おぼつかないづこなるらん虫の音を
尋ねば草の露や乱れん
尋ねば草の露や乱れん
- Roma-ji
-
Obotsukana izuko naruran mushi no ne o tazuneba kusa no tsuyu ya midaren
- English Translation
-
How uncertain now,
where can it be that they are?
If I seek the voice
of the insects, would the dew
on the grasses be disturbed?
- Meaning
- I cannot tell where they are. If I go searching for the insects' voices, will the dew on the grass be scattered?
- Commentary
-
Book Three Autumn Poems 178
Headnote: "Composed at the house of Lord Rengi on the topic of insects in the grass at night"
Unable to tell where the insects singing in the night grass are, the poet hesitates, fearing that if he pushes in to search for their voices, the dew on the grass will be scattered. The poem expresses a heart wavering between the lure of the insects' song and the wish not to spoil the lovely dew. According to the headnote, it was composed at the house of Lord Rengi, that is, Fujiwara no Yoritada, on the topic of insects in the grass at night.
Fujiwara no Tameyori was a poet of the mid-Heian period and a son of Fujiwara no Masatada. He was an uncle of Murasaki Shikibu.
First line, "obotsukana," means "how uncertain," an exclamation using the stem of an adjective. Poems on insects follow from here, and this poem begins the sequence.
Second line, "izuko naruran," means "where might they be," with "ran" as an auxiliary of present conjecture. The poem pauses here.
Third line, "mushi no ne o," means "the voices of the insects."
Fourth line, "tazuneba kusa no," means "if I seek them, the grass's," with "ba" marking a hypothetical condition.
Final line, "tsuyu ya midaren," means "would the dew be disturbed," with the questioning particle "ya" resolved by "n," the attributive of the conjectural auxiliary.
- Author
- Fujiwara no Tameyori
- Source
- Shui Wakashu
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