吉野川岩切りとほし行く水の
音には立てじ恋ひは死ぬとも
音には立てじ恋ひは死ぬとも
- Roma-ji
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Yoshinogawa iwa kiritōshi yuku mizu no oto ni wa tateji koi wa shinu to mo
- English Translation
-
Like the Yoshino
cutting through the rocks it flows
its waters roaring
yet I will not cry aloud
though I should die of love
- Meaning
- The waters of the Yoshino River cut through the rocks with a roar, but I will never voice my love aloud, even if I die of it.
- Commentary
-
Book Eleven Love Poems I 492
Headnote: "Topic unknown"
Calling up the torrent of the Yoshino River that seems to cleave the rocks, the poem vows, in contrast to that roar, never to speak of love. The fierce sound of the water and the firm silence of one who will not speak even unto death form a vivid contrast. It is a poem that strongly declares the resolve of a hidden love.
First line, "Like the Yoshino": a poetic place in Yamato famous for its rapids. Poem 471 of this book begins with the same first line and shares the third line as well. That poem overlays the water's speed with the earliness of love's beginning, while this poem turns the water's sound around to sing of a love never voiced.
Second line, "cutting through the rocks it flows": iwa kiritoshi means cleaving and passing through the rocks, showing the force of the torrent.
Third line, "its waters roaring": yuku mizu no, the flowing water, and lines one through three form a preface leading to "sound" in the fourth line.
Fourth line, "yet I will not cry aloud": oto ni wa tateji means "I will not let it be known by sound." Ji expresses negative intention, and the poem pauses here in an inverted structure.
Fifth line, "though I should die of love": koi wa shinu to mo means even if I die of love. Poem 494 of this book closes with the same line, sharing the resolve of a hidden love.
- Author
- Unknown Poet
- Source
- Kokin Wakashu
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Ashihiki no yamashitamizu no kogakurete tagitsu kokoro o seki zo kanetsuru
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Tagitsu se no naka ni mo yodo wa ari chō o nado waga koi no fuchise to mo naki