Ukigumo wa tachikakusedomo hima morite sora yuku tsuki no mie mo suru kana - Shin Kokin Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

浮雲は立ち隠せども隙漏りて
空行く月の見えもするかな

Roma-ji: Ukigumo wa tachikakusedomo hima morite sora yuku tsuki no mie mo suru kana
English Translation: Though the drifting clouds
rise up and would hide it, through
a gap it seeps out—
the moon crossing the wide sky
can be seen, after all.
Meaning: Though drifting clouds rise up to hide it, the moon crossing the sky seeps through a gap and is seen after all.
Commentary: Book Sixteen Miscellaneous Poems I 1502

Headnote: "Sent after discovering that Consultant Masamitsu had secretly visited someone on a hazy moonlit night."
This is the fourth poem of the sequence on the moon. Though drifting clouds hide it, the poet says, the moon crossing the sky leaks through a gap and is seen after all. According to the headnote, she sent it after discovering that Consultant Fujiwara no Masamitsu had secretly visited someone on a hazy moonlit night.
The author, "Ise no Taifu," was the daughter of Ōnakatomi no Sukechika. A lady-in-waiting and poet who served Jōtōmon'in, she is known for her poem "Inishie no Nara no miyako no yaezakura."
"Consultant Masamitsu" in the headnote is Fujiwara no Masamitsu, son of Regent Fujiwara no Kanemichi.
Masamitsu's reply to this poem is placed as the next poem.

The first line, "ukigumo wa," refers to clouds floating in the sky, likened to a cloak for going about unseen.
The second line, "tachikakusedomo," uses the concessive "domo," meaning "though they rise and hide it."
The third line, "hima morite," refers to light leaking through a gap in the clouds. It overlays the secret visit becoming known to others.
The fourth line, "sora yuku tsuki no," refers to the moon crossing the sky, likening Masamitsu on his secret visit to the moon.
The last line, "mie mo suru kana," closes with the exclamatory "kana": "it can be seen after all." She teases Masamitsu that though he went in secret, he was found out.
Author: Ise no Taifu
Source: Shin Kokin Wakashu
Prev Poem: Yama no ha o idegate ni suru tsuki matsu to nenu yo no itaku fukenikeru kana
Next Poem: Ukigumo ni kakurete to koso omoishika netaku mo tsuki no hima morinikeru