梅の花香をかぐはしみ遠けども
心もしのに君をしぞ思ふ
心もしのに君をしぞ思ふ
- Roma-ji
-
Ume no hana ka o kaguwashimi tōkedomo kokoro mo shino ni kimi o shi zo omou
- English Translation
-
The plum blossoms' scent
is so sweet and so fragrant
that though far away
my heart bends low in longing
and it's you of whom I think
- Meaning
- The fragrance of the plum blossoms is so sweet that, though I am far away, my heart droops with longing and I think only of you.
- Commentary
-
Book Twenty Miscellaneous Poems 4500
Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "In the second month, a banquet at the residence of Nakatomi no Kiyomaro, Senior Assistant Minister of Ceremonial; fifteen poems."
The plum blossoms smell so sweet that, though I am far, my heart droops with longing for you: a poem of affection for the host Kiyomaro. The left note attributes it to Prince Ichihara, Senior Assistant Minister of Ceremonial. Likening the host's character to the scent of plum blossoms, it says he is drawn to him even from afar.
The author, Prince Ichihara, was a son of Prince Aki and a great-grandson of Prince Shiki. At this time he was Senior Assistant Minister of Ceremonial.
The first line, "ume no hana," names the plums of the banquet garden, a motif since the first poem.
The second line, "ka o kaguwashimi," uses mi of cause: because the scent is fragrant.
The third line, "tōkedomo," "though far away," turns concessively to the lower half.
The fourth line, "kokoro mo shino ni," "my heart drooping," expresses deep longing.
The closing line, "kimi o shi zo omou," resolved by zo with the attributive omou, with the intensifier shi: it is you I think of.
- Author
- Prince Ichihara
- Source
- Manyoshu
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Waga seko shi kaku shi kikosaba ametsuchi no kami o koinomi nagaku to zo omou
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Yachikusa no hana wa utsurou tokiwa naru matsu no saeda o ware wa musubana