Maboroshi no yume o utsutsu ni miru hito wa me mo awasede ya yo o akasuran

幻の夢をうつつに見る人は
目も合はせでや世を明かすらん

Roma-ji: Maboroshi no yume o utsutsu ni miru hito wa me mo awasede ya yo o akasuran
English Translation: One who lives in waking
the dream that's like a phantom,
not a dream at all—
does he pass the nights till dawn
without ever closing his eyes?
Meaning: One who lives in waking life a dream like a phantom—does he pass each night till dawn without ever closing his eyes?
Commentary: Miscellaneous Poems 1233

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "This too I sent along on the same occasion"
Presented to Retired Emperor Sutoku with the preceding poems. One who must live as reality a dream like a phantom, the poet wonders, must pass the nights till dawn without closing his eyes.
He imagines the suffering of the emperor living out as reality an exile one would wish were a dream. Setting dream against waking life and sleepless nights, he portrays the emperor unable to sleep. Yo, "world," echoes yo, "night."

First line, “maboroshi no”: like a phantom, fleeting.
Second line, “yume o utsutsu ni”: a dream as reality, living what one wishes were only a dream.
Third line, “miru hito wa”: one who sees it so, Sutoku.
Fourth line, “me mo awasede ya”: de is a negative conjunction, ya questions, "without closing his eyes?"
Fifth line, “yo o akasuran”: yo echoes "night"; ran conjectures, "does he pass the night till dawn?"
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
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