Tachimagau mine no kumo o ba harau tomo hana o chirasanu arashi nariseba

立ちまがふ峰の雲をば払ふとも
花を散らさぬ嵐なりせば

Roma-ji: Tachimagau mine no kumo o ba harau tomo hana o chirasanu arashi nariseba
English Translation: Though it sweep away
clouds that mingle on the peaks,
blending with the blooms,
would it were a storm that left
all the blossoms on the bough.
Meaning: Let the storm blow away the clouds that mingle with the blossoms on the peaks, if only it were a storm that did not scatter the flowers.
Commentary: Spring Poems 114

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "When composing many poems on falling blossoms"
The poet would not mind the storm blowing away the clouds that hang on the peaks and blend with the blossoms, if only it were a storm that did not scatter the flowers themselves.
When a storm clears the clouds, the blossoms can be seen, but it scatters them too. The poem expresses that contradiction through a convenient wish for a storm that clears the clouds yet spares the flowers, conveying how earnestly the poet grieves for them.

First line, “tachimagau”: rising and mingling until indistinguishable from the blossoms.
Second line, “mine no kumo o ba”: the clouds on the peaks.
Third line, “harau tomo”: even if it sweeps them away, a concessive supposition.
Fourth line, “hana o chirasanu”: not scattering the blossoms.
Fifth line, “arashi nariseba”: if it were such a storm, leaving unsaid something like how good it would be, so the wish lingers.
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
Prev Poem: Harukaze no hana no fubuki ni uzumarete yuki mo yararenu Shiga no yamamichi
Next Poem: Yoshinoyama hana fukigushite mine koyuru arashi wa kumo to yoso ni miyuran