Ominaeshi sakari no iro o miru kara ni tsuyu no wakikeru mi koso shirarure - Shin Kokin Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

女郎花盛りの色を見るからに
露の分きける身こそ知らるれ

Roma-ji: Ominaeshi sakari no iro o miru kara ni tsuyu no wakikeru mi koso shirarure
English Translation: The maiden flower—
as soon as I see the hue
of its blossoming prime,
I know how the dew has passed
this self of mine by.
Meaning: As soon as I see the maiden flower in the color of its prime, I am made to know how the dew has passed me by.
Commentary: Book Sixteen Miscellaneous Poems I 1567

Headnote: "When the Hōjōji Lay Priest, Former Chancellor, broke off a maiden flower and asked me to compose a poem."
This is the eighth poem of the sequence expressing personal feelings through the things of autumn. As soon as she sees the maiden flower in the color of its prime, the poet says, she is made to know how the dew has passed her by. According to the headnote, it was composed when Fujiwara no Michinaga broke off a maiden flower and asked her for a poem.
The author, "Murasaki Shikibu," was the daughter of Fujiwara no Tametoki. She became the wife of Fujiwara no Nobutaka and later served Jōtōmon'in. She is the author of The Tale of Genji.
This exchange is also recorded in The Diary of Murasaki Shikibu. Michinaga's reply to this poem is placed as the next poem.

The first line, "ominaeshi," is one of the seven flowers of autumn, bearing small yellow blossoms. From its name, "maiden flower," it is likened to a young and beautiful woman.
The second line, "sakari no iro o," refers to the beautiful color of its prime.
The third line, "miru kara ni," means "as soon as I see."
The fourth line, "tsuyu no wakikeru," means "that the dew has made distinctions." Taking up the dew on the bush clover in the preceding poem, she says that the dew, which brought beautiful color to the maiden flower, did not settle on her.
The last line, "mi koso shirarure," closes the kakari-musubi of the particle "koso" with "rure," the perfective form of the spontaneous "ru." Comparing herself with the maiden flower in its prime, she humbly says that her own decline comes home to her.
Author: Murasaki Shikibu
Source: Shin Kokin Wakashu
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