Ima wa chō kokoro Tsukuba no yama mireba kozue yori koso iro kawarikere - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

今はてふ心つくばの山見れば
梢よりこそ色変はりけれ

Roma-ji: Ima wa chō kokoro Tsukuba no yama mireba kozue yori koso iro kawarikere
English Translation: "It's over now,"
says the heart worn out—as I
look at Tsukuba's peak,
from the branch-tips first of all
the colors start to change
Meaning: When I look at Mount Tsukuba, where hearts give out with "It is over now," I see the colors changing first at the tips of the branches.
Commentary: Book Ten Love Poems II 674

Headnote: "Sent to someone whose visits had grown rare, attached to a branch whose tips had turned to autumn colors."
The poet says that looking at Mount Tsukuba, where the heart is exhausted and says "it is over now," the colors change first at the treetops. She likens the change of heart of a lover whose visits have grown rare to leaves that color from the tips.
According to the headnote, it was sent to someone whose visits had become infrequent, attached to a branch whose tips had turned red. 686 in this book also sings of "omoi Tsukuba no yama," joining "tsuku," to be exhausted, and Tsukuba.
The poet is listed as "anonymous," and the composer's name has not come down to us.

The first line, "Ima wa chō," means "that says it is over now."
In the second line, "Tsukuba" is a pivot word joining the heart being "exhausted" and Tsukuba, a poetic place in Hitachi. It is the same conceit as the fourth line of 686 in this book.
The third line, "yama mireba," means "when I look at the mountain."
The fourth line, "kozue yori koso," means "from the branch-tips," with "koso" an emphatic particle. "Kozue" also suggests the end of their relationship.
The last line, "iro kawarikere," means "the colors change," closing with the perfective "kere" in answer to "koso" in the fourth line, a kakarimusubi pattern. A change of heart is layered with the changing color of the leaves.
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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