classic waka stream

吹き乱る柞が原を見渡せば
色なき風も紅葉しにけり
Roma-ji

Fukimidaru hahaso ga hara o miwataseba iro naki kaze mo momijishinikeri

English Translation
Where the wind tosses
the oak grove all about,
as I gaze afar,
even the colorless wind
has turned to autumn hues
Meaning
As I look out over the oak grove the wind is tossing, even the colorless autumn wind has turned to autumn hues.
Commentary
Book Five Autumn Poems II 374

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Composed on the topic of falling leaves"
Composed on the topic of falling leaves. Looking out over the oak grove the wind is tossing, the poet says, even the colorless wind seems to have turned to autumn hues, dyed by the swirling leaves. It is a conceit that grasps the invisible wind as taking on color through the scattering leaves.
The author, "Kamo no Shigeyasu," came from a family of priests of the Kamo Shrine, but little is known of his life.
"Iro naki kaze," the colorless wind, is a name for the autumn wind, and in the Kokin Waka Rokujō there is a poem by Ki no Tomonori saying he had thought the autumn wind colorless. Like 368 of this book, it sings of an oak grove and ends with the same line, "momijishinikeri."

First line, "fukimidaru": the wind blowing hard and tossing the leaves into disorder.
Second line, "hahaso ga hara o": a grove where hahaso oaks grow together, the same tree as "hahasohara" in 368 of this book.
Third line, "miwataseba": "as I look out far and wide."
Fourth line, "iro naki kaze mo": "iro naki kaze" is the autumn wind, "even the wind that has no color," showing the surprise.
Fifth line, "momijishinikeri": "ni" is perfective and "keri" exclamatory. It is the same last line as 368 of this book, seeing the colorless wind turned to autumn hues.
Author
Kamo no Nariyasu
Source
Senzai Wakashu
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