Namida ni mo omoi no kiyuru mono naraba ito kaku mune wa kogasazaramashi - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

涙にもおもひの消ゆる物ならば
いとかく胸は焦がさざらまし

Roma-ji: Namida ni mo omoi no kiyuru mono naraba ito kaku mune wa kogasazaramashi
English Translation: If even by tears
the fire of love could be quenched,
as fires are put out,
I would not let my heart
be scorched so cruelly
Meaning: If the fire of love could be put out even by tears, my heart would not be scorched so terribly as this.
Commentary: Book Ten Love Poems II 644

Headnote: "Topic unknown."
The poet says that if tears could put out the fire of love, his heart would not be scorched so terribly. He likens a longing that will not die however many tears he sheds to a fire that even the water of tears cannot quench.
647 and 648 in this book also sing of burning love and its quenching, linked by the figure of fire. The third line of the main text reads "mono narase," which does not match "mono naraba" in the kana reading; since "narase" makes no sense, the kana reading is followed here.
The poet, called "Tsurayuki," is Ki no Tsurayuki. He was one of the compilers of the Kokin Wakashū and served as Governor of Tosa, among other posts. Known also as the author of the Tosa Diary, he is one of the Thirty-Six Poetic Immortals.

The first line, "Namida ni mo," means "even by tears."
In the second line, the "hi" of "omoi" is a pivot word for "hi," fire: "the fire of love goes out."
The third line, "mono naraba," means "if it were so."
The fourth line, "ito kaku mune wa," means "my heart, so terribly as this."
The last line, "kogasazaramashi," means "would not be scorched," closing with the counterfactual "mashi" in answer to "ba" in the third line. "Kogasu" is an associated word with fire.
Author: Ki no Tsurayuki
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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