Ōhara wa hira no takane no chikakereba yuki furu hodo o omoi koso yare

大原は比良の高嶺の近ければ
雪降るほどを思ひこそやれ

Roma-ji: Ōhara wa hira no takane no chikakereba yuki furu hodo o omoi koso yare
English Translation: Ōhara lies
so close to the high peaks
of Mount Hira—
how I picture it in my mind,
the season when the snow falls.
Meaning: Since Ōhara lies so close to the high peaks of Mount Hira, how I picture what it must be like there when the snow falls.
Commentary: Miscellaneous Poems 1155

Headnote: "Sent to the lay monk Jakunen when he was living in Ōhara"
Saigyō sent this to Jakunen while he was living in Ōhara. Since Ōhara is close to the high peaks of Hira, he can only imagine how cold and lonely it must be when the snow falls.
Mount Hira, rising on the west shore of Lake Biwa in Ōmi, was a poetic place known for winter snow. It is a warm poem of friendship, imagining the harshness of winter where his friend lives. It pairs with Jakunen's reply in 1156.

First line, “Ōhara wa”: Ōhara, where Jakunen lives.
Second line, “hira no takane no”: the high peaks of Mount Hira in Ōmi.
Third line, “chikakereba”: since they are near; the realis with ba gives a definite condition.
Fourth line, “yuki furu hodo o”: the time when snow falls.
Fifth line, “omoi koso yare”: koso is emphatic, answered by the realis yare, "how I picture it."
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
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