Hagakure ni chiritodomareru hana nomi zo shinobishi hito ni au kokochi suru

葉隠れに散りとどまれる花のみぞ
忍びし人に逢ふ心地する

Roma-ji: Hagakure ni chiritodomareru hana nomi zo shinobishi hito ni au kokochi suru
English Translation: Hidden in the leaves,
only blossoms left behind
not yet scattered make
me feel as though I met her,
the one I loved in secret.
Meaning: Only the blossoms left unscattered, hidden among the leaves, make me feel as though I were meeting the one I loved in secret.
Commentary: Love Poems 599

Headnote: "Love expressed through lingering blossoms"
The topic is love expressed through blossoms that linger after the rest have fallen. Seeing the few blossoms remaining quietly in the shade of the young leaves, the poet feels as though he were meeting the one he loved in secret. The hiddenness of the blossoms left among the leaves is overlaid with the figure of a secret love.

First line, “hagakure ni”: hidden in the shade of the leaves.
Second line, “chiritodomareru”: remaining without falling, answering the lingering blossoms of the topic.
Third line, “hana nomi zo”: the blossoms alone; the binding particle zo is answered by the attributive suru at the end.
Fourth line, “shinobishi hito ni”: shinobu is to love in secret, avoiding others' eyes, echoing the hiddenness of hagakure in the first line.
Fifth line, “au kokochi suru”: it feels like meeting her, closing in the attributive form answering zo.
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
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