ちはやぶる賀茂の社の木綿だすき
一日も君をかけぬ日はなし
一日も君をかけぬ日はなし
- Roma-ji
-
Chihayaburu Kamo no yashiro no yūdasuki hitohi mo kimi o kakenu hi wa nashi
- English Translation
-
Where the mighty gods abide
at Kamo's holy shrine
the sacred cord is worn
and not a single day goes by
that you are not upon my mind
- Meaning
- Just as the priests of the Kamo Shrine never fail to put on their sacred sashes, there is not a single day when I do not hold you in my heart.
- Commentary
-
Book Eleven Love Poems I 487
Headnote: "Topic unknown"
Taking as its preface the sacred sash of bark cloth worn by the priests of the Kamo Shrine at every rite, this poem sings of a heart that thinks of the beloved without missing a single day. By invoking the daily service of the gods, it stresses the constancy and sincerity of the poet's love.
First line, "Where the mighty gods abide": chihayaburu is a pillow word for gods and sacred things, here modifying the Kamo Shrine.
Second line, "at Kamo's holy shrine": the Kamo Shrines of Yamashiro, that is, Kamigamo and Shimogamo.
Third line, "the sacred cord is worn": yudasuki is a sash made of fiber from the paper mulberry, worn during rites. Lines one through three form a preface leading to kake in the following lines.
Fourth line, "and not a single day goes by": hitohi mo kimi wo means "not even one day, you."
Fifth line, "that you are not upon my mind": kake is a pivot word meaning both "wearing" the sash and "holding" someone in one's heart. It shares its construction with the last line of poem 489 of this book, "there is no day I do not love you," placing poems of unceasing love side by side.
- Author
- Unknown Poet
- Source
- Kokin Wakashu
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Tsure mo naki hito o ya netaku shiratsuyu no oku to wa nageki nu to wa shinobamu
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Waga koi wa munashiki sora ni michinurashi omoiyaredomo yuku kata mo nashi