Utsutsu ni zo tou bekarikeru yume to nomi mayoishi hodo ya harukekariken - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

現にぞ問ふべかりける夢とのみ
迷ひしほどや遥けかりけん

Roma-ji: Utsutsu ni zo tou bekarikeru yume to nomi mayoishi hodo ya harukekariken
English Translation: In waking life
I should have come to see you;
while I lost my way,
thinking it only a dream,
how far apart we were
Meaning: I should have come to you in waking life. While I wandered, thinking we could meet only in dreams, how far apart we must have been.
Commentary: Book Ten Love Poems II 641

Headnote: "Imperial reply."
The poet says he should have visited her in waking life, and wonders how far apart they were while he wandered, thinking of meeting only in dreams. To the lady who asked how he could find her grave even in a dream, he answers that he ought to have come in reality, conveying the depth of his feelings.
It is the emperor's reply to the preceding poem, 640, taking up its "dream" and setting it against "waking life."
The poet, called "the imperial poem of Engi," is Emperor Daigo. Engi was the era name of his reign, and "gyosei" refers to a poem composed by an emperor. A son of Emperor Uda, he is also known for ordering the compilation of the Kokin Wakashū.

The first line, "Utsutsu ni zo," means "in waking life," with "zo" an emphatic particle. Against "yume nite mo" in the preceding poem, it puts forward "utsutsu."
The second line, "tou bekarikeru," means "I should have visited," closing with the attributive "keru" in answer to "zo" in the first line, a kakarimusubi pattern. The poem pauses here.
The third line, "yume to nomi," means "thinking it only in dreams," taking up "yume nite mo" in the third line of the preceding poem.
The fourth line, "mayoishi hodo ya," means "while I wandered," with "ya" an interrogative particle.
The last line, "harukekariken," means "how distant it must have been," closing with the attributive "ken" in answer to "ya" in the fourth line, a kakarimusubi pattern.
Author: Emperor Daigo
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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