Kiekaeri mono omou aki no koromo koso namida no kawa no momiji narikere - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

消えかへり物思ふ秋の衣こそ
涙の河の紅葉なりけれ

Roma-ji: Kiekaeri mono omou aki no koromo koso namida no kawa no momiji narikere
English Translation: Fading quite away,
my robe of brooding autumn—
it is this, indeed,
that becomes the crimson leaves
on the river of my tears
Meaning: My robe, as I brood in autumn till I nearly fade away—it is this that becomes the crimson leaves upon the river of my tears.
Commentary: Book Six Autumn Poems II 332

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "On seeing the moon."
The poet says that the robe of one who broods in autumn until nearly fading away is itself the crimson leaves upon the river of tears. Likening a robe dyed crimson by tears of grief to crimson leaves floating down a river, it conveys the depth of brooding.
From 327 to 334, eight poems stand together under the headnote "On seeing the moon." Following the crimson leaves of the preceding poem, it likens a robe dyed by tears to crimson leaves.
The poet, called "Fukayabu," is Kiyohara no Fukayabu. Said to be a son of Kiyohara no Fusanori, he served as a secretary in the Bureau of Palace Craftsmen, among other posts. He was the great-grandfather of Sei Shōnagon and was also known as a master of the koto. His "natsu no yo wa mada yoi nagara akenuru o" is included in the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu.

The first line, "Kiekaeri," means "fading quite away," expressing a grief in which one seems about to vanish.
The second line, "mono omou aki no," means "of the autumn of brooding."
In the third line, "koso" is an emphatic particle, stressing "it is the robe."
The fourth line, "namida no kawa no," speaks of tears flowing like a river. Drawing on the idea that tears of utmost grief are crimson, it links them to crimson leaves.
The last line, "momiji narikere," means "it was the crimson leaves," with "koso" in the third line and the perfective "kere" forming a kakarimusubi pattern. It takes up "momijiba" in the preceding poem, 331.
Author: Kiyohara no Fukayabu
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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