春されば霞隠りて見えずありし
秋萩咲きぬ折りてかざさむ
秋萩咲きぬ折りてかざさむ
- Roma-ji
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Haru sareba kasumigakurite miezu arishi akihagi sakinu orite kazasamu
- English Translation
-
When the spring came round,
hidden in the haze it was,
never to be seen—
now autumn bush clover blooms;
I will break it for my hair.
- Meaning
- The bush clover, hidden in the haze and unseen in spring, has now bloomed in autumn. I will break a sprig and wear it in my hair.
- Commentary
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Book Ten Autumn Miscellaneous Poems 2105
Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "On Flowers"
This poem says that the bush clover, hidden in the haze and unnoticed in spring, has bloomed in autumn, so the speaker will break a sprig and wear it in the hair. The turning of the seasons, in which bush clover overlooked in spring becomes the star of autumn, is shown through the contrast of haze and flower. Against the haze group of the spring miscellaneous poems, haze is here recalled within the autumn flower group, an echo between the first and second halves of the book.
The first line, "when spring comes," recalls the season.
The second line, "hidden in the haze," describes the clover in spring.
In the third line, "miezu arishi," "shi" is the attributive of the past "ki": that was not seen. The line is hypermetric.
In the fourth line, "akihagi sakinu," "nu" marks completion, and the poem breaks here.
In the last line, "orite kazasamu," "kazasu" means to wear in the hair and "mu" expresses intention, closing with joy at the blooming.
- Source
- Manyoshu
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Asagao wa asatsuyu oite saku to iedo yūkage ni koso sakimasarikere
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Sanukata no nobe no akihagi toki nareba ima sakari nari orite kazasamu