Tamakazura tanomekuru hi no kazu wa aredo taedae nite wa kai nakarikeri - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

玉鬘頼めくる日の数はあれど
絶え絶えにてはかひなかりけり

Roma-ji: Tamakazura tanomekuru hi no kazu wa aredo taedae nite wa kai nakarikeri
English Translation: Like the jewel vine
the days you promised to come
are many indeed,
but drawn in so fitfully
they have come to nothing
Meaning: Like a jewel vine drawn in, the days on which you promised to come are many indeed, but coming only now and then, they have been worth nothing.
Commentary: Book Fourteen Love Poems VI 1002

Headnote: "Reply."
The reply says that the days he promised to come are many, but coming only fitfully they have been worth nothing. Taking up the jewel vine, the drawing in, the trust and the breaking from the preceding poem, she blames him less for the number of his promises than for visits that never last.
According to the headnote, it is a reply to the preceding poem, 1001. Where he vowed "tanomi wa taeji," my trust will not break, she shifts it to "taedae nite wa," if it comes only in fits, answering that even unbroken, a bond so intermittent comes to the same thing.
The poet is listed as anonymous, and the composer's name has not come down to us.

The first line, "Tamakazura," is the long-trailing jewel vine, taking up the third line of the preceding poem.
The second line, "tanomekuru hi no," means "of the days you made me trust you would come," with "tanome" in the lower bigrade conjugation meaning to make another rely. "Kuru" joins "to come" and "to draw in" a vine.
The third line, "kazu wa aredo," means "though they are many."
The fourth line, "taedae nite wa," means "if only now and then," taking up "taeji" in the preceding poem, an associated word with the jewel vine.
The last line, "kai nakarikeri," means "it has been worthless," denying the force of the heart declared in "omou kokoro ari" at the end of the preceding poem. It also echoes "kai ya nakaran" at the end of 1000 in this book.
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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