夕霧に佐野の舟橋音すなり
手馴れの駒の帰り来るかも
手馴れの駒の帰り来るかも
- Roma-ji
-
Yūgiri ni Sano no funahashi oto su nari tanare no koma no kaerikuru kamo
- English Translation
-
In the evening mist
the boat-bridge of Sano
seems to sound aloud —
could it be my well-known horse
that is coming home again
- Meaning
- In the evening mist I hear the boat-bridge at Sano sounding; could it be my familiar horse coming home?
- Commentary
-
Book Nine Miscellaneous Poems I 328
Wrapped in evening mist, nothing can be seen, but the sound of hooves on the boat-bridge at Sano is heard, and the poet wonders whether a familiar horse is returning. Capturing a hidden scene through sound, the poem hints at a heart awaiting someone's return.
The boat-bridge at Sano is a poetic place in Kozuke Province, sung of in the eastern poems of the Man'yoshu. The conceit of knowing what is unseen by sound also links it to poem 286 of this book, which knows a boat hidden in reeds by the sound of its pole.
The first line, "yūgiri ni" (in the evening mist), shows that nothing can be seen.
The second line, "Sano no funahashi," names a poetic place in Kozuke Province, a bridge made of boats lashed together.
The third line, "oto su nari," uses the evidential "nari" inferring from sound: there seems to be a sound, with a break after the third line.
The fourth line, "tanare no koma no," refers to a horse one is used to riding.
The final line, "kaerikuru kamo," ends with the questioning exclamatory "kamo": could it be coming home?
- Source
- Shika Wakashu
- Prev Poem
-
Hito no yo ni futatabi shinuru mono naraba shinobikeri ya to kokoromitemashi
- Next Poem
-
Sumiyoshi no nami ni hitareru matsu yori mo kami no shirushi zo arawarenikeru