Shimogaruru hajime to mizu wa shiragiku no utsurou iro o nagekazaramashi - Shika Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

霜枯るるはじめと見ずは白菊の
うつろふ色を嘆かざらまし

Roma-ji: Shimogaruru hajime to mizu wa shiragiku no utsurou iro o nagekazaramashi
English Translation: Were it not the sign
that frost-withering has begun,
the white chrysanthemum's
fading, changing hue
I would not grieve to see
Meaning: If I did not see it as the first sign of frost-withering, I would not grieve to see the changing color of the white chrysanthemum.
Commentary: Book Three Autumn Poems 127

Headnote: "Composed at the residence of the former Chancellor and Regent"
The author is listed here as an unnumbered poet, but the Shikashu attributes the poem to Minamoto no Masamitsu. It was composed at the residence of the former Chancellor and Regent, Fujiwara no Tadamichi.
The way white chrysanthemums take on a purple tinge after frost was prized as beautiful. Yet when the poet sees it as the beginning of winter's withering, he cannot help grieving. The poem looks at the season's end hidden behind beauty.

The first line, "shimogaruru," means "withering with frost."
The second line, "hajime to mizu wa," is a counterfactual condition, "if I did not see it as the beginning," answered by mashi in the last line.
The third line, "shiragiku no," means "of the white chrysanthemum," echoing the last line "the white chrysanthemum flower" of 129.
The fourth line, "utsurou iro o," means "the changing color," the purple tinge frost gives white chrysanthemums. The next poem, 128, also sings of the changing chrysanthemum.
The last line, "nagekazaramashi," closes with the counterfactual "I would not grieve."
Source: Shika Wakashu
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