恋しとはさらにも言はじ下紐の
解けむを人はそれと知らなむ
解けむを人はそれと知らなむ
- Roma-ji
-
Koishi to wa sara ni mo iwaji shitahimo no tokemu o hito wa sore to shiranamu
- English Translation
-
That I long for you
I will say no more at all—
my undersash,
should it come undone, I pray
you'll know it for what it is
- Meaning
- I will say no more that I long for you. Should the cord beneath my robe come loose of itself, I hope you will know that it is the sign of my love.
- Commentary
-
Book Eleven Love Poems III 701
Headnote: "Sent to a woman."
The poet says he will no longer say he longs for her, but if his undersash comes loose, he hopes she will take it as the sign of his love. Rather than pleading in words, he entrusts his feelings to the belief that a sash comes undone when one is loved.
According to the headnote, the poem was sent to a woman. The next poem, 702, is the reply, and the two form an exchange.
The poet, Ariwara no Motokata, was a grandson of Ariwara no Narihira and a son of Ariwara no Muneyana. He is known as the author of "toshi no uchi ni haru wa kinikeri," the opening poem of the Kokin Wakashū.
The first line, "Koishi to wa," means "that I long for you."
The second line, "sara ni mo iwaji," means "I will say no more," with "ji" expressing negative intention. The poem pauses here.
In the third line, "shitahimo no," the shitahimo is the cord of an underrobe or trousers. The line draws on the folk belief that it comes undone when someone loves you. The next poem, 702, also opens with "shitahimo no," answering with the same word.
The fourth line, "tokemu o hito wa," means "that it may come loose, you," with "mu" expressing conjecture.
The last line, "sore to shiranamu," means "I hope you will know it as such," with "namu" a particle expressing a wish directed at another.
- Author
- Ariwara no Motokata
- Source
- Gosen Wakashu
- Prev Poem
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Na ni shi owaba ausakayama no sanekazura hito ni shirarede kuru yoshi mo gana
- Next Poem
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Shitahimo no shirushi to suru mo tokenaku ni kataru ga goto wa arazu mo aru kana