いかならむ言の葉にてかなびくべき
恋しといふはかひなかりけり
恋しといふはかひなかりけり
- Roma-ji
-
Ika naramu koto no ha nite ka nabiku beki koishi to iu wa kai nakarikeri
- English Translation
-
With what kind of words
might I ever hope at last
to make you yield to me?
To say "I love you" alone
has proved to be of no use
- Meaning
- With what words might I ever win you over? Simply telling you "I love you" has done no good at all.
- Commentary
-
Book Seven Love Poems I 199
However much he speaks of love, the beloved's heart does not move, and the poet agonizes over what words could ever sway her. Lamenting the powerlessness of words, he still searches for the ones that might win her heart.
The first line, "ika naramu" (what kind of), is interrogative and modifies "koto no ha" (words) that follows.
The second line, "koto no ha nite ka," uses the particle "ka" to ask by what words.
The third line, "nabiku beki," closes "ka" with the attributive "beki," completing a kakari-musubi with a break after the third line.
The fourth line, "koishi to iu wa," singles out the act of saying "I love you" with "wa."
The final line, "kai nakarikeri," ends with the exclamatory "keri," lamenting the realization that it was useless.
- Source
- Shika Wakashu
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