白浪に秋の木の葉の浮かべるを
海人の流せる舟かとぞ見る
海人の流せる舟かとぞ見る
- Roma-ji
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Shiranami ni aki no ko no ha no ukaberu o
ama no nagaseru fune ka to zo miru - English Translation
-
upon the white waves
autumn leaves drift and float—
as I gaze at them
they seem a fisher’s boat
set adrift upon the sea
- Meaning
- The autumn leaves floating upon the white waves appear to me like a fisher’s boat set adrift.
- Commentary
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Book Five Autumn Poems (Part Two)
A poem composed for a poetry contest at the Empress’s palace in the Kanpyō era.
It contrasts the white of the waves with the red of the autumn leaves. The leaves are likened to a fishing boat that has been set adrift, giving a sense of quiet desolation as they drift upon the waves.
- Author
- Fujiwara no Okikaze
- Source
- Kokin Wakashu
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