Hana no iro ni hikari sashisou haru no yo zo ko no ma no tsuki wa mirubekarikeru - Senzai Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

花の色に光さし添ふ春の夜ぞ
木の間の月は見るべかりける

Roma-ji: Hana no iro ni hikari sashisou haru no yo zo ko no ma no tsuki wa mirubekarikeru
English Translation: Upon the blossoms' hue
its radiance adds its light
on nights of spring:
it is then the moon through trees
is the moon one ought to see
Meaning: It is on a spring night, when moonlight joins the color of the blossoms, that the moon glimpsed through the trees should truly be seen.
Commentary: Book One Spring Poems I 73

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Composed when presenting a hundred-poem sequence"
Like the preceding poem, this one belongs to the hundred-poem sequence presented to Retired Emperor Sutoku. It says that the moon seen through the trees is best viewed on a spring night, when its light falls on the color of the blossoms and heightens their beauty. Though autumn is held to be the season of the moon, the poet realizes that the moon through the trees on a spring night, where blossom and moon enhance each other, has a beauty all its own.
The author, "Jōsaimon'in no Hyōe," was a daughter of Minamoto no Akinaka, head of the Department of Divinities. A lady-in-waiting to Jōsaimon'in, Princess Muneko, daughter of Emperor Toba, she was the younger sister of Taikenmon'in no Horikawa.

First line, "hana no iro ni": "upon the color of the blossoms."
Second line, "hikari sashisou": "the moonlight shines on them as well." 24 in this book depicted moonlight filtering through plum branches, while this poem pairs moon with cherries, showing spring's progress from plum to cherry.
Third line, "haru no yo zo": "zo" links with "keru" in the last line, stressing "a spring night, and none other."
Fourth line, "ko no ma no tsuki wa": the moon glimpsed between the trees. Taking up the moonlight of the preceding poem, 72, it depicts the moon seen from beneath the blossoms.
Fifth line, "mirubekarikeru": "bekari" is the continuative of "beshi" expressing what is proper, and "keru" expresses realization: "it is the one to see."
Author: Jōsaimon'in no Hyōe
Source: Senzai Wakashu
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