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- Shin Kokin Wakashu
Suma no ama no namikakegoromo yoso ni nomi kiku wa waga mi ni narinikeru kana
The wave-drenched robes of the fisherfolk of Suma, which I had only heard of as something far removed from me, have now become my own.
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Fujiwara no Michinobu
Numa goto ni sode zo nurenuru ayamegusa kokoro ni nitaru ne o motomu tote
In marsh after marsh my sleeves have grown wet, as I searched for an iris whose root would match the depth of my heart.
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Sakon, Lady Chamberlain to Retired Emperor Sanjō
Hototogisu itsu ka to machishi ayamegusa kyō wa ika naru ne ni ka nakubeki
The day of irises that the cuckoo waited for so long has come at last. Today, with what sort of cry, what root of the iris, should I weep?
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Fujiwara no Kintō
Samidare wa soraoboresuru hototogisu toki ni naku ne wa hito mo togamezu
In the season of early summer rains, even a cuckoo that plays innocent may sing, and no one will find fault with a song sung in its proper season.
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Uma no Naishi
Hototogisu koe o kikedo hana no e ni mada fuminarenu mono o koso omoe
I have heard the cuckoo's voice, yet like a bird not yet used to perching on the flowering bough, I am not yet used to exchanging letters with you, and so I brood in longing.
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Fujiwara no Michinaga
Hototogisu shinoburu mono o kashiwagi no morite mo koe no kikoekeru kana
Though the cuckoo keeps its voice hushed, it has leaked out from the oak grove, and I have heard its song.
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Uma no Naishi
Kokoro nomi sora ni naritsutsu hototogisu hitodanome naru ne koso nakarure
My heart alone has drifted off into the sky as I waited, O cuckoo; your cry only raised my hopes in vain, and it is I who end up weeping aloud.
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Uma no Naishi
Mikumano no ura yori ochi ni kogu fune no ware o ba yoso ni hedatetsuru kana
Like a boat rowing away from the bay of Kumano out to the far sea, you have set me apart and left me at a distance.
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Ise
Naniwagata mijikaki ashi no fushi no ma mo awade kono yo o sugushite yo to ya
Not even for a moment as brief as the space between the joints of the short reeds of Naniwa Bay may we meet? Is that what you are telling me: to pass my whole life without you?
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Ise
Mikari suru kariba no ono no narashiba no nare wa masarade koi zo masareru
Like the oak scrub on the moors of the royal hunting grounds, our closeness never grows, and only my longing for you grows the more.
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Kakinomoto no Hitomaro
Utohama no utoku nomi ya wa yo o ba hen nami no yoruyoru aimiteshigana
Like the name of Utohama beach, must I spend my life always estranged from you? As the waves roll in, night after night, I long to meet you.
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Azumaji no michi no hate naru Hitachiobi no kagoto bakari mo awan to zo omou
Like the clasp of the Hitachi sash from the far end of the eastern road, I long to meet you, if only for the briefest pretext.
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Nigorie no suman koto koso katakarame ika de honoka ni kage o misemashi
As a muddy inlet can hardly grow clear, so it may be hard for us ever to live together; yet somehow I would let you glimpse me, if only faintly.
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Shigure furu fuyu no konoha no kawakazu zo monoomou hito no sode wa arikeru
Like the leaves of winter on which the cold showers keep falling, the sleeves of one lost in longing never dry.
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Ari to nomi oto ni kikitsutsu Otowagawa wataraba sode ni kage mo mienan
I have only heard by rumor that you are there; if I were to cross the Otowa River, surely I would see your reflection upon my wet sleeve.
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Unknown Poet
Mizukuki no oka no konoha o fukikaeshi tare ka wa kimi o koin to omoishi
As the wind turns over the leaves on the hill of Mizukuki, my heart has turned; who would ever have thought that I would come to love you?
Shin Kokin Wakashu - Unknown Poet