Utsusemi no munashiku kara ni naru made mo wasuren to omou ware naranaku ni - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

空蝉のむなしくからになるまでも
忘れんと思ふ我ならなくに

Roma-ji: Utsusemi no munashiku kara ni naru made mo wasuren to omou ware naranaku ni
English Translation: Until I become
an empty husk like the shell
a cicada leaves,
I am not one who would think
of forgetting you at all
Meaning: Even until I become an empty husk, like the shell a cicada leaves behind, I am not one who would ever think of forgetting you.
Commentary: Book Thirteen Love Poems V 896

Headnote: "Sent when a woman wrote to him with reproaches."
The poet says that even until he becomes an empty husk like a cicada's cast-off shell, he is not one to think of forgetting her. He vows his constancy firmly, saying he will not forget until he is a lifeless body.
According to the headnote, the poem was sent in answer when a woman wrote to him with reproaches. Meeting her complaint, he tries to ease her heart by saying he will not forget her until he dies.
The poet, listed as "Fukayabu," was Kiyohara no Fukayabu. Grandfather of Kiyohara no Motosuke and great-grandfather of Sei Shonagon, he served in posts such as Senior Secretary of the Palace Storehouse. Known also as a fine player of the koto, his "natsu no yo wa mada yoi nagara akenuru o" is included in the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu.
The second line of the main text reads "munashiku kara ni," which does not match "munashiki kara ni" in the reading line. Here the main text is followed.

The first line, "Utsusemi no," means "of a cicada's shell," working as a pillow word leading to "munashi," empty.
The second line, "munashiku kara ni," means "emptily into a husk," with "kara" overlaying the cicada's shell and the body left by the dead.
The third line, "naru made mo," means "until I become so," marking the limit of death itself.
The fourth line, "wasuren to omou," means "think to forget," with "n," a form of "mu," expressing intention.
The last line, "ware naranaku ni," means "I am not one who would," with "naku ni" an adversative expression carrying a note of exclamation.
Author: Kiyohara no Fukayabu
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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