Though autumn nights—
a thousand of them—
be made into one,
still would words remain,
and the cock perhaps would crow.
- Meaning
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Even if a thousand autumn nights were made into one, still our words would remain unfinished, and the cock would crow at dawn.
- Commentary
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Episode Twenty-Two: "Though it is bitter"
A man and a woman, not deeply bound to one another, parted over some slight occasion.
Though they separated from their uncertain bond, they were fortunate to confirm each other’s feelings and to restore their relationship, and this process is portrayed in candid poems.
This poem is the woman’s reply to the man’s poem, "If autumn nights—a thousand of them—be counted as one, and we should lie through eight thousand nights, would there ever come a time of weariness?"
To his question of whether there would come a time when he would tire of her, she answers that no matter how many long nights they might spend together, it would never be enough, and dawn would come while their words were still unfinished.
- Source
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Ise Monogatari
- Other
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