Watatsumi to tanomeshi koto mo asenureba ware zo waga mi no ura wa uramuru - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

わたつみと頼めし事もあせぬれば
我ぞ我が身のうらはうらむる

Roma-ji: Watatsumi to tanomeshi koto mo asenureba ware zo waga mi no ura wa uramuru
English Translation: Deep as the sea,
so you made me trust your word—
now it has grown shallow,
and it is I who reproach
the shores of my own heart
Meaning: You made me trust that your love was as deep as the sea, but now that promise has grown shallow, and it is I who resent my own fate.
Commentary: Book Ten Love Poems II 618

Headnote: "Reply."
The poet says that since the promise that made her trust his love to be deep as the sea has grown shallow, it is she who resents her own lot. To a man who claimed he could not even reproach anyone, she retorts that she is the one with cause for reproach.
It is a reply to the preceding poem, 617; taking up its "sea" and "foam," it answers with words of the sea such as "watatsumi," "asu," and "ura."
The poet, Ise, was a daughter of Fujiwara no Tsugukage, Governor of Ise, and served Empress Onshi, consort of Emperor Uda. She is one of the Thirty-Six Poetic Immortals, and her "Naniwagata mijikaki ashi no fushi no ma mo" is included in the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu.

The first line, "Watatsumi to," means "as deep as the sea," taking up the "sea" of the preceding poem.
The second line, "tanomeshi koto mo," means "the promise you made me trust."
The third line, "asenureba," means "since it has grown shallow," with "asu" an associated word with the sea.
The fourth line, "ware zo waga mi no," means "it is I who, of my own self," with "zo" an emphatic particle. It takes up "mi" in the preceding poem.
In the last line, "ura" is a pivot word joining "ura," a bay, and "ura," the heart or one's lot, and "uramuru" also suggests gazing on the bay. It closes with the attributive "uramuru" in answer to "zo" in the fourth line, a kakarimusubi pattern.
Author: Ise
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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