Shiguretsutsu sode mo hoshiaezu ashihiki no yama no konoha ni arashi fuku koro

English Translation

Winter showers fall
and I cannot dry my sleeves;
on the rugged hills
among the leaves of the trees
now the storm wind blows

Meaning

The winter showers keep falling, and my sleeves never have time to dry—in these days when the storm wind blows through the leaves of the mountain trees.

Commentary

Book Six Winter Poems 563

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Composed and presented on the topic 'Falling Leaves' for the Kasuga Shrine Poetry Contest."
This is the eleventh poem of the falling-leaves sequence. The winter showers keep falling so that the sleeves never dry, in these days when the storm blows through the leaves of the mountain trees. The headnote continues from the preceding poem, and this poem was composed on the topic "Falling Leaves" at the same Kasuga Shrine Poetry Contest.
The author, "Shinano," is known by a lady-in-waiting's name. As there is no settled view of whom it refers to, the designation in the original is used. "Shinano" is a court name taken from the name of a province.
The scene is early winter with continuing showers and storms, and the place is a mountain where the leaves are falling.
As with the preceding poem, the direct occasion is the topic "Falling Leaves" at the Kasuga Shrine Poetry Contest of Genkyū 1 (1204).

The first line, "shiguretsutsu," means that the showers fall again and again, with "tsutsu" expressing repetition and continuance.
The second line, "sode mo hoshiaezu," means "unable even to dry my sleeves" and runs to eight syllables, one over the count. The sleeves are wet from the showers, and wet too with tears shed in the loneliness of winter.
The third line, "ashihiki no," is a pillow word modifying "yama," mountain.
The fourth line, "yama no konoha ni," refers to the leaves still on the mountain trees. Following the preceding poem's crimson leaves of Mount Shinobu, it continues with the leaves of the mountain.
The last line, "arashi fuku koro," closes on a noun of time. The two scenes, showers soaking the sleeves and storm scattering the leaves, are gathered into a single season by the one word "koro." Where the preceding poem set the workings of showers and storm against each other, this poem sings of the two arriving together in the same days.

Author

Shinano

Source

Shin Kokin Wakashu

Other