Ume no hana nioi no fukaku mietsuru wa haru no tonari no chikaki narikeri - Shui Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

梅の花匂ひの深く見えつるは
春の隣の近きなりけり

Roma-ji: Ume no hana nioi no fukaku mietsuru wa haru no tonari no chikaki narikeri
English Translation: Why the plum blossoms
showed their fragrance and their hue
so deep, I now see,
is that spring is a neighbor
dwelling very close at hand.
Meaning: The plum blossoms seemed so deep in color and scent because spring's neighbor, I now see, is close at hand.
Commentary: Book Seventeen Miscellaneous Autumn Poems 1156

Headnote: "Living in the house to the west, he sent word of how close they were as neighbors"
The poet says that the plum blossoms seemed so deep in color and scent because spring's neighbor is close at hand. The headnote shows that the author, who lived in the house to the west of Tsurayuki, sent this poem telling of how close they were as neighbors. Layering the nearness of spring with the nearness of the neighbor's house, and since spring corresponds to the east among the directions, the poem is taken to liken Tsurayuki's house to the east as spring's neighbor, expressing his friendship.
The next poem, 1157, is Tsurayuki's reply to this poem.
The author is Mimune no Motonatsu, a figure of whom little is known.

First line, "ume no hana," means "the plum blossoms," standing with the second line of the preceding poem, 1155, "miekoshi ume wa," and the first line of the next poem, 1157, "ume mo mina," as plum poems side by side.
Second line, "nioi no fukaku," means "deep in color and scent," with "nioi" meaning lovely color or fragrance.
Third line, "mietsuru wa," means "that they seemed so," with "tsuru" the attributive form of the perfective "tsu."
Fourth line, "haru no tonari no," means "spring's neighbor," layering the nearness of spring with the neighboring house.
Final line, "chikaki narikeri," means "is close at hand, I now see," with "keri" a sigh of realization.
Author: Mimune no Motonatsu
Source: Shui Wakashu
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