九月の白露負ひてあしひきの
山のもみたむ見まくしもよし
山のもみたむ見まくしもよし
- Roma-ji
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Nagatsuki no shiratsuyu oite ashihiki no yama no momitamu mimaku shi mo yoshi
- English Translation
-
In the ninth month now,
bearing the white dew, the slopes,
rugged mountain hills—
as they turn to crimson red,
oh, how good it is to see!
- Meaning
- How good it is to see the mountains turning color, bearing the white dew of the Ninth Month.
- Commentary
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Book Ten Autumn Miscellaneous Poems 2200
Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "On Autumn Leaves"
This poem sings of the delight of seeing the mountains turn color, bearing the white dew of the Ninth Month. Against the background of the belief that dew brings autumn color, it shows the pleasure of seeing mountains about to turn. Like 2181, where dew colors Mount Kasuga, it links dew and autumn color.
The first line, "of the Ninth Month," names the time.
The second line, "bearing the white dew," describes the mountains.
The third line, "ashihiki no," is a pillow word attached to "mountain."
In the fourth line, "yama no momitamu," "momitsu" means to turn color and "mu" conjecture: the mountains will turn.
In the last line, "mimaku shi mo yoshi," "mimaku" is the nominalized "mimu" and "shi" and "mo" emphatic: seeing it is truly good.
- Source
- Manyoshu
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