Omoiidete moshimo tazunuru hito mo araba ari to na ii so sadame naki yo ni - Shin Kokin Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

思ひ出でてもしも尋ぬる人もあらば
ありとな言ひそ定めなき世に

Roma-ji: Omoiidete moshimo tazunuru hito mo araba ari to na ii so sadame naki yo ni
English Translation: Should anyone recall
and come seeking after me,
if such there should be,
do not tell them I am living—
in this world where nothing's sure.
Meaning: If anyone should remember me and come asking, do not tell them I am alive, in this uncertain world.
Commentary: Book Eighteen Miscellaneous Poems III 1833

Headnote: "At a time of grief, when I was about to go into retreat at Ōmine and told some of my companions to go back to the capital."
This is the first of the poems on living apart from the world and the first of two by Gyōson. If anyone remembers and asks after him, they are not to say he is alive, in this uncertain world. According to the headnote, it was composed at a time of grief when he was about to retreat to Ōmine and told some of his companions to return to the capital. It shows his resolve to cut his ties with the world and enter upon austerities.
The author, "Archbishop Gyōson," is Gyōson. A son of Minamoto no Motohira, he became a monk of Onjōji and underwent severe austerities at Ōmine, Kumano, and elsewhere. He rose to Archbishop and also served as Tendai abbot.
Ōmine is Mount Ōmine in Yamato Province, a place of Shugendō practice where ascetics traversed the peaks.

The first line, "omoiidete," means "remembering." It has six syllables, one over the norm.
The second line, "moshimo tazunuru," means "should they ask after me."
The third line, "hito mo araba," means "if there is anyone." Its six syllables mark the supposition.
The fourth line, "ari to na ii so," means "do not say I am alive." "Na ... so" expresses prohibition, and the poem pauses here.
The last line, "sadame naki yo ni," means "in this impermanent world." Through inversion it adds as reason that no one knows when death will come, showing his resolve to sever ties with the world.
Author: Gyōson
Source: Shin Kokin Wakashu
Prev Poem: Mukashi yori hanaregataki wa ukiyo kana katami ni shinobu naka naranedomo
Next Poem: Kazu naranu mi o nani yue ni uramikemu totemo kakutemo sugoshikeru yo o