玉水を手にむすびても試みん
ぬるくは石のなかも頼まじ
ぬるくは石のなかも頼まじ
- Roma-ji
-
Tamamizu o te ni musubite mo kokoromin nuruku wa ishi no naka mo tanomaji
- English Translation
-
The jewel-clear water,
even cupped within my hands,
I will put to test;
if it is tepid, then the stone's
heart, and ours, I will not trust
- Meaning
- I will test the jewel-clear water, even cupping it in my hands. If it is lukewarm, I will trust neither the spring within the stone nor the bond between us.
- Commentary
-
Book Fifteen Love Poems V 1367
Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Topic unknown."
This is the first poem of the sequence on clear water. The speaker will cup clear water in the hands to test it, and if it is lukewarm, will trust neither the spring within the stone nor the bond with the beloved, seeking to test the depth of the other's heart. The headnote gives no topic, and the circumstances of composition are not recorded.
The author, "Anonymous," indicates a poet whose name has not come down.
The first line, "tamamizu o," means "water clear as a jewel."
The second line, "te ni musubite mo," means "even cupping it in both hands."
In the third line, "kokoromin," "n" is volitional: "I will test it." The poem breaks after the third line.
In the fourth line, "nuruku wa ishi no," "nuruku" overlays water that is lukewarm with a heart that is cool and wanting in sincerity. It supposes that water which should be cold, welling from the rocks, turns out lukewarm.
In the last line, "naka mo tanomaji," "naka" is a pivot word joining "naka" (within) the stone and "naka" (the bond) between two people. "Ji" is a negative volition: "I will not rely on it." From the laments over forgetting in the preceding poems, it turns to the active stance of testing the other's heart.
- Author
- Unknown Poet
- Source
- Shin Kokin Wakashu
- Prev Poem
-
Ima made ni wasurenu hito wa yo ni mo araji ono ga samazama toshi no henureba
- Next Poem
-
Yamashiro no Ide no tamamizu te ni kumite tanomishi kai mo naki yo narikeri