Suzushisa wa iki no matsubara masaru tomo souru ōgi no kaze na wasure so

English Translation

Though in coolness far
the pines of Iki no Matsubara
may surpass it there,
the breeze of this fan I send—
do not let it slip your mind.

Meaning

Even if the coolness of the pine groves of Iki, where you are going, surpasses it, do not forget the breeze of this fan I send along with you.

Commentary

Book Nine Parting Poems 868

Headnote: "When bestowing a fan on Takaie, Governor-General of Dazaifu, as he went down."
This is a poem sending a fan to someone going down to Tsukushi, turning from the preceding poems of Mutsu to a parting toward the western provinces. Even if the coolness of Iki no Matsubara where he is going surpasses it, the speaker asks that the breeze of the fan she gives not be forgotten. According to the headnote, it was composed when she gave a fan to Fujiwara no Takaie as he went down to Dazaifu.
The author, called the Biwa Empress Dowager, is Fujiwara no Kenshi, a daughter of Fujiwara no Michinaga who became empress of Emperor Sanjō and later empress dowager; the name comes from her residence at the Biwa Mansion.
The scene is Takaie's departure for his post at Dazaifu, and the place is the capital.
The direct occasion was the gift of a fan to Takaie as he went down to Dazaifu.
Takaie, a son of Fujiwara no Michitaka, was appointed Acting Governor-General of Dazaifu in the third year of Chōwa (1014) and went down to Tsukushi. Iki no Matsubara is a poetic place in Chikuzen, a pine grove on the shore in present-day Nishi Ward, Fukuoka.

The first line, "suzushisa wa," means "as for coolness," the particle "wa" singling out what is being compared. As befits a poem sending a fan, it begins with coolness.
The second line, "iki no matsubara," is the poetic place Iki no Matsubara in Chikuzen, with a play on "iki," "going," pointing to Takaie's destination. The coolness of the wind through the seaside pines is imagined.
The third line, "masaru tomo," means "even if it surpasses," expressing a concessive supposition. It humbly grants that the breeze of a fan from the capital cannot match the wind in the pines.
The fourth line, "souru ōgi no," means "of the fan I send along." It is a fan to accompany the journey and also carries the heart of the giver.
The last line, "kaze na wasure so," uses the prohibitive "na ... so" to mean "do not forget the breeze." It holds the wish that the breeze of the fan will bring the giver to mind, and like 857 and 860, which send robes as keepsakes, it is a poem that entrusts the feeling of parting to a gift.

Author

Fujiwara no Kenshi

Source

Shin Kokin Wakashu

Other