Takasago no matsu o midori to mishi koto wa shita no momiji o shiranu narikeri - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

高砂の松を緑と見しことは
下の紅葉を知らぬなりけり

Roma-ji: Takasago no matsu o midori to mishi koto wa shita no momiji o shiranu narikeri
English Translation: That I saw the pine
of Takasago as green,
never changing,
was only because I knew not
the red leaves hidden below
Meaning: I thought the pine of Takasago was forever green only because I did not know of the autumn leaves turning red beneath it.
Commentary: Book Twelve Love Poems IV 834

Headnote: "When a woman with whom he spoke only now and then, not in earnest, had long gone without a visit."
The poet says that he took the pine of Takasago to be green only because he did not know of the reddening leaves below. Lamenting a change of heart, he says that the other's feelings, which he believed unchanging, had already turned color in a hidden place beneath.
According to the headnote, the poem was composed when visits had long ceased between him and a woman with whom he exchanged words only occasionally, not in any serious way. The next poem, 835, is the reply, and the two form an exchange.
The poet is listed as anonymous, and the composer's name has not come down to us.

The first line, "Takasago no," means "of Takasago," a famous poetic place in Harima. 864 in this book also opens with "takasago no" and sings of the pine.
The second line, "matsu o midori to," means "the pine as green," likening the evergreen pine to an unchanging heart.
The third line, "mishi koto wa," means "that I saw it so."
The fourth line, "shita no momiji o," means "the leaves turning red below," a figure for a hidden change of heart. As in 812 in this book, it contrasts green with the colors of autumn leaves.
The last line, "shiranu narikeri," means "was because I did not know," with "keri" expressing realization.
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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