翁さび人なとがめそ狩衣
けふばかりとぞ鶴も鳴くなる
けふばかりとぞ鶴も鳴くなる
- Roma-ji
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Okinasabi hito na togame so karigoromo
kyō bakari to zo tazu mo naku naru - English Translation
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Reproach me not
That I seem like an old man.
In my hunting robe,
Only for this day, they say—
Even the cranes cry so.
- Meaning
- Do not reproach me for seeming like an old man. Even the cranes cry as if to say that wearing my hunting robe and serving in attendance will be only for this day.
- Commentary
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114. Seeming an Old Man
Emperor Kōkō went out for a falcon hunt. The man was already old and thought it unfitting for him to accompany the party, but because he had once served as a falconer, the emperor had him attend.
The poem was written by the man on the sleeve of his patterned hunting robe, moved with emotion at being allowed to accompany the hunt.
When Emperor Kōkō saw it, however, he became displeased. The man had written about his own age in the poem, but the emperor, who was no longer young himself, thought that the words were directed at him.
The old man had intended the poem as a declaration that he would serve bravely in the vigorous falcon hunt as though it were his final service, but to the aging emperor it gave offense.
- Source
- Ise Monogatari
- Other
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- From Suma’s shore The smoke where the fisherfolk Burn salt for their trade— The wind blows harshly upon it, Drifting where it never meant.
- Within this brief life That cannot last very long, To be forgotten— How exceedingly short Such a heart must surely be.
- More than burning coals That cling and burn upon me, What is more sorrow— Is the parting that must be By the shore of Miyakojima.
- From between the waves The eaves of a fisher’s hut On a little isle— Long it has become indeed Since I last met and saw you.