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- Kokin Wakashu
Yuki furite hito mo kayowanu michi nare ya
atohaka mo naku omoi kiyuramu
Because snow has fallen and no one passes along this road, even my thoughts seem to fade away.
Kokin Wakashu - Oshikochi no Mitsune
Fuyu nagara sora yori hana no chirikuru wa
kumo no anata wa haru ni ya aruramu
Though it is winter, flowers seem to fall from the sky—perhaps beyond the clouds it has already become spring.
Kokin Wakashu - Fukayabu
Fuyugomori omoikakenu o ko no ma yori
hana to miru made yuki zo furikeru
In the time of winter seclusion, I never expected it—yet through the trees before me, snow falls as though it were blossoms.
Kokin Wakashu - Ki no Tsurayuki
Asaborake ariake no tsuki to miru made ni
Yoshino no sato ni fureru shirayuki
At daybreak, it seems like the lingering moon of dawn—the white snow falling in Yoshino village shines so brightly.
Kokin Wakashu - Sakanoue no Koreyuki
Kenu ga ue ni mata mo furishike harugasumi
tachinaba miyuki mare ni koso mime
Before it melts away, fall again and pile ever deeper—for once the spring haze rises, snow will be rarely seen.
Kokin Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Ume no hana sore to mo miezu hisakata no
amagiru yuki no nabete furereba
Whether they are plum blossoms or not cannot be told, for snow, clouding the sky, falls everywhere in a single white.
Kokin Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Hana no iro wa yuki ni majirite miezu tomo
ka o dani nioe hito no shirubeku
Though the color of the blossoms is lost, mingled with the snow, at least let their fragrance drift forth, so that people may know them.
Kokin Wakashu - Ono no Takamura
Ume no ka no furiokeru yuki ni magai seba
tare ka kotogoto wakite oramashi
If the scent of plum were to mingle with the snow lying upon the ground, who could then distinguish and pluck them apart?
Kokin Wakashu - Ki no Tsurayuki
Yuki fureba ki goto ni hana zo sakinikeru
izure o ume to wakite oramashi
When the snow falls, every tree seems to bloom—among them, which is truly plum, how could I distinguish and pluck?
Kokin Wakashu - Ki no Tomonori
Waga matanu toshi wa kinuredo fuyugusa no
karenishi hito wa otozure mo sezu
Though the year I do not await has come again, the one who has gone away, like winter-withered grass, sends not even a word.
Kokin Wakashu - Oshikochi no Mitsune
Aratama no toshi no owari ni naru goto ni
yuki mo waga mi mo furimasaritsutsu
Each time the year comes to its end, the snow falls ever more—and I myself, too, grow older.
Kokin Wakashu - Ariwara no Motokata
Yuki furite toshi no kurenuru toki ni koso
tsui ni momijinu matsu mo miekere
When snow falls and the year comes to its end, it is then that one notices the pine that never changes its color.
Kokin Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Kinō to ii kyō to kurashite Asukagawa
nagarete hayaki tsukihi narikeri
Calling it yesterday, and passing today as today—like the Asuka River, how swiftly the days and months flow on.
Kokin Wakashu - Harumichi no Toshi
Yuku toshi no oshiku mo aru kana masukagami
miru kage sae ni kurenu to omoeba
How regretful it is, the passing year—for even the image I see in the mirror seems to fade away.
Kokin Wakashu - Ki no Tsurayuki
Waga kimi wa chiyo ni yachiyo ni sazareishi
iwao to narite koke no musu made
May you live for a thousand, for eight thousand years—until small pebbles grow into great rocks and moss comes to cover them.
Kokin Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Watatsuumi no hama no masago o kazoetsutsu
kimi ga chitose no arikazu ni semu
Counting the grains of sand along the seashore, let them be the measure of your long enduring years.
Kokin Wakashu - Unknown Poet