Tsune yori mo harube ni nareba Sakuragawa hana no nami koso manaku yosurame - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

常よりも春辺になれば桜河
花の浪こそ間なく寄すらめ

Roma-ji: Tsune yori mo harube ni nareba Sakuragawa hana no nami koso manaku yosurame
English Translation: More than at other times,
when the season turns to spring,
on the Cherry River
the waves of blossoms surely
come in, never ceasing
Meaning: When spring comes round, on Sakuragawa, the Cherry River, waves of blossoms must be rolling in more ceaselessly than ever.
Commentary: Book Three Spring Poems III 107

Headnote: "On hearing that there is a place called Sakuragawa."
Hearing of a place called Sakuragawa, Cherry River, the poet imagines that in spring waves of petals must be rolling in there without pause, as its name suggests. It is a poem of wit, picturing an unseen land from the "cherry" in its name.
According to the headnote, it was composed on hearing that there was a place called Sakuragawa. Sakuragawa in Hitachi Province is known as a poetic place famous for its cherries.
The poet, called "Tsurayuki," is Ki no Tsurayuki. A son of Ki no Mochiyuki, he was the leading compiler of the Kokin Wakashū and wrote its kana preface. He served as governor of Tosa among other posts, is known as the author of the Tosa Diary, and is counted among the Thirty-Six Immortal Poets.

The first line, "Tsune yori mo," means "more than usual."
In the second line, "harube" means the season of spring: "when spring comes."
The third line, "Sakuragawa," is a place name, its "sakura" echoing the blossoms.
The fourth line, "hana no nami koso," likens the petals drifting on the river to waves. "Koso" forms a kakarimusubi pattern with the perfective "rame" in the last line.
In the last line, "rame" is a present conjecture, imagining the distant place: "they must be rolling in without pause." 111 of this book also sings of the waterside at Suminoe, as scenes by the water are placed in this part of the book.
Author: Ki no Tsurayuki
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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