Murakumo no shigurete somuru momijiba wa usuku koku koso iro ni miekere - Senzai Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

むら雲の時雨れて染むる紅葉葉は
薄く濃くこそ色に見えけれ

Roma-ji: Murakumo no shigurete somuru momijiba wa usuku koku koso iro ni miekere
English Translation: By scattered clouds
with their cold showers dyed,
the autumn leaves,
some pale and others deep,
show their colors to the eye
Meaning: The autumn leaves, dyed by cold showers from scattered clouds, show their colors pale in some places and deep in others.
Commentary: Book Five Autumn Poems II 354

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Composed on the topic of autumn leaves"
Composed on the topic of autumn leaves. The leaves dyed by the cold showers from gathering clouds, the poet says, look pale in some places and deep in others, because the clouds are patchy. It is an intellectual conceit that traces the shading of the leaves to the unevenness of showers from scattered clouds.
The author, "Kakuen Hōshi," was a monk of the cloistered-rule period, but little is known of his life.
Following the preceding poem, 353, it draws on the idea that cold showers dye the leaves.

First line, "murakumo no": "murakumo" are gathering clouds, with "mura" also suggesting unevenness.
Second line, "shigurete somuru": "shiguru" is for a cold shower to fall, and "somu" to dye. Like "hatsushigure" in the preceding poem, 353, it sees the showers dyeing the leaves.
Third line, "momijiba wa": presenting the subject.
Fourth line, "usuku koku koso": the emphatic "koso" closes with the perfective form "kere" in the last line, showing the shading of color.
Fifth line, "iro ni miekere": closing the "koso" of the fourth line in the perfective form. "Keri" expresses realization.
Author: Kakuen
Source: Senzai Wakashu
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