含めりと言ひし梅が枝今朝降りし
沫雪にあひて咲きぬらむかも
沫雪にあひて咲きぬらむかも
- Roma-ji
-
Fufumeri to iishi ume ga e kesa furishi awayuki ni aite sakinuramu kamo
- English Translation
-
The plum branch, you said,
was still closed up in bud:
this morning's snowfall,
meeting with the light snow now,
has it burst into flower?
- Meaning
- The plum branch that you said was still in bud: meeting the light snow that fell this morning, has it now burst into bloom?
- Commentary
-
Book Eight Spring Miscellaneous Poems 1436
Headnote: "Two poems on the plum by Ōtomo no Sukune Murakami"
The poet imagines that the plum branch he had heard was still in bud may have been coaxed into bloom by the light snow that fell this morning. Seeing the snow as what prompts the flowers to open, the poem conveys the lift of a heart awaiting spring.
The author, Ōtomo no Murakami, was a member of the Ōtomo clan and an official of the Nara period.
In the first line, "fufumu" means for a flower to remain in bud. 1648 of this book, by contrast, sings of plums blooming "without first budding," forming a contrast with this poem.
In the second line, the past "shi" shows that it is a plum branch he had heard about from someone.
The third line points to this morning's snow, capturing the passing of time concretely.
The fourth line, "meeting the light snow," portrays the snow as what urges the plum to bloom. 1641 of this book also sings of plums blooming after light snow fell on them.
The final line adds "kamo" to the perfective "nu" and present conjectural "ramu," expressing a surmise that it must have bloomed by now.
- Author
- Ōtomo no Murakami
- Source
- Manyoshu
- Prev Poem
-
Kawazu naku kamunabigawa ni kage miete ima ka sakuramu yamabuki no hana
- Next Poem
-
Kasumi tatsu kasuga no sato no ume no hana yama no arashi ni chirikosu na yume