Yukikaeri orite kazasamu asana asana shika tachinarasu nobe no akihagi - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

行き帰り折りてかざさむ朝な朝な
鹿立ちならす野辺の秋萩

Roma-ji: Yukikaeri orite kazasamu asana asana shika tachinarasu nobe no akihagi
English Translation: Going and returning,
let me pick and wear them in my hair—
morning after morning
where the deer come treading,
the bush clover of the fields
Meaning: Coming and going, let me pick and wear in my hair the autumn bush clover of the fields, trodden morning after morning by the deer.
Commentary: Book Six Autumn Poems II 298

Headnote: "Composed as an autumn poem."
The poet says that each time he goes back and forth across the fields, he will pick and wear in his hair the autumn bush clover that the deer tread down every morning. It delights in the charm of bush clover blooming in fields where deer come.
According to the headnote, it was composed as an autumn poem. From 298 to 300, three poems on autumn bush clover stand together under the headnote "Composed as an autumn poem."
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, "Yukikaeri," means "each time I go and come back."
In the second line, "kazasu" means to wear flowers or sprays in the hair, and "mu" is an auxiliary of intent: "let me pick and wear them." The poem pauses here.
The third line, "asana asana," means "morning after morning," and has an extra syllable.
The fourth line, "shika tachinarasu," means "where deer come treading." 306 of this book uses the same words in "saoshika no tachinarasu," also singing of bush clover.
The last line, "nobe no akihagi," ends on a noun and stands in inversion with the second line, naming at the end the bush clover to be worn. 317 of this book also sets "nobe no akihagi" in its fourth line.
Author: Ki no Tsurayuki
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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