春霞たなびく山の桜花
見れどもあかぬ君にもあるかな
見れどもあかぬ君にもあるかな
- Roma-ji
-
Harugasumi tanabiku yama no sakurabana miredomo akanu kimi ni mo aru kana
- English Translation
-
Like the cherry blooms
on the hills where the spring haze
trails in drifting veils,
though I gaze and gaze, never
have I had my fill of you.
- Meaning
- Like the cherry blossoms on a hillside veiled in spring haze, you are one I could gaze upon forever and never tire of seeing.
- Commentary
-
Book Fourteen Love Poems IV 684
Headnote: "Topic unknown"
The poem praises a beloved whom the speaker can never tire of seeing, like the cherry blossoms on hills trailing with spring haze. The beauty of mountain cherries in spring is laid directly over the lover's charm, in a bright and open tone.
Continuing the sequence on "aku" (having one's fill), the line "miredomo akanu" expresses, through the image of cherry blossoms, the same feeling as "akazu mo aru kana" in 682.
The author, "Tomonori," is Ki no Tomonori. The son of Ki no Aritomo and a cousin of Ki no Tsurayuki, he was one of the compilers of the Kokinshū but is said to have died before its completion.
The first line, "harugasumi," is the haze that hangs over spring, setting the seasonal scene.
The second line, "tanabiku yama no," describes hills with haze trailing across them, painting a distant view of cherry blossoms.
With the third line, "sakurabana," the first three lines form a preface to "miredomo akanu" in the fourth line.
The fourth line, "miredomo akanu," means "though I look and look, I never tire," sharing the word "aku" with the ending "akazu mo aru kana" of 682 in this book.
The final line, "kimi ni mo aru kana," means "such are you," closing with the exclamatory "kana."
- Author
- Ki no Tomonori
- Source
- Kokin Wakashu
- Prev Poem
-
Ise no ama no asana yūna ni kazuku chō mirume ni hito o aku yoshi mogana
- Next Poem
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Kokoro o zo warinaki mono to omoinuru miru mono kara ya koishikaru beki