Chiru hana o oshimu kokoro ya todomarite mata kon haru no tane ni naru beki

散る花を惜しむ心やとどまりて
また来ん春の種になるべき

Roma-ji: Chiru hana o oshimu kokoro ya todomarite mata kon haru no tane ni naru beki
English Translation: Will the heart that grieves
over blossoms as they fall
linger on behind,
and become the seed from which
springtime blooms again next year?
Meaning: Will the heart that grieves for falling blossoms linger on, and become the seed of the spring that comes again?
Commentary: Spring Poems 127

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "When composing many poems on falling blossoms"
The poet wonders whether the heart that grieves for falling blossoms might linger in this world and become the seed from which flowers bloom again next spring.
Likening the grieving heart to the very seed of the flowers, the poem turns the sorrow of parting into hope for the coming spring. Amid the sadness of falling blossoms, it finds anticipation in the turning of the seasons.

First line, “chiru hana o”: the falling blossoms.
Second line, “oshimu kokoro ya”: the interrogative ya forms a kakari-musubi with the attributive beki in the fifth line.
Third line, “todomarite”: remaining in this world.
Fourth line, “mata kon haru no”: of the spring that will come again.
Fifth line, “tane ni naru beki”: will it become the seed, closing with the question of whether the grieving heart will make the flowers bloom.
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
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