秋の夜は同じ尾上に鳴く鹿の
更けゆくままに近くなるかな
更けゆくままに近くなるかな
- Roma-ji
-
Aki no yo wa onaji onoe ni naku shika no fukeyuku mama ni chikaku naru kana
- English Translation
-
On autumn nights
the deer that cries upon
the same high peak,
as the night grows ever late,
how near its voice becomes
- Meaning
- On an autumn night, the deer crying on the same peak sounds nearer and nearer as the night grows late.
- Commentary
-
Book Five Autumn Poems II 309
Headnote: "Topic unknown"
On an autumn night, the voice of a deer that must still be crying on the same peak seems to draw nearer as the night grows late. Though the deer has not moved, its voice feels closer as the night deepens and all around falls still, a subtle change caught by the ear.
The author, "Sukehito no Miko," is Prince Sukehito, third son of Emperor Go-Sanjō, known as the Third Prince. He excelled in poetry and music, and many men of letters and poets gathered at his residence.
First line, "aki no yo wa": setting the time. 304 of this book opens with the same line.
Second line, "onaji onoe ni": "onoe" is the summit of a mountain, and "onaji," "the same," stresses that the deer has not moved.
Third line, "naku shika no": continuing into the lines that follow, telling how its voice draws near.
Fourth line, "fukeyuku mama ni": "mama ni" means "as," linking the deepening night with the voice's approach.
Fifth line, "chikaku naru kana": "kana" is exclamatory, closing with wonder that the voice sounds closer.
- Author
- Prince Sukehito
- Source
- Senzai Wakashu
- Prev Poem
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Somakata ni michi ya madoeru saoshika no tsuma tou koe no shigeku mo aru kana
- Next Poem
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Saoshika no naku ne wa nobe ni kikoyuredo namida wa toko no mono ni zo arikeru