Misao naru namida nariseba karakoromo kakete mo hito ni shiraremashi ya wa

みさをなる涙なりせば唐衣
かけても人に知られましやは

Roma-ji: Misao naru namida nariseba karakoromo kakete mo hito ni shiraremashi ya wa
English Translation: Were they composed tears,
calm and steady as could be,
then my Chinese robe,
even should they fall on it,
would it let my love be known?
Meaning: Had my tears been calm and composed, would anyone have known of my love, even if they fell upon my Chinese robe? Never.
Commentary: Miscellaneous Poems 1251

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "One hundred and ten love poems"
Had my tears been calm and composed, would anyone have known, even if they fell on my Chinese robe? the poet asks.
It is only because tears of love flow so wildly that love is discovered; were they calm, no one would know, and so he resents his tears. Karakoromo leads to kakete, joining tears falling on the robe with "in the least."

First line, “misao naru”: calm and composed.
Second line, “namida nariseba”: seba is the counterfactual condition, "had they been such tears."
Third line, “karakoromo”: a fine Chinese robe, leading into kakete.
Fourth line, “kakete mo hito ni”: kakete joins tears "falling on" the robe with "in the least."
Fifth line, “shiraremashi ya wa”: mashi is counterfactual, ya wa rhetorical, "would it have been known? Never."
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
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