Nabiku kata arikeru mono o nayotake no yo ni henu mono to omoikeru kana - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

なびく方ありけるものをなよ竹の
よに経ぬものと思ひけるかな

Roma-ji: Nabiku kata arikeru mono o nayotake no yo ni henu mono to omoikeru kana
English Translation: There was someone, then,
toward whom she bent all along,
yet like young bamboo
not yet grown to know the world,
I had thought she must be still
Meaning: She already had someone she bent toward, yet I had thought her a young bamboo, one who had not yet known the ways of love.
Commentary: Book Thirteen Love Poems V 906

Headnote: "Two men were courting a woman; hearing that she had answered one of them, the other sent this."
The poet says she already had someone to bend toward, yet he had believed her still innocent of love. Likening the woman to supple young bamboo, he tells of his dismay at learning her heart had already turned to another man.
According to the headnote, two men were courting one woman, and when one heard she had answered the other, he sent this. The next poem, 907, also speaks of "yo ni henu" through the joints of bamboo in "kuretake no yo ni henu," so poems sharing the same phrase stand side by side.
The poet is listed as anonymous, and the composer's name has not come down to us.

The first line, "Nabiku kata," means "one toward whom she bends," overlaying the bending of bamboo with a woman turning her heart.
The second line, "arikeru mono o," means "there was, and yet," with "mono o" an adversative conjunctive particle.
The third line, "nayotake no," means "like supple young bamboo," leading to "yo," the joint of a bamboo stem.
The fourth line, "yo ni henu mono to," means "one who has not yet known love," with "yo" joining the joint of bamboo and "yo," the world of love between man and woman. The next poem uses the same phrase in its fourth line.
The last line, "omoikeru kana," means "so I had thought," a sigh at realizing his mistake.
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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