Minasoko ni yadoru tsuki dani ukaberu o shizumu ya nani no mikuzu naru ran - Shui Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

水底に宿る月だに浮かべるを
沈むや何の水屑なるらん

Roma-ji: Minasoko ni yadoru tsuki dani ukaberu o shizumu ya nani no mikuzu naru ran
English Translation: When even the moon
that lodges in the water's depths
floats upon the surface,
what kind of drifting rubbish
am I, to lie sunk below?
Meaning: Even the moon lodged in the depths of the water floats upon its surface, so what sort of drifting rubbish am I, to lie sunk below?
Commentary: Book Eight Miscellaneous Poems I 441

Headnote: "When Lord Ren'gi was living at the Retired Emperor's Palace, he summoned poets and had them compose on the topic "The Autumn Moon on the Water""
The poet asks what sort of drifting rubbish he must be to lie sunk below, when even the moon reflected in the depths floats upon the surface. The headnote shows it was composed when Lord Ren'gi, Fujiwara no Yoritada, summoned poets to compose on the topic "The Autumn Moon on the Water." Setting the moon that seems to float in the water against his own fortunes, which do not rise as he wishes, he laments his lack of advancement. The next poem, 442, from the same gathering, finds comfort in seeing the moon sink and knowing he is not alone, so the two poems pair the floating moon with the sinking moon.
The author, the Left Commander Naritoki, is Fujiwara no Naritoki. A son of Fujiwara no Morotada, the Koichijō Minister of the Left, he served as Commander of the Left Guards and Major Counselor and was called the Koichijō Commander. His daughter Seishi became empress to Emperor Sanjō.
The character for "heart" or "topic" in the headnote appears to have been miscopied, and it is read here as "topic."

First line, "minasoko ni," means "in the depths of the water."
Second line, "yadoru tsuki dani," means "even the moon that lodges there," taking up "kage yadoru ran" in the final line of the preceding poem. "Dani" names the lesser to imply the greater.
Third line, "ukaberu o," means "floats, and yet," with "o" a concessive particle. The moon in the depths that seems to float on the surface is overlaid with the sense of rising in the world.
Fourth line, "shizumu ya nani no," means "what is it that sinks," with "shizumu" referring to himself sunk in obscurity and "ya" a questioning particle. This "sinking" is carried on in "tsuki no shizumu o" in the second line of the next poem, "mi o shizumu ran" in the final line of 443, and "shizumu mi wa" in the third line of 444.
Final line, "mikuzu naru ran," means "am I such rubbish," resolving "ya" with the attributive "ran." He belittles himself by likening himself to rubbish in the water.
Author: Fujiwara no Naritoki
Source: Shui Wakashu
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