Kokonoe ni tatsu shirakumo to mietsuru wa Ōuchiyama no sakura narikeri - Shika Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

九重に立つ白雲と見えつるは
大内山の桜なりけり

Roma-ji: Kokonoe ni tatsu shirakumo to mietsuru wa Ōuchiyama no sakura narikeri
English Translation: What I took to be
white clouds rising high within
the ninefold palace
were the cherries, after all,
upon the Great Inner Hill.
Meaning: What seemed to be white clouds rising within the palace grounds were, after all, the cherry blossoms of the Great Inner Hill.
Commentary: Book One Spring Poems 24

The poet realizes that what looked like white clouds over the palace were the cherries of Ōuchiyama. Using the image of white clouds within the palace scene, the poem depicts the brilliance of spring in the capital.
The author is said to be Izumo, lady of the former Kamo Priestess.

The first line, "within the ninefold palace," means the imperial palace; it also suggests manifold layers, echoing the banks of white cloud.
The second line, "white clouds rising," is the familiar image, seen in earlier poems, of cherries as white clouds.
In the third line, "tsuru" is the attributive of the perfective "tsu": what had appeared to be so.
The fourth line, "the Great Inner Hill," is a name likening the palace to a mountain, and also the name of a hill north of Ninnaji.
The last line, "were the cherries, after all," expresses with "keri" the surprise of recognizing their true nature. It shares its last line with the next poem.
Source: Shika Wakashu
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