Aki no ike no tsuki no ue ni kogu fune nareba katsura no eda ni sao ya sawaran - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

秋の池の月の上に漕ぐ舟なれば
桂の枝に棹やさはらん

Roma-ji: Aki no ike no tsuki no ue ni kogu fune nareba katsura no eda ni sao ya sawaran
English Translation: In the autumn pond,
over the moon I row my boat,
and so I wonder,
on the branches of the laurel
will my pole catch as I go
Meaning: Since my boat rows over the moon in the autumn pond, I wonder whether my pole will catch on the branches of the laurel that grows there.
Commentary: Book Six Autumn Poems II 321

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Composed as an autumn poem."
The poet says that since the boat rows over the moon reflected on the autumn pond, the pole may catch on the branches of the laurel said to grow on the moon. Taking the moon reflected in the pond for the real moon and imagining the laurel within it, it is a bold and witty poem.
It draws on the Chinese legend that a laurel tree grows on the moon.
The poet, Ono no Yoshiki, was a grandson of Ono no Takamura. He served as a senior palace secretary, among other posts, and excelled at Chinese verse and prose and at calligraphy.

The first line, "Aki no ike no," means "of the autumn pond," and has an extra syllable.
The second line, "tsuki no ue ni kogu," means "rowing over the moon reflected on the water," and has extra syllables.
In the third line, "ba" gives the reason: "since it is a boat."
In the fourth line, "katsura" is the tree said to grow on the moon. 327 of this book also sings of "tsuki no katsura," the laurel of the moon.
In the last line, "ya" is an interrogative particle forming a kakarimusubi pattern with the attributive "n": "might my pole catch?"
Author: Ono no Yoshizai
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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