Haru wa moe natsu wa midori ni kurenai no madara ni miyuru aki no yama ka mo

春は萌え夏は緑に紅の
まだらに見ゆる秋の山かも

Roma-ji: Haru wa moe natsu wa midori ni kurenai no madara ni miyuru aki no yama ka mo
English Translation: Budding in the spring,
green all through the summertime,
crimson and scarlet
dappled here and there it shows,
oh, the mountain in autumn!
Meaning: Budding in spring, green in summer, and now dappled with crimson—how lovely is the mountain in autumn!
Commentary: Book Ten Autumn Miscellaneous Poems 2177

Headnote: "On the Mountains"
This poem traces the mountain's changing colors through the seasons—the budding of spring, the green of summer, the dappled crimson of autumn—and praises the beauty of the autumn mountain. Its headnote is "On the Mountains." Containing three seasons in one poem, it impresses the colors of the autumn mountain at the end of time's flow. Following this poem, a group on autumn leaves begins, singing of the mountain's crimson foliage.

The first line, "in spring budding," names the spring aspect.
The second line, "in summer green," is set in parallel with the first.
The third line, "of crimson," names the color.
The fourth line, "seen dappled," shows autumn color beginning to spread.
In the last line, "aki no yama ka mo," "ka mo" is exclamatory, closing in praise of the autumn mountain at the end of the seasons' changes.
Source: Manyoshu
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