Narai arite kaze sasou tomo yamazakura tazunuru ware o machitsukete chire

ならひありて風誘ふとも山桜
尋ぬる我を待ちつけて散れ

Roma-ji: Narai arite kaze sasou tomo yamazakura tazunuru ware o machitsukete chire
English Translation: Though it is the way,
and the wind invites you off,
O mountain cherry,
wait until I come to you,
and then scatter if you must.
Meaning: Even if it is the way of things for the wind to lure you away, O mountain cherry, wait for me as I come seeking you, and only then let your petals fall.
Commentary: Spring Poems 84

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "When composing many poems on cherry blossoms"
Even if it is the way of the world for blossoms to be lured away by the wind, the poet calls to the mountain cherry, asking it at least to wait until he arrives before it scatters.
While accepting the inescapable fate of falling flowers, the wish to see them just once is voiced forcefully in the imperative. Taking up the preceding poem's worry that blossoms may fall before their prime, this poem moves on to the wish to meet them before they scatter.

First line, “narai arite”: since it is the way of the world, a line with an extra syllable.
Second line, “kaze sasou tomo”: even if the wind lures you to scatter, a concessive supposition.
Third line, “yamazakura”: an address to the mountain cherry.
Fourth line, “tazunuru ware o”: me, who comes seeking you.
Fifth line, “machitsukete chire”: wait for me, then scatter, an imperative closing the poem with an earnest plea to the blossoms.
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
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