春されば散らまく惜しき梅の花
しましは咲かずふふみてもがも
しましは咲かずふふみてもがも
- Roma-ji
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Haru sareba chiramaku oshiki ume no hana shimashi wa sakazu fufumite mo ga mo
- English Translation
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When the spring comes round,
sad it is to see them fall,
blossoms of the plum—
for a while, do not open,
stay in bud, if only you would!
- Meaning
- Plum blossoms, so sad to see scatter when spring comes—if only you would stay in bud awhile and not open yet.
- Commentary
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Book Ten Spring Miscellaneous Poems 1871
Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "On Flowers"
This poem wishes that the plum blossoms, which will scatter once they open, might stay in bud for a while. Grieving so for their falling that it wishes even their blooming postponed, the paradoxical wish shows a deep love for the flowers. Taking up the preceding poem's regret for the falling cherry, this one goes a step further with the plum, regretting even the blooming that precedes the falling.
The first line, "when spring comes," marks the season.
The second line, "sad to see them scatter," is nearly the same phrase as the last line of the preceding poem, showing the correspondence between the two.
The third line, "plum blossoms," is a noun naming what is regretted.
In the fourth line, "shimashi wa sakazu," "shimashi" means for a while, conveying the wish that the blooming be postponed.
In the last line, "fufumite mo ga mo," "fufumu" means to remain in bud and "mo ga mo" is a particle of wishing, closing with the hope that they stay in bud before they can fall.
- Source
- Manyoshu
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