Umegae no hana ni kozutau uguisu no koe sae niou haru no akebono - Senzai Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

梅が枝の花に木づたふ鶯の
声さへ匂ふ春の曙

Roma-ji: Umegae no hana ni kozutau uguisu no koe sae niou haru no akebono
English Translation: On plum tree branches
the warbler flits from flower
to flower and sings,
its very voice is fragrant
in the dawn of spring
Meaning: As the warbler flits from blossom to blossom along the plum branches, even its voice seems fragrant in the spring dawn.
Commentary: Book One Spring Poems I 28

Headnote: "Topic unknown"
At dawn in spring the warbler flits from blossom to blossom along the plum branches, and even its song seems steeped in the plum's scent. Describing a sound heard by the ear in words of fragrance and radiance, the poem condenses the bright mood of a spring dawn into a single verse.
The author, "the Ninnaji Prince-Priest (Shukaku)," is Prince-Priest Shukaku, a son of Emperor Go-Shirakawa who took holy orders and became abbot of Ninnaji. Devoted to poetry, he associated with many poets.

First line, "umegae no": "of the plum branches," modifying "hana" in the second line.
Second line, "hana ni kozutau": "kozutau" means to move along from branch to branch.
Third line, "uguisu no": modifies "koe" (voice) in the fourth line.
Fourth line, "koe sae niou": "sae" is additive, "even the voice." "Niou" includes both "to be fragrant" and "to glow with beauty." Where the preceding poem, 27, lamented that song cannot pass into scent, this poem says even the voice is fragrant.
Fifth line, "haru no akebono": ends on a noun. The next poem, 29, uses the same "kozutau" and "haru no akebono," so two dawn poems of the flitting warbler stand side by side.
Author: Cloistered Prince Shukaku
Source: Senzai Wakashu
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