白河の春の梢を見渡せば
松こそ花の絶え間なりけれ
松こそ花の絶え間なりけれ
- Roma-ji
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Shirakawa no haru no kozue o miwataseba matsu koso hana no taema narikere
- English Translation
-
At Shirakawa
as I gaze across the treetops
of the springtime,
it is the pines, I find,
that are the gaps among the flowers.
- Meaning
- Looking out over the spring treetops of Shirakawa, I find that only the pines make gaps in the sea of blossoms.
- Commentary
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Book One Spring Poems 26
Looking out over Shirakawa, the poet sees cherries blooming everywhere, with only the evergreen pines showing as breaks in the flowers. Where one would usually see pines with blossoms among them, he calls the pines "gaps in the flowers," and that turn of thought conveys the abundance of full bloom.
The first line, "at Shirakawa," names the area in eastern Kyoto famous for its cherries; the arrangement also echoes the name of Retired Emperor Shirakawa, author of the next poem.
The second line, "the treetops of the springtime," are the treetops in full flower.
The third line, "as I gaze across," shows a wide view and the breadth of the scene.
The fourth line, "it is the pines," singles out the pines with the particle "koso."
The last line, "the gaps among the flowers," closes a kakari-musubi with "koso" and the realis "kere." The contrast of color, pines making breaks amid the blossoms, is vivid.
- Author
- Minamoto no Toshiyori
- Source
- Shika Wakashu
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Harugoto ni kokoro o sora ni nasu mono wa kumoi ni miyuru sakura narikeri
- Next Poem
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Haru kureba hana no kozue ni sasowarete itaranu sato no nakaritsuru kana