No ni tateru eda naki ki ni mo otorikeri nochi no yo shiranu hito no kokoro wa

野に立てる枝なき木にも劣りけり
後の世知らぬ人の心は

Roma-ji: No ni tateru eda naki ki ni mo otorikeri nochi no yo shiranu hito no kokoro wa
English Translation: Worse even than a
tree that stands out in the fields
with no branches left,
such is the heart of one who
knows naught of the life to come.
Meaning: It is worse even than a branchless tree standing out in the fields, the heart of one who knows nothing of the life to come.
Commentary: Miscellaneous Poems 907

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "On what I was thinking in my heart"
This is the last of the five. The heart of one who knows nothing of the life to come is worse even than a branchless tree standing in the fields, the poet says. A tree without branches was a figure for uselessness, and he sternly declares that a heart heedless of the next life is worse still, closing the five.

First line, “no ni tateru”: standing in the fields.
Second line, “eda naki ki ni mo”: than a branchless tree, a figure for uselessness.
Third line, “otorikeri”: keri marks realization; it is worse; the poem breaks here.
Fourth line, “nochi no yo shiranu”: knowing nothing of the next life.
Fifth line, “hito no kokoro wa”: the human heart, inverted to follow the third line.
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
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