Nureginu o ikaga kizaran yo no hito wa ame no shita ni shi suman kagiri wa - Shui Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

濡れ衣をいかが着ざらん世の人は
あめのしたにし住まんかぎりは

Roma-ji: Nureginu o ikaga kizaran yo no hito wa ame no shita ni shi suman kagiri wa
English Translation: How could one escape
wearing robes of soaking blame,
we people of this world,
so long as we must dwell
beneath the rainy heavens?
Meaning: How could anyone avoid wearing a wet robe of false blame, so long as the people of this world live under heaven, under the falling rain?
Commentary: Book Nineteen Miscellaneous Love Poems 1215

Headnote: "Topic unknown"
The poet asks how people could avoid wearing a wet robe of false blame, so long as they live under heaven. Pivoting on "ame no shita," under heaven and under the rain, it says that just as one's robe gets wet under the rain, so long as one lives in this world one cannot escape baseless rumor, singing of a heart pained by a false reputation. With the next poem, 1216, it forms a pair in singing of a wet robe and of "under heaven."

First line, "nureginu o," means "a wet robe," baseless rumor or false blame, layered with a robe soaked by the rain. It shares the word "nureginu" with the fourth line of the next poem, 1216, "kiteshi nureginu."
Second line, "ikaga kizaran," means "how could one not wear it," a rhetorical question. The poem breaks after this second line, and the lower verse gives the reason in inverted order.
Third line, "yo no hito wa," means "the people of the world."
Fourth line, "ame no shita ni shi," is a pivot word: "ame no shita" means "under heaven" and "under the rain." "Shi" is emphatic. It shares the same pivot with the first line of the next poem, 1216, "ame no shita."
Final line, "suman kagiri wa," means "so long as they dwell," that is, so long as they live in this world.
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Shui Wakashu
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