Come, today,
let us mingle
in the springtime hills;
even if evening falls,
will there not be blossoms’ shade?
- Meaning
-
Come, today let us wander among the spring hills; even if night should fall, will there not be the sheltering shade of blossoms?
- Commentary
-
Book II, Spring Poems (Part Two)
A poem composed when visiting Prince Unrin-in, on an outing to view blossoms along the northern hills.
Staying for a time at Unrin-in, the poet goes out to view the blossoms nearby. Even if night should fall, the blossoms’ shade will remain, and the poet suggests passing the night there, admiring them.
- Author
-
Sosei Hoshi
- Source
-
Kokin Wakashu
- Other
-
-
Nowhere, I think,
is there a village untouched
by spring’s hue;
yet some blossoms bloom,
while others are not to be seen.
-
Why does it so
conceal Mount Miwa—
spring haze?
Are there blossoms blooming there,
unseen by human eyes?
-
How long, I wonder,
shall my heart wander,
drawn to the spring fields?
If the blossoms did not fall,
I could spend a thousand years here.
-
Though every spring
the blossoms reach their height,
as they always will,
to see them in full bloom—
that depends upon my life.