Shio somuru masuho no kogai hirou tote iro no hama to wa iu ni ya aruran

潮染むるますほの小貝拾ふとて
色の浜とは言ふにやあるらん

Roma-ji: Shio somuru masuho no kogai hirou tote iro no hama to wa iu ni ya aruran
English Translation: Because people come
to gather masuho shells
the sea tide has dyed,
is that why, I wonder, they
call this place the Beach of Hues?
Meaning: Is it because people gather the little masuho shells dyed by the tide that this place is called the Beach of Hues?
Commentary: Miscellaneous Poems 1194

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "When a shell contest was to be held at the palace, composed on someone's behalf"
Is it because people gather here the little masuho shells, dyed red by the tide, that this is called Iro no Hama, the Beach of Hues? the poet asks.
Iro no Hama, at Tsuruga in Echizen, was known for the small pale-red shells called masuho no kogai. The poem wittily traces the "hue" of the beach's name to the colored shells. Later Matsuo Bashō visited the place and left a haiku in homage to this poem by Saigyō.

First line, “shio somuru”: dyed by the tide, the shells' color taken as the tide's work.
Second line, “masuho no kogai”: masuho is red, here the small pale-red shells.
Third line, “hirou tote”: because people gather them.
Fourth line, “iro no hama to wa”: the name Iro no Hama in Echizen.
Fifth line, “iu ni ya aruran”: ya questions, answered by ran, "is that why it is called so?"
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
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