Ika ni zo ya iiyaritarishi kata mo naku mono o omoite suguru koro kana

いかにぞや言ひやりたりし方もなく
物を思ひて過ぐる頃かな

Roma-ji: Ika ni zo ya iiyaritarishi kata mo naku mono o omoite suguru koro kana
English Translation: How can it be so?
Though I sent my words to her,
without any sign,
lost in brooding thought, these days
of mine just pass on by.
Meaning: How can it be? I sent her my words, yet nothing has come of it, and these days pass by as I brood.
Commentary: Miscellaneous Poems 1301

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "One hundred and ten love poems"
How can it be? the poet asks. He sent word of his love, but nothing came of it, and the days pass in brooding.
Sending a letter and getting no answer, he spends days of brooding in suspense, a stagnation in love. The opening ika ni zo ya shows his helpless bewilderment.

First line, “ika ni zo ya”: how can it be?, a question breaking after the first line.
Second line, “iiyaritarishi”: that I sent word; shi is the attributive of the past ki; the line has an extra syllable.
Third line, “kata mo naku”: without any response, to no avail.
Fourth line, “mono o omoite”: brooding.
Fifth line, “suguru koro kana”: kana is exclamatory.
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
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