Toribeyama tani ni keburi no moetataba hakanaku mieshi ware to shiranan - Shui Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

鳥辺山谷に煙の燃え立たば
はかなく見えし我と知らなん

Roma-ji: Toribeyama tani ni keburi no moetataba hakanaku mieshi ware to shiranan
English Translation: In Toribe's hills,
if the smoke should rise and burn
in the valley there,
know that it is I, the one
who always seemed so frail.
Meaning: If smoke should rise burning in the valley of Mount Toribe, know that it is I, who always seemed so frail.
Commentary: Book Twenty Lament Poems 1324

Headnote: "Topic unknown"
The poet asks that if smoke rises in the valley of Mount Toribe, the other should know it is the poet, who seemed so frail. Mount Toribe, east of the capital, was a place of funerals where the smoke of cremation rose. Foreseeing a death that one's frail appearance had long hinted at, the poet calls on someone close to remember, on seeing the cremation smoke, that it is the poet.

First line, "Toribeyama," is a place of funerals in the Eastern Hills of the capital.
Second line, "tani ni keburi no," means "the smoke in the valley," the smoke of cremation.
Third line, "moetataba," means "if it should rise burning," with "ba" after the irrealis form expressing supposition.
Fourth line, "hakanaku mieshi," means "who seemed so frail," with "shi" the attributive form of the past auxiliary "ki," layering the fleetingness of smoke over the poet's frailty in life.
Final line, "ware to shiranan," means "please know it is I," with "nan" a final particle expressing a wish directed at another.
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Shui Wakashu
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