Namida nomi shiru mi no usa mo kataru beku nageku kokoro o makura ni mo gana - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

涙のみ知る身の憂さも語るべく
嘆く心を枕にもがな

Roma-ji: Namida nomi shiru mi no usa mo kataru beku nageku kokoro o makura ni mo gana
English Translation: So that it might tell
of the sorrows of my life
that my tears alone know,
would that this grieving heart
might become my pillow
Meaning: If only this grieving heart of mine could be my pillow, so that it might tell the sorrows of my life that only my tears know.
Commentary: Book Eighteen Miscellaneous Poems IV 1269

Headnote: "Topic unknown."
The poet wishes her grieving heart could be her pillow, so that it might tell the sorrows known only to her tears. Likening the heart to a pillow that knows the secrets of the bed, she voices a longing to speak the pain she cannot tell anyone.
The poet is anonymous and the name is not known.

The first line, "Namida nomi," means "my tears alone."
The second line, "shiru mi no usa mo," means "even the sorrows of my life that they know."
The third line, "kataru beku," means "so that it might tell," with "beku" potential.
The fourth line, "nageku kokoro o," means "this grieving heart."
The last line, "makura ni mo gana," means "would that it were my pillow," with "mogana" a wish. Like "makura to mo gana" in the last line of 1266 of this book, it treats the pillow as a keeper of truth.
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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