人知れぬ身は急げども年を経て
など越えがたき逢坂の関
など越えがたき逢坂の関
- Roma-ji
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Hito shirenu mi wa isogedomo toshi o hete nado koegataki ausaka no seki
- English Translation
-
Unknown to all,
I press on in such haste,
yet though years pass,
why is it so hard to cross
the barrier of Meeting Hill
- Meaning
- I, who love in secret, am in such a hurry, yet even as the years go by, why is the Ōsaka Barrier, the gate of meeting, so hard to cross?
- Commentary
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Book Eleven Love Poems III 731
Headnote: "Sent to a woman."
The poet asks why the Ōsaka Barrier is still so hard to cross after years, though he, loving in secret, is in haste. He voices his grief at not yet meeting her after years of longing, likening it to a barrier he cannot pass.
According to the headnote, the poem was sent to a woman. The next poem, 732, is her reply, and both end with "Ausaka no seki."
The poet, listed as "Koremasa no Ason," was Fujiwara no Koremasa. The eldest son of Minister of the Right Fujiwara no Morosuke, he rose to Regent and Chancellor. He served as director of the Poetry Bureau that compiled the Gosen Wakashū, and his "aware to mo iubeki hito wa omōede" is included in the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu.
The first line, "Hito shirenu," means "unknown to others," referring to a secret love.
The second line, "mi wa isogedomo," means "though I hurry."
The third line, "toshi o hete," means "though years pass."
The fourth line, "nado koegataki," means "why is it hard to cross," closing in the attributive in answer to "nado."
The last line, "ausaka no seki," is the barrier on the border of Yamashiro and Ōmi, echoing "au," to meet, and standing for what keeps them from meeting. It ends on a noun, in inverted order with the fourth line. The last line of the next poem, 732, is also "Ausaka no seki," sharing the same closing line.
- Author
- Fujiwara no Koretada
- Source
- Gosen Wakashu
- Prev Poem
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Wakaretsuru hodo mo henaku ni shiranami no tachikaerite mo mimaku hoshiki ka
- Next Poem
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Azumaji ni yukikau hito ni aranu mi wa itsu ka wa koemu ausaka no seki