Aware chō koto no ha goto ni oku tsuyu wa mukashi o kouru namida narikeri - Kokin Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

あはれてふ言の葉ごとに置く露は
昔を恋ふる涙なりけり

Roma-ji: Aware chō koto no ha goto ni oku tsuyu wa mukashi o kouru namida narikeri
English Translation: That which we call "aware":
with each leaf of such a word
the dew that settles
is the tears I shed in longing
for the days of long ago.
Meaning: Each time I utter the word "aware," the dew that settles on those leaves of speech is my own tears, longing for the past.
Commentary: Book Eighteen Miscellaneous Poems II 940

Headnote: "Topic unknown"
The tears that fall each time the word aware is spoken are likened to dew settling on the "leaves" of words. The poem shows that longing for the vanished past is contained in that single word.
It opens with the same line as the previous poem, 939, but whereas that poem saw aware as a fetter binding one to the world, this one sees it as tears of longing for the past. It shares its closing line, "it is my tears," with the next poem, 941.
The author is recorded as anonymous, and the name has not come down to us.

The first line, "that which we call aware," repeats the opening of the previous poem.
The second line, "with each leaf of such a word," plays on koto no ha, "words," literally "leaves of speech"; the "leaf" is an associated word for the dew in the third line.
The third line, "the dew that settles," likens tears to dew.
The fourth line, "longing for the days of long ago," expresses yearning for the past.
The last line, "is the tears," uses keri to express sudden realization. It is the same closing line as the next poem, 941.
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Kokin Wakashu
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