Nioitsutsu chirinishi hana zo omōyuru natsu wa midori no ha nomi shigereba - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

匂ひつつ散りにし花ぞ思ほゆる
夏は緑の葉のみ茂れば

Roma-ji: Nioitsutsu chirinishi hana zo omōyuru natsu wa midori no ha nomi shigereba
English Translation: Glowing as they bloomed,
the flowers that fell away,
those I now recall,
for in the summer only leaves
of green grow thick upon the trees
Meaning: I find myself recalling the flowers that glowed so fair and then fell—for in summer only green leaves grow thick upon the trees.
Commentary: Book Four Summer Poems 165

Headnote: "Topic unknown."
Because in summer only green leaves grow thick, the poet recalls the spring flowers that glowed and then fell. Gazing at trees with little color in summer, he longs for the vanished blossoms of spring.
The poet is listed as "anonymous," and the composer's name has not come down to us.

In the first line, "niou" means to glow with beautiful color, and "tsutsu" expresses continuation.
In the second line, "nishi" combines the continuative form of the completive auxiliary "nu" and the attributive form of the past auxiliary "ki": "the flowers that have fallen." "Zo" is an emphatic particle.
The third line, "omōyuru," means "come to mind of themselves," and in the attributive it completes the kakarimusubi pattern with "zo" in the second line. The poem pauses here, inverted with the lower verses.
The fourth line, "natsu wa midori no," means "in summer, all green," setting the colors of spring blossoms against summer's green leaves.
In the last line, "ba" marks a settled condition: "because only leaves grow thick," giving the reason.
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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