ひたふるに思ひなわびそ古さるる
人の心はそれぞ世の常
人の心はそれぞ世の常
- Roma-ji
-
Hitaburu ni omoi na wabi so furusaruru hito no kokoro wa sore zo yo no tsune
- English Translation
-
Do not, in your grief,
give yourself wholly to despair—
a lover's heart
that grows old and wears away
is but the way of the world
- Meaning
- Do not lose yourself in grief. That a person's heart grows stale and drifts away is simply the way of the world.
- Commentary
-
Book Twelve Love Poems IV 830
Headnote: "Sent on hearing that Ise was grieving because someone had forgotten her."
The poet tells her not to sink wholly into grief, for a heart that grows stale and is cast aside is the way of the world. To Ise, lamenting that her lover has forgotten her, he sends consolation, saying that a change of heart is only the common way of things.
According to the headnote, the poem was sent when he heard that Ise was grieving at being forgotten by someone. The next poem, 831, is Ise's reply, and the two form an exchange.
The poet, called "the posthumous Chancellor," was Fujiwara no Tokihira. The eldest son of Regent Fujiwara no Mototsune, he rose to Minister of the Left and was posthumously granted the title of Chancellor. He is also known for having Sugawara no Michizane sent away to Dazaifu.
The first line, "Hitaburu ni," means "wholeheartedly," the same sense as "hitasura ni" in the first line of 808 in this book.
The second line, "omoi na wabi so," means "do not grieve," with "na ... so" expressing prohibition. The poem pauses here.
The third line, "furusaruru," means "growing old and wearied of."
The fourth line, "hito no kokoro wa," means "a person's heart."
The last line, "sore zo yo no tsune," means "that is the way of the world," closing firmly on a noun. The next poem, 831, answers by opening with "yo no tsune no."
- Author
- Fujiwara no Tokihira
- Source
- Gosen Wakashu
- Prev Poem
-
Ōshima ni mizu o hakobishi hayafune no hayaku mo hito ni aimiteshi kana
- Next Poem
-
Yo no tsune no hito no kokoro o mada mineba nani ka kono tabi kenubeki mono o