Yoshinogawa kishi no yamabuki sakinureba soko ni zo fukaki iro wa miekeru - Senzai Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

吉野川岸の山吹咲きぬれば
底にぞ深き色は見えける

Roma-ji: Yoshinogawa kishi no yamabuki sakinureba soko ni zo fukaki iro wa miekeru
English Translation: Along the Yoshino
the kerria on the banks
have burst into bloom,
and there upon the riverbed
the deepest hue appears
Meaning: Now that the kerria on the banks of the Yoshino River have bloomed, it is on the riverbed below that their deepest color can be seen.
Commentary: Book Two Spring Poems II 114

Headnote: "Composed on the topic 'Kerria by the Water'"
Composed on the topic "Kerria by the Water." Now that the kerria on the banks of the Yoshino River are in bloom, their flowers are reflected in the water, and it is on the riverbed that their deep yellow is seen. The discovery that the color reflected in the river's depths looks richer than the flowers on the bank is conveyed by echoing "bottom" and "deep."
The author, "Fujiwara no Noritsuna," is a figure whose life is not well known; he is said to have taken the name Saiyū after entering holy orders.

First line, "Yoshinogawa": the Yoshino River in Yamato, a poetic place often paired with kerria.
Second line, "kishi no yamabuki": the kerria blooming on the riverbank, expressing the headnote's topic.
Third line, "sakinureba": the realized condition, "since they have bloomed."
Fourth line, "soko ni zo fukaki": the emphatic "zo" links with "keru" in the last line. The river's "bottom" and the color's "depth" echo each other, showing the richness of the kerria's hue reflected in the water.
Fifth line, "iro wa miekeru": "keru," the attributive of "keri" expressing discovery, closes with "zo." The next poem, 115, with "iro ni zo sumeru," also links water with the kerria's color.
Author: Fujiwara no Noritsuna
Source: Senzai Wakashu
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