めづらしきこゑならなくに郭公
ここらの年をあかずもあるかな
ここらの年をあかずもあるかな
- Roma-ji
-
Mezurashiki koe naranaku ni hototogisu
kokora no toshi o akazu mo aru kana - English Translation
-
not a rare voice
and yet the cuckoo’s calling—
through these many years
never does it weary me
still it leaves me unsated
- Meaning
- Though it is not a rare voice, the cuckoo’s call never wearies me; even through many years, I never tire of it.
- Commentary
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Book Seven Felicitations
A summer poem among those written on a screen painted with scenes of the four seasons, at the fortieth-year celebration banquet of Fujiwara no Sadakuni, composed by the Naishi-no-Kami.
The poem is based on a depiction of a cuckoo in the summer scene of the screen. Though its voice is not especially rare, the poet finds that even after many years, it never grows tiresome, much like the enduring pleasure of viewing cherry blossoms.
“Kokora no toshi” means many years.
- Author
- Ki no Tomonori
- Source
- Kokin Wakashu
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Yama takami kumoi ni miyuru sakurabana
kokoro no yukite oranu hi zo naki - Next Poem
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Suminoe no matsu o akikaze fuku kara ni
koe uchisouru oki tsu shiranami