Translation How deep was the dye Of my longing: A flower appeared, I went to pluck, And found just lingering snow. Commentary There was a note that said the former Chancellor, Fujiwara no Yoshifusa, may have written the poem. The poem describes the narrator having …
Read MoreMonk Sosei’s “Snow on the branches where the cuckoo sings” (Kokinshu #6)
Translation Poem of the snow that falls on trees As spring begins The white flowers we see May just be the snow On the bough Where the cuckoo sings Commentary From a distance, one cannot tell the difference between the white flowers on a mountain …
Read MoreAuthor unknown, “The cuckoo sings and cries” (Kokinshu #5)
Translation Spring begins though Snow is falling still: The cuckoo Sings a cry On the plum tree bough. Commentary This poem is set in the beginning of spring, though winter lingers through falling snow. The key wordplay here is “naku,” which can mean either “to …
Read MoreFujiwara Takaiko’s “The bush warbler’s frozen tears” (Kokinshu #4)
Translation Nijou consort’s “beginning of spring” poem Spring begins In the midst of snow: Perhaps now, at last, The bush warbler’s Frozen tears will melt. Commentary Fujiwara Takaiko was the Consort of Emperor Seiwa. After an affair with the priest Zenyuu she was demoted, but …
Read MoreUnknown Author, “The snow is falling on beautiful Yoshino” (Kokinshu #3)
Translation Topic unknown Mount Yoshino— The snow is falling On beautiful Yoshino, Where the springtime Haze is far away. Commentary The poem works well as a literal interpretation of a beautiful snowfall on Mount Yoshino in spring while the humid mists are rising elsewhere. Because …
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Read MoreKi no Tsurayuki, “Spring wind begins today” (Kokinshu #2)
Translation Composed on the First Day of Spring Spring wind Begins today: The frozen water melts, I cup my hands And wet my sleeves. Commentary Derived from a passage in the Book of Rites, one of the five Confucian classics, “In spring’s first month, an …
Read MoreAriwara no Motokata’s “Spring has begun” (Kokinshu #1)
Composed on the first day of spring, which came within the old year. Translation By Ariwara no Motokata Spring has begun Within the year— It’s all one year, but Shall we call it “last year” Or “this year?” Japanese Pronunciation 在原元方 Ariwara no Motokata としのうちに Toshi …
Read MoreBasho’s “Inside the Mountain Temple”
Translation Inside the Mountain Temple A full bloom But outside, they do not know Japanese うち山や外様しらずの花盛り Pronunciation Uchiyama ya Tozama shira-zu no Hana-zakari Literal Notes [Inside Mountain = Uchiyama (temple in Nara)] Outsider/visitor-from-outside/non-Tokugawa-feudal-lord know not ’s Blossoms-in-full-bloom/blossom-viewing-party/a-woman’s-peak-beauty-age The Uchiyama Temple was an esoteric Buddhist sect …
Read MoreMeng Haoran’s “Staying Overnight by Tree Hut River” (300 Tang Poems #130)
Translation Meng Haoran (689-740) 孟浩然 Staying Overnight by Tree Hut River: A Poem for an Old Friend in Broad Hill City 宿桐廬江 寄廣陵舊遊 The mountain is dark; in grief, I listen to the apes 山暝 聽猿愁 As the dark blue river rushes through the night. …
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