Omoihatete furusu ni kaeru uguisu wa tabi no negura ya sumiukaritsuru

思ひ果てて古巣に帰る鶯は
旅のねぐらや住み憂かりつる

Roma-ji: Omoihatete furusu ni kaeru uguisu wa tabi no negura ya sumiukaritsuru
English Translation: Having made up its mind,
the warbler returning
to its old nest here—
did it find its roosts abroad
so hard a place to live in?
Meaning: The warbler that has made up its mind and come back to its old nest—did it find its roosts on the road too hard to live in?
Commentary: Miscellaneous Poems 1068

Headnote: "When a warbler that had stopped singing was heard again in the valley where it had lived"
A warbler whose song had ceased for a while was heard again in the valley where it used to live. Having made up its mind and returned to its old nest, did the warbler find its roosts on the road too hard to bear? the poet wonders, comparing the bird's return to a traveler's.
The personification is light and witty: the warbler, like a traveler, tried living elsewhere and found its old nest best after all. The thoughts of Saigyō, who traveled to many provinces, seem to be laid over it.

First line, “omoihatete”: having made up its mind entirely; the line has an extra syllable.
Second line, “furusu ni kaeru”: returning to its old nest.
Third line, “uguisu wa”: the warbler, personified as one back from a journey.
Fourth line, “tabi no negura ya”: ya is a questioning particle, answered by the attributive tsuru in the fifth line.
Fifth line, “sumiukaritsuru”: closing the ya construction, "was it hard to live in?"
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
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