Mizu no oto wa sabishiki io no tomo nare ya mine no arashi no taema taema ni

水の音はさびしき庵の友なれや
峰の嵐の絶え間絶え間に

Roma-ji: Mizu no oto wa sabishiki io no tomo nare ya mine no arashi no taema taema ni
English Translation: The sound of water,
is it a friend to this hut
where I live alone,
heard in each and every lull
of the storm upon the peaks?
Meaning: Is the sound of water a friend to my lonely hut? It comes to me in every lull of the storm upon the peaks.
Commentary: Miscellaneous Poems 944

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Topic unknown"
Is the sound of water, heard in each lull of the storm upon the peaks, a friend to my lonely hut? the poet asks, finding comfort in the sound of water amid the loneliness of a mountain hut where storm and stream are heard by turns. In 936 too, storm and water were heard together.

First line, “mizu no oto wa”: the sound of water; a line of six syllables.
Second line, “sabishiki io no”: of the lonely hut.
Third line, “tomo nare ya”: ya asks, is it a friend? The poem breaks here.
Fourth line, “mine no arashi no”: of the storm on the peaks.
Fifth line, “taema taema ni”: in every lull, inverted to follow the third line.
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
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