皆人の昔語りになりゆくを
いつまでよそに聞かむとすらむ
いつまでよそに聞かむとすらむ
- Roma-ji
-
Minahito no mukashigatari ni nariyuku o itsu made yoso ni kikamu to suramu
- English Translation
-
Everyone I knew
is passing into stories
told of days gone by —
how long shall I go on hearing
of it as if from afar
- Meaning
- Everyone I knew is turning into a tale of the past; how long can I go on hearing of it as though it had nothing to do with me?
- Commentary
-
Book Ten Miscellaneous Poems II 359
As those dear to him pass away one after another and become figures in tales of the past, the poet wonders how long he can go on hearing of it as though it were someone else's affair. The poem holds the thought that he too will soon be spoken of.
Like the preceding poem, 358, it ends with "to suramu." Like "yoso ni mishi" in poem 355, it sings of something once distant coming home to oneself.
The first line, "minahito no" (everyone), names all people.
The second line, "mukashigatari ni," refers to tales of the past, showing them spoken of as the dead.
The third line, "nariyuku o," means as they become so.
The fourth line, "itsu made yoso ni," means how long as someone else's affair, answering "yoso ni mishi" in poem 355.
The final line, "kikamu to suramu," combines the conjectural "mu" and "ramu": how long can I go on hearing?
- Source
- Shika Wakashu
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Uguisu no naku ni namida no otsuru kana mata mo ya haru ni awamu to suramu
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Kono yo dani tsuki matsu hodo wa kurushiki ni aware ikanaru yami ni madowamu