Miyoshino no hana no sakari o kyō mireba Koshi no shirane ni harukaze zo fuku - Senzai Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

み吉野の花の盛りを今日見れば
越の白嶺に春風ぞ吹く

Roma-ji: Miyoshino no hana no sakari o kyō mireba Koshi no shirane ni harukaze zo fuku
English Translation: Fair Yoshino's
blossoms at their fullest height
I see today:
over the white peaks of Koshi
the spring wind is blowing
Meaning: Seeing today the blossoms of Yoshino at their height, I feel as though the spring wind were blowing across the snow-white peaks of Koshi.
Commentary: Book One Spring Poems I 76

Headnote: "Composed as a poem on blossoms when I had people compose ten-poem sets"
Composed on "blossoms" when the poet had people compose ten-poem sets, this poem says that seeing the cherries of Yoshino in full bloom today, the whole mountain is so white that it seems the spring wind is sweeping across the snow-covered White Mountain of Koshi in the north. Likening Yoshino's cherries to a distant snow peak, it paints a grand and pure spring scene, closing this book.
The author, "Master of the Empress Dowager's Household Toshinari," is Fujiwara no Shunzei (Toshinari), son of Provisional Middle Counselor Fujiwara no Toshitada, who served as Master of the Empress Dowager's Household. He is the compiler of this anthology, chosen at the command of Retired Emperor Go-Shirakawa, and the father of Fujiwara no Teika.
The note "religious name Shakuka" added to his name indicates the name he took after entering holy orders; Shunzei is known to have taken the religious name Shakua.

First line, "Miyoshino no": "mi" is an honorific prefix, and Yoshino is famed for its cherries.
Second line, "hana no sakari o": "the blossoms at their height," the same phrase as in 74, two poems earlier, as the poems on full bloom reach their climax.
Third line, "kyō mireba": "seeing them today." Where the opening poem, 1, spoke of the "today" of spring's start with "kasumi mo kyō zo," this final poem speaks of the "today" of full bloom, so the book begins and ends with "today."
Fourth line, "Koshi no shirane ni": the snow-covered White Mountain of Koshi in the north. It also echoes "Koshi no umi" in 38 of this book.
Fifth line, "harukaze zo fuku": "zo" closes with the attributive "fuku." The spring that began with haze just rising in the opening poem ends with a spring wind blowing over mountains in full bloom.
Author: Fujiwara no Shunzei
Source: Senzai Wakashu
Prev Poem: Sazanami ya Nagara no yama no minetsuzuki misebaya hito ni hana no sakari o
Next Poem: Sakishi yori chiru made mireba ko no moto ni hana mo hikazu mo tsumorinuru kana