Ume no hana e ni ka chiru to miru made ni kaze ni midarete yuki zo furikuru

梅の花枝にか散ると見るまでに
風に乱れて雪ぞ降り来る

Roma-ji: Ume no hana e ni ka chiru to miru made ni kaze ni midarete yuki zo furikuru
English Translation: The plum blossoms, as if
from their branches they were falling,
so it seems to me,
swirling wildly in the wind,
the snow comes falling down
Meaning: So wildly does the snow come swirling down in the wind that it seems as if plum blossoms were falling from the branches.
Commentary: Book Eight Winter Miscellaneous Poems 1647

Headnote: "A poem on snow by Imibe no Obito Kuromaro"
So wildly does the snow come swirling in the wind that it seems as if plum blossoms were falling from the branches. Seeing snow dancing in the wind as scattering plum blossoms, the poet lays an image of spring flowers over the winter scene.
The author, Imibe no Kuromaro, was an official of the Imibe clan about whom little is known.

The first line names the flower to which the snow is likened.
The second line, with the particle "ka," suggests "are they falling from the branches?"
The third line means "so that it seems." The Suruga lady-in-waiting's 1420 in this book also uses "so that it seems" of falling flowers mistaken for light snow, so a spring poem likening flowers to snow and a winter poem likening snow to flowers answer each other.
The fourth line means "blown into disorder by the wind."
The final line forms a kakari-musubi between "zo" and the attributive "kuru," vividly depicting the falling snow.
Author: Imibe no Kuromaro
Source: Manyoshu
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