Munashikute yaminu beki kana utsusemi no kono mi kara nite omou nageki wa

むなしくてやみぬべきかな空蝉の
この身からにて思ふ嘆きは

Roma-ji: Munashikute yaminu beki kana utsusemi no kono mi kara nite omou nageki wa
English Translation: It must surely end
in emptiness, nothing more—
like a cicada's shell,
this grief I feel, which comes
from this very self of mine.
Meaning: It must surely end in emptiness—this grief I feel, which comes from this self of mine, hollow as a cicada's cast-off shell.
Commentary: Miscellaneous Poems 1337

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "One hundred and ten love poems"
This grief, born of a self as hollow as a cicada's shell, must surely end in emptiness, the poet says.
Taking up "from myself" of the preceding poem, it overlays the kara, "shell," of the cicada with mi kara, "by one's own doing." The cast-off shell symbolizes emptiness and transience, expressing the futility of unrequited love's grief.

First line, “munashikute”: in emptiness.
Second line, “yaminu beki kana”: nu beki is a strong conjecture, "it must surely end"; the poem breaks after the second line.
Third line, “utsusemi no”: of the cicada's shell, a symbol of transience, leading into kara.
Fourth line, “kono mi kara nite”: kara joins the cicada's "shell" with mi kara, "by my own doing."
Fifth line, “omou nageki wa”: the grief I feel, the inversion giving the subject of the first line.
Author: Saigyō
Source: Sankashu
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