Nagaraete tsui ni sumu beki miyako ka wa kono yo wa yoshi ya totemo kakutemo

ながらへてつひに住むべき都かは
この世はよしやとてもかくても

Roma-ji: Nagaraete tsui ni sumu beki miyako ka wa kono yo wa yoshi ya totemo kakutemo
English Translation: Though one should live on,
is the capital a place
to dwell in at last?
As for this world, let it be—
whatever may come of it.
Meaning: Even if one lives on, is the capital a place to dwell in forever? No. As for this world, let it be as it may, one way or another.
Commentary: Miscellaneous Poems 1232

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "This too I sent along on the same occasion"
Presented to Retired Emperor Sutoku with the preceding poems. Even if one lives on, is the capital truly a place to dwell in at last? No; as for this world, let it be as it will.
Sympathizing with the emperor's grief at being unable to return to the capital, the poem seeks to turn his heart toward the next life, telling him that even the capital is no lasting home, this world but a passing one. The lower lines, "yoshi ya totemo kakutemo," ring with the clean resolve of cutting attachment and are among the most celebrated of Saigyō's poems to Sutoku.

First line, “nagaraete”: living on.
Second line, “tsui ni sumu beki”: where one should finally dwell.
Third line, “miyako ka wa”: ka wa is rhetorical, "is it the capital? It is not"; the poem breaks here.
Fourth line, “kono yo wa yoshi ya”: yoshi ya means "let it be."
Fifth line, “totemo kakutemo”: however it may turn out, expressing a heart that cuts off attachment to this world.
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
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