佐保山のははその色はうすけれど
秋は深くもなりにけるかな
秋は深くもなりにけるかな
- Roma-ji
-
Sahoyama no hahaso no iro wa usukeredo
aki wa fukaku mo narinikeru kana - English Translation
-
on Mount Saho, though
the hahaso leaves are pale in hue,
yet all the same
autumn has grown ever deeper—
so it has come to be.
- Meaning
- Though the color of the hahaso trees on Mount Saho is pale, autumn has nevertheless deepened.
- Commentary
-
Book Five Autumn Poems (Part Two)
Composed as an autumn poem.
“Hahaso” refers to oak trees such as konara or mizunara, whose leaves turn yellow in autumn. Compared with the red of maple leaves, their color appears faint. The poem contrasts the “paleness” of the leaves with the “depth” of autumn.
Mount Saho is located in present-day Nara.
The poet, Sakanoue no Korenori, was one of the Thirty-Six Immortal Poets.
- Author
- Sakanoue no Koreyuki
- Source
- Kokin Wakashu
- Prev Poem
-
Ta ga tame no nishiki nareba ka akigiri no
Saho no yamabe o tachikakusuramu - Next Poem
-
Ueshi ueba aki naki toki ya sakazaramu
hana koso chirame ne sae kareme ya