Mie mo senu fukaki kokoro o katarite wa hito ni kachinu to omou mono ka wa - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

見えもせぬ深き心を語りては
人に勝ちぬと思ふものかは

Roma-ji: Mie mo senu fukaki kokoro o katarite wa hito ni kachinu to omou mono ka wa
English Translation: Telling of a heart
so deep it cannot be seen,
having told of it,
does one then believe oneself
the winner over others
Meaning: Just by speaking of a depth of heart no one can see, does one think one has won out over everyone else?
Commentary: Book Eighteen Miscellaneous Poems IV 1278

Headnote: "Topic unknown."
The poet asks whether, merely by speaking of a deep heart that cannot be seen, one thinks one has bested others. To a lover who proclaims the depth of his feelings, she gently points out that words alone cannot measure a heart.
The poet, Ise, was a daughter of Fujiwara no Tsugukage, Governor of Ise, and served Fujiwara no Onshi, consort of Emperor Uda. She received the emperor's favor and later bore Nakatsukasa to Prince Atsuyoshi. One of the Thirty-Six Poetic Immortals, she is represented in the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu by "Naniwagata mijikaki ashi no fushi no ma mo."

The first line, "Mie mo senu," means "that cannot even be seen."
The second line, "fukaki kokoro o," means "a deep heart," the depth of feeling the other proclaims.
The third line, "katarite wa," means "by telling of it."
The fourth line, "hito ni kachinu to," means "that one has bested others."
The last line, "omou mono ka wa," means "does one think so? Surely not," with "ka wa" rhetorical. Poem 1252 of this book likewise ends with "mono ka wa."
Author: Ise
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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