Aware to mo ushi to mo iwaji kagerō no aru ka naki ka ni kenuru yo nareba - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

あはれとも憂しとも言はじかげろふの
あるかなきかに消ぬる世なれば

Roma-ji: Aware to mo ushi to mo iwaji kagerō no aru ka naki ka ni kenuru yo nareba
English Translation: I will not say "how dear,"
nor will I say "how bitter"—
like the shimmering haze,
barely here or not, this world
fades before we know it
Meaning: I will say neither that it is dear nor that it is bitter, for this world, like a shimmering haze, fades away while we can scarcely tell whether it is there at all.
Commentary: Book Sixteen Miscellaneous Poems II 1191

Headnote: "Topic unknown."
The poet will say neither that the world is dear nor that it is bitter, for it fades like a shimmering haze, scarcely there before it is gone. The poem voices a resignation that speaks of neither joy nor grief, since there is no use being moved by so fleeting a world.
The poet is listed as anonymous, and the composer's name has not come down to us.

The first line, "Aware to mo," means "that it is dear," opening with the same word as "aware chō" in the first line of the next poem.
The second line, "ushi to mo iwaji," means "nor will I say it is bitter," with "ji" negative intention. The poem pauses here.
The third line, "kagerō no," means "like a shimmering haze," a figure for what is fleeting.
The fourth line, "aru ka naki ka ni," means "while one cannot tell if it is there or not."
The last line, "kenuru yo nareba," means "since it is a world that fades," supplying the reason for the second line in inverted order.
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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