Guessing at a glance,
I take it to be that one—
the evening flower
on which the white dew has laid
a light that it did not have

Meaning

Guessing, I take you for that one—the evening face flower, to which the white dew has added a light of its own.

Commentary

Part One: Yugao

　On his way to a lover in Rokujo, Genji stopped near Gojo to call on his old nurse, Daini no Menoto, who had taken vows in her illness. The gate was shut, and while he waited he noticed white flowers blooming on the fence of the house next door and sent a retainer to pick one. A young girl came out from within and offered the flower laid on a fan scented with incense. On that fan was written this poem. Struck by a refinement that seemed out of place in such a house, Genji began visiting the woman there, keeping his identity hidden.

　"Kokoro ate ni" means by guess, showing an attempt to make out someone not clearly seen. "The white dew has added its light" is both the dew resting on the evening flower and Genji himself, the shining one. Flower and person are laid over each other, and since it is the woman who sends the first poem—unusual for the time—this one piece defines both the character of Yugao and the name of the chapter.

Author

Murasaki Shikibu

Source

Genji Monogatari

Other

Guessing at a glance, I take it to be that one— the evening flower on which the white dew has laid a light that it did not have

Guessing at a glance,
I take it to be that one—
the evening flower
on which the white dew has laid
a light that it did not have