I will watch the moon
until it enters the ridge,
to see whether there
is any sign of it in
the boards of the sleeping room

Meaning

I will watch the moon until it sinks behind the ridge, to see whether any sign of it shows through the boards of the sleeping room.

Commentary

Part Three: Tenarai

　The Captain's reply. He will watch till the moon goes down, he says, and under cover of the light that leaks between the boards of a sleeping room he lets his wish to see Ukifune show. He stayed the night at the house after all, and passed it with the old nun's koto and his own flute. Ukifune never answered him.

　"Until it enters the ridge" is until the moon sets, taking up her "house near the ridge." "The boards of the sleeping room" leans on the old conceit of moonlight coming through the gaps in them. Shirushi is a sign, or an effect, and carries the sense of whether staying will have been worth it. Slipping the intention of a suit inside the language of refinement is exactly the form these exchanges take.

Author

Murasaki Shikibu

Source

Genji Monogatari

Other

I will watch the moon until it enters the ridge, to see whether there is any sign of it in the boards of the sleeping room

I will watch the moon
until it enters the ridge,
to see whether there
is any sign of it in
the boards of the sleeping room