Naki kouru namida ni sode no sohochinaba nugikae gatera yoru koso wa kime - Kokin Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

泣き恋ふる涙に袖のそほちなば
脱ぎかへがてら夜こそは着め

Roma-ji: Naki kouru namida ni sode no sohochinaba nugikae gatera yoru koso wa kime
English Translation: If with tears of longing,
weeping, my sleeves should be
soaked all the way through,
then, as I change my robes,
I will wear it only at night
Meaning: If my sleeves were soaked through with tears of weeping for you, then, while changing out of them, I would wear mourning only in the dark of night.
Commentary: Book Thirteen Love Poems III 655

Headnote: "Reply."
This is Tachibana no Kiyoki's reply to the woman's question in the preceding poem. If his sleeves are soaked with tears of longing for her, he will change them and, under that pretext, wear mourning at night when no one sees. By showing a way to mourn unseen, he conveys a resolve to guard their secret love to the end.
The author, whose name is written in kana in the text, is Tachibana no Kiyoki. He was an official of the early Heian period, but few details of his career have come down to us.

The first line, "naki kouru," means "weeping and longing."
The second line, "namida ni sode no," means "my sleeves, with tears."
The third line, "sohochinaba," means "if they should be soaked through," a hypothetical with the irrealis of the perfective nu and ba.
The fourth line, "nugikae gatera," means "while changing my wet robes," using the suffix gatera.
The final line, "yoru koso wa kime," means "at night, indeed, I will wear it," closing the koso construction with me, the realis of the volitional mu, and answering "put on mourning" in the preceding poem's last line.
Author: Tachibana no Kiyoki
Source: Kokin Wakashu
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