Oshikaranu mi o suteyarade furu hodo ni nagaki yami ni ya mata mayoinan

惜しからぬ身を捨てやらで経る程に
長き闇にや又迷ひなん

Roma-ji: Oshikaranu mi o suteyarade furu hodo ni nagaki yami ni ya mata mayoinan
English Translation: Not worth regretting,
yet this self I cannot cast,
and while I live on,
in the long darkness again
will I wander, lose my way?
Meaning: While I go on living, unable to cast off this self that is not worth keeping, will I lose my way once more in the long darkness?
Commentary: Miscellaneous Poems 738

Headnote: "This poem too was enclosed"
This came from the same certain person, enclosed with the earlier reply. While living on, unable to cast off a self not worth regretting, will I once again lose my way in the long darkness of birth and death? The writer confides to Saigyō the fear of being unable to cut off delusion even after taking vows.

First line, “oshikaranu”: not worth regretting.
Second line, “mi o suteyarade”: yaru is to do completely, and de is negative; unable to cast off the self.
Third line, “furu hodo ni”: as the days pass.
Fourth line, “nagaki yami ni ya”: the long darkness is the world of delusion; the question particle ya is answered by nan in the fifth line.
Fifth line, “mata mayoinan”: nan is I will surely, closing the ya construction.
Source: Sankashu
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