You say it is the
last time, and we stand apart—
and this dew-light self
of mine will surely vanish
sooner than yours vanishes
- Meaning
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You call it the last time, and we part; and this dew-light self of mine will surely vanish before yours does.
- Commentary
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Volume Ten: The Lady of the Palace
This is the lady's reply.
They never met again, though letters passed between them. Shigehira went down to Kamakura, was brought before Yoritomo, and there met Senju-no-mae. At the last he was handed over to the monks of Nara and beheaded by the Kizu River.
Again she takes up his words exactly: kagiri, the last; tsuyu, the dew. The form of the exchange is kept to the end.
And again she reverses only the conclusion. He said his life might end tonight; she answers that it is she who will vanish first.
This is not simple exaggeration. Instead of grieving in advance for his death, she says that she will die first—and so avoids saying his death aloud. She completes the sorrow of parting without once telling him that he is going to die.
The four poems run: an ill name streaming, sinking together, the last night, I shall go first. Twice she answers, and twice she goes further than he does. It is the woman who offers.
kagiri to te……saying this is the last.
tachiwakarureba……since we stand and part.
tsuyu no mi……a self as brief as dew.
kimi yori saki ni……before you do.
kienu beki……will surely vanish.
Kizugawa……the river near Nara where Shigehira was executed.
Senju-no-mae……the woman who attended Shigehira at Kamakura.
shuto……the body of monks of a temple.
- Source
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Heike Monogatari
- Other
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