Hito wa isa ware wa naki na no oshikereba mukashi mo ima mo shirazu to o iwan - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

人はいさ我はなき名の惜しければ
昔も今も知らずとを言はん

Roma-ji: Hito wa isa ware wa naki na no oshikereba mukashi mo ima mo shirazu to o iwan
English Translation: As for you, who knows—
but I hold dear my name
from groundless rumor,
so then and now alike
I'll say I never knew you
Meaning: I cannot speak for you, but I care too much about being named in baseless rumor, so I will say I have never known you, then or now.
Commentary: Book Ten Love Poems II 634

Headnote: "Reply."
The poet says that whatever he may feel, she treasures her name too much to suffer groundless rumor, and will say she has never known him, then or now. She turns his own words against him to reject his forceful claim outright.
It is a reply to the preceding poem, 633, taking up its "na no oshikaran" and "mukashi no tsuma" and turning them back as "naki na no oshikereba" and "mukashi mo ima mo."
The poet, called "Ōtsubune," was a woman known by that name, thought to be a lady-in-waiting's sobriquet. Few details of her life have come down to us.

The first line, "Hito wa isa," means "as for you, I cannot say."
The second line, "ware wa naki na no," means "for me, a groundless reputation."
The third line, "oshikereba," means "since I hold it dear," taking up "oshikaran" in the third line of the preceding poem.
The fourth line, "mukashi mo ima mo," means "then and now," answering "mukashi no tsuma" in the fourth line of the preceding poem.
The last line, "shirazu to o iwan," means "I will say I do not know you," with "o" an emphatic interjectory particle and "n" expressing intention.
Author: Ōtsubune
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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