, I would say that the Right is superior, but it has an archaic element, while the Left lacks anything unusual about it, so this is a tie of quality.
This match took place when, hearing that his courtiers were composing poetry, His Majesty ordered them to compose love poems to the ladies in attendance.
おもひあまりいかでもらさんおく山の岩かきこむる谷の下みづ
omoi’amari ikade morasan okuyama no iwa kakikomuru tani no shitamizu
My passion’s full, so How should it o’erflow? Deep within the mountains Hemmed in by crags are The waters of the valley floor…
Major Counsellor Kinzane 1
In reply
いかなれば音にのみきく山川の浅きにしもはこころよすらん
ika nareba oto ni nomi kiku yamakawa no asaki ni shimo wa kokoro yosuran
For some reason, I simply hear the sound Of a mountain stream; Into the shallows, indeed, has Your heart been swept, it seems!
