Shinano naru asama no take ni tatsu keburi ochikochibito no mi ya wa togamene

English Translation

There in Shinano,
from the peak of Asama
the smoke rises up;
could people both far and near
see it and not wonder so?

Meaning

The smoke rising from the peak of Asama in Shinano: could anyone, near or far, see it and not marvel?

Commentary

Book Ten Travel Poems 903

Headnote: "Composed on seeing smoke rising from the peak of Asama while traveling to the East."
This is the first of two poems by Ariwara no Narihira on his journey to the East. The speaker says that no one near or far could see the smoke rising from Asama in Shinano without wonder, marveling at the volcanic plume. According to the headnote, it was composed on the way to the eastern provinces upon seeing smoke rising from the peak of Asama.
The author, "Narihira Ason," is Ariwara no Narihira. A son of Prince Abo, himself a son of Emperor Heizei, he is counted among the Six Poetic Immortals and has long been identified with the hero of The Tales of Ise.
The scene is the journey down to the eastern provinces, at a place looking out on the peak of Asama in Shinano Province.
The direct occasion is seeing smoke rise from the peak of Asama.
The poem appears in Section 8 of The Tales of Ise as the poem of a man traveling east who sees the smoke of Asama.

The first line, "shinano naru," means "in Shinano." "Naru" is the attributive form of "nari" indicating location, naming the province in the same form as "suruga naru," the first line of the next poem, so that the two are set side by side as a pair.
The second line, "asama no take ni," refers to Mount Asama in Shinano, a famous place known as a mountain that sends up smoke.
The third line, "tatsu keburi," means "the rising smoke." The plume seen by the traveler is given as a noun and leads into "mi ya wa togamene" in the lower verse.
The fourth line, "ochikochibito no," means "people far and near." "Ochikochi" means places far and near, showing that the smoke is visible over a wide area.
The last line, "mi ya wa togamene," means "could they see it and not wonder?" The particle "ya wa" is rhetorical, and its expected closing is the attributive "nu," as the reading line has it. The traveler's own amazement is put as the amazement of everyone far and near, conveying wonder at an unfamiliar sight of the East. After the Man'yōshū travel poems at the head of the book, the Heian poems of journeys to the East begin here.

Author

Ariwara no Narihira

Source

Shin Kokin Wakashu

Other