Chitose sumu ike no migiwa no yaezakura kage sae soko ni kasanete zo miru - Senzai Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

千歳すむ池の汀の八重桜
影さへ底に重ねてぞ見る

Roma-ji: Chitose sumu ike no migiwa no yaezakura kage sae soko ni kasanete zo miru
English Translation: The double cherries
on the shore of this pond that
stays clear a thousand years:
even their reflections, there
below, I see layered too
Meaning: The double-petaled cherries on the shore of this pond, clear for a thousand years, I see layered even in their reflections on the bottom.
Commentary: Book Ten Poems of Celebration 613

Headnote: "Composed on the topic 'Blossoms over the Pond' on the day of Emperor Horikawa's visit to the Toba Palace"
Composed on the topic "Blossoms over the pond" on the day Emperor Horikawa visited the Toba Palace. The double cherries on the shore of the pond, clear for a thousand years, he says, are seen layered even in their reflections on the bottom. The cherry that layers its petals eightfold is mirrored on the water and layered once more in reflection, and in these layered blossoms the poet places his wish that the years of the reign may pile up as well.
The author, "Provisional Middle Counselor Toshitada," was the son of Major Counselor Fujiwara no Tadaie. He rose to Provisional Middle Counselor and was the father of Fujiwara no Shunzei, the compiler of this anthology.
Poem 631 of this book likewise sings of a pond that stays a thousand years: "the pond water at a dwelling that will stay a thousand years."

First line, "chitose sumu": "sumu" combines "sumu," "to be clear," said of the water, and "sumu," "to dwell," as the pond abides for a thousand years. It shares "chitose sumu beki" with the fourth line of 631.
Second line, "ike no migiwa no": "migiwa" is the water's edge, taking up "over the pond" in the topic.
Third line, "yaezakura": a cherry with many layers of petals. "Yae," "eightfold," is a related word to "kasanete," "layering," in the last line.
Fourth line, "kage sae soko ni": "kage" is the cherry's image reflected in the water, and the additive "sae" means "even the reflection, at the bottom."
Fifth line, "kasanete zo miru": the emphatic "zo" closes with the attributive "miru." Besides the eightfold blossoms, the poet sees even their reflections on the bottom layered.
Author: Fujiwara no Toshitada
Source: Senzai Wakashu
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