Ama no hara sayuru misora wa harenagara namida zo tsuki no kumo ni narikeru

天の原冴ゆるみ空は晴れながら
涙ぞ月の雲になりける

Roma-ji: Ama no hara sayuru misora wa harenagara namida zo tsuki no kumo ni narikeru
English Translation: The plain of heaven,
cold and clear, the sky above
is cloudless and bright,
but it is my tears that now
have become clouds on the moon.
Meaning: The wide sky is cold, clear and cloudless, yet my tears have become the clouds that dim the moon.
Commentary: Love Poems 623

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "The moon"
The wide sky is cold and clear without a single cloud. If the moon still looks dim, it is because the poet's own tears have become the clouds that hide it. The clear sky is set against the cloud of tears.
Following the preceding poem, which told of the dimming of the moon by tears as the moon's complaint, this one likens the tears themselves to a cloud, carrying on the same device from a different angle.

First line, “ama no hara”: the wide plain of the sky.
Second line, “sayuru misora wa”: sayu is to be cold and clear, and misora an honorific for the sky.
Third line, “harenagara”: nagara is concessive: though it is clear.
Fourth line, “namida zo tsuki no”: the binding particle zo is answered by the attributive keru at the end; this answers the topic.
Fifth line, “kumo ni narikeru”: keru marks realization: my tears have become a cloud, set against the clear sky of the third line.
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
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