Yoshinoyama tani e tanabiku shirakumo wa mine no sakura no chiru ni ya aru ran

吉野山谷へたなびく白雲は
峰の桜の散るにやあるらん

Roma-ji: Yoshinoyama tani e tanabiku shirakumo wa mine no sakura no chiru ni ya aru ran
English Translation: On Mount Yoshino,
trailing down into the vale,
those white clouds I see:
are they cherries on the peak
scattering upon the wind?
Meaning: The white clouds trailing down into the valleys of Mount Yoshino, could they be the cherries on the peak scattering?
Commentary: Spring Poems 110

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "When composing many poems on falling blossoms"
Seeing white clouds trailing down into the valleys of Mount Yoshino, the poet imagines that they may be the cherries on the peaks scattering and drifting down into the valley.
Until now, cherries in bloom have been likened to white clouds on the peaks; here the stream of falling petals is likened to white clouds trailing into the valley. The same cloud conceit shifts from blooming to falling.

First line, “Yoshinoyama”: Mount Yoshino in Yamato, famed for its cherries.
Second line, “tani e tanabiku”: trailing in long bands toward the valley.
Third line, “shirakumo wa”: those white clouds, likening the falling petals to clouds.
Fourth line, “mine no sakura no”: of the cherries on the peak.
Fifth line, “chiru ni ya aru ran”: the interrogative ya forms a kakari-musubi with the conjectural ran, closing with the question of whether they are falling.
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
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