ありふるも苦しかりけりながらへぬ
人の心を命ともがな
人の心を命ともがな
- Roma-ji
-
Arifuru mo kurushikarikeri nagaraenu hito no kokoro o inochi tomo gana
- English Translation
-
Living on like this
has proved only to be pain;
would that I could take
your heart, which never lasts long,
as the measure of my life
- Meaning
- Going on living has proved nothing but pain; if only my life could be as short as your heart, which never lasts.
- Commentary
-
Book Eight Love Poems II 255
The poet laments that living on while loving a cold partner is torment, and wishes her life were as short-lived as his fickle heart. Mocking how quickly his heart changes, the poem cries out with fierce intensity against the pain of living.
The first line, "arifuru mo" (living on, too), singles out the act of staying alive with "mo."
The second line, "kurushikarikeri," uses the exclamatory "keri," realizing that it is painful, with a break after the second line.
The third line, "nagaraenu," uses the attributive negative to mean "that does not last," modifying the heart of the fourth line.
The fourth line, "hito no kokoro o," refers to the beloved's changeable heart.
The final line, "inochi tomo gana," ends with the wishful "mo gana": if only it were my life. Like 245 of this book, it ends in "tomo gana" with a wish that cannot be granted.
- Author
- Sagami
- Source
- Shika Wakashu
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