ひとりのみ思へば苦しいかにして
同じ心に人を教へむ
同じ心に人を教へむ
- Roma-ji
-
Hitori nomi omoeba kurushi ika ni shite onaji kokoro ni hito o oshiemu
- English Translation
-
To long all alone,
this is a bitter thing—
by what means, I wonder,
could I teach her to share
the very heart I feel
- Meaning
- To love alone like this is painful. Somehow I wish I could teach her to feel the same as I do.
- Commentary
-
Book Ten Love Poems II 602
Headnote: "Sent to a woman for the first time."
The poet says that loving alone is painful, and wishes he could somehow teach her to share his feelings. He states plainly the pain of one-sided love and hopes she will come to feel as he does.
According to the headnote, this was the first poem he sent to the woman. Following the preceding poem, it is the second of the three poems sent at the start of a courtship.
The poet, Mibu no Tadamine, was one of the compilers of the Kokin Wakashū. He is one of the Thirty-Six Poetic Immortals, and his "ariake no tsurenaku mieshi wakare yori" is included in the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu.
The first line, "Hitori nomi," means "all by myself." 690 in this book also opens with "hitori nomi" and continues with "koureba kurushi," taking a form very close to the upper verse of this poem.
The second line, "omoeba kurushi," means "to long is painful," and the poem pauses here.
The third line, "ika ni shite," means "by what means, somehow."
The fourth line, "onaji kokoro ni," means "so that she shares the same heart as mine."
The last line, "hito o oshiemu," means "I would teach her," with "mu" expressing intention.
- Author
- Mibu no Tadamine
- Source
- Gosen Wakashu
- Prev Poem
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Hito o mite omou omoi mo aru mono o sora ni kouru zo hakanakarikeru
- Next Poem
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Waga kokoro itsu naraite ka minu hito o omoiyaritsutsu koishikaruran