Tane shi areba iwa ni mo matsu wa oinikeri koi o shi koiba awazarame ya wa - Kokin Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

種しあれば岩にも松は生ひにけり
恋をし恋ひば逢はざらめやは

Roma-ji: Tane shi areba iwa ni mo matsu wa oinikeri koi o shi koiba awazarame ya wa
English Translation: So long as there's seed
even on the rocks, the pine
comes to grow and thrive
if I love with all my love
how could we fail to meet
Meaning: So long as there is a seed, a pine will grow even on bare rock; if I love with all my heart, how could we fail to meet?
Commentary: Book Eleven Love Poems I 512

Headnote: "Topic unknown"
Just as a pine will grow even on rock if there is a seed, the poet encourages himself that if he loves wholeheartedly, they are sure to meet. In a book full of laments over hidden or unrequited love, its positive tone of faith in love's fulfillment stands out. It is a clear and strong poem that calls on the powerful life of nature.

First line, "So long as there's seed": shi is an emphatic particle, giving "if only there is a seed."
Second line, "even on the rocks, the pine": iwa ni mo matsu wa means even on rock, the pine, deliberately naming a place hard for growth.
Third line, "comes to grow and thrive": oinikeri means "has grown," with keri expressing realization. The poem pauses here, the upper verse setting out a principle of nature.
Fourth line, "if I love with all my love": in koi wo shi koiba, shi is emphatic, meaning "if I love and love on." Repeating koi expresses the strength of feeling.
Fifth line, "how could we fail to meet": ya wa is rhetorical, meaning "how could we not meet? we surely will." The structure applies the natural principle of the upper verse to the love of the lower.
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Kokin Wakashu
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