限りなき思ひに焼けぬ皮衣
袂かはきて今日こそは着め
袂かはきて今日こそは着め
- Roma-ji
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Kagiri naki omoi ni yakenu kawagoromo
tamoto kawakite kyō koso wa kime - English Translation
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With boundless longing, the fur robe burned not;
The sleeves, once wet, are now dried—
Today at last I will wear it.
- Meaning
- Though scorched by boundless longing, the fur robe did not burn; even the sleeves once soaked with tears have dried. Today at last, I will wear this robe.
- Commentary
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One of the five suitors who sought Princess Kaguya, the Right Minister Abe no Mimuraji, was set the impossible task of bringing back “the Fire-Rat’s Fur Robe,” which would never burn even when cast into flames.
The Right Minister Abe no Mimuraji was a man of great wealth and prosperity. He wrote to a man called Ōkei, a noble who sailed on Tang ships from China, asking him to procure it. After much hardship, Ōkei delivered “the Fire-Rat’s Fur Robe” in a sumptuous box.
Certain at last of his long-cherished wish to marry Princess Kaguya, the Right Minister Abe no Mimuraji composed this poem.
The word omoi (“longing”) plays on hi (“fire”), and the paired verbs “to burn” and “to dry” form a set of associated words, linking the imagery of burning passion with the drying of tears.
- Source
- Taketori Monogatari
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