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- Gosen Wakashu
Au koto wa tanabatatsume ni hitoshikute tachinuu waza wa aezu zo arikeru
Our meetings are as rare as those of the Weaver Maid, but her craft of cutting and sewing is something I cannot manage at all.
Gosen Wakashu - Kan'in
Ama no kawa wataramu sora mo omohoezu taenu wakare to omou mono kara
I cannot bring myself to cross the River of Heaven, knowing that the parting waiting there will never cease.
Gosen Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Ame furite mizu masarikeri ama no kawa koyoi wa yoso ni koimu to ya mishi
The rain has fallen and the River of Heaven has risen—did I ever imagine that tonight I would have to long for you from afar?
Gosen Wakashu - Minamoto no Nakamasa
Mizu masari asaki se shirazu narinu tomo ama no to wataru fune mo nashi ya wa
Even if the waters have risen and you can no longer find the shallows, is there truly no boat to cross the straits of Heaven?
Gosen Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Tanabata mo au yo arikeri ama no kawa kono watari ni wa wataru se mo nashi
Even the Weaver Maid has her night of meeting—but on the River of Heaven, at this crossing by you, there is no ford for me to cross.
Gosen Wakashu - Fujiwara no Kanezō
Hikoboshi no mare ni au yo no tokonatsu wa uchiharaedomo tsuyukekarikeri
On this rare night when the Herdsman comes, my bed, like the summer pinks, stays wet with dew no matter how often I brush it.
Gosen Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Koi koite awamu to omou yūgure wa tanabatatsume mo kaku zo arurashi
After long longing, on this evening when I think we shall meet at last, the Weaver Maid too must feel just as I do.
Gosen Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Tagui naki mono to wa ware zo narinubeki tanabatatsume wa hitome ya wa moru
I fear it is I who will become the one beyond compare—does the Weaver Maid ever have to guard against the eyes of others?
Gosen Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Ama no kawa nagarete koi wa uku mo zo aru aware to omou se ni hayaku mimu
Like the River of Heaven, love that flows on too long may turn bitter—let me see you soon, at this moment while I hold you dear.
Gosen Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Tamakazura taenu mono kara aratama no toshi no watari wa tada hitoyo nomi
Though our bond, like a jeweled vine, never breaks, the crossing that comes once a year lasts only a single night.
Gosen Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Aki no yo no kokoro mo shiruku tanabata no aeru koyoi wa akezu mo aranan
True to the nature of the long autumn night, may this night when the Weaver Maid meets her love never reach the dawn.
Gosen Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Chigirikemu koto no ha ima wa kaeshitemu toshi no watari ni yorinuru mono o
The words of our vows I will now give back—for we have come to the once-a-year crossing, and nothing more.
Gosen Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Au koto no koyoi suginaba tanabata ni otori ya shinan koi wa masarite
If tonight passes without our meeting, will I fall behind even the Weaver Maid—though my longing surpasses hers?
Gosen Wakashu - Fujiwara no Atsutada
Tanabata no ama no to wataru koyoi sae ochikatabito no tsurenakaruramu
Even tonight, when the Weaver Maid crosses the straits of Heaven, why must the one so far from me stay cold?
Gosen Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Ama no kawa tōki watari wa nakeredomo kimi ga funade wa toshi ni koso mate
The River of Heaven has no distant crossing, yet your setting out by boat is something I can await only once a year.
Gosen Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Ama no kawa iwa kosu nami no tachiitsutsu aki no nanuka no kyō o shi zo matsu
Like the waves that climb the rocks of the River of Heaven, rising and falling, restless I have waited for this day, the seventh of autumn.
Gosen Wakashu - Unknown Poet