Izuru iki no iru o matsu ma mo kataki yo o omoishiruramu sode wa ika ni zo - Shika Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

出づる息の入るを待つ間もかたき世を
思ひ知るらむ袖はいかにぞ

Roma-ji: Izuru iki no iru o matsu ma mo kataki yo o omoishiruramu sode wa ika ni zo
English Translation: A world in which life
is hard to keep even while
a breath goes out and in —
you must know it now; and how
do your tear-soaked sleeves fare
Meaning: You must know it now — this world in which life is hard to hold even in the moment between a breath going out and coming in. And how are your sleeves, wet with tears?
Commentary: Book Ten Miscellaneous Poems II 403

Imagining that the bereaved must now know how life cannot be held even in the brief moment between breathing out and breathing in, the poet asks how wet with tears their sleeves must be. A heart of condolence for one who has lost someone appears together with the Buddhist sense of impermanence.

The first line, "izuru iki no," refers to the breath going out and has six syllables, an extra-syllable line.
The second line, "iru o matsu ma mo," means even the short time waiting for the breath to come in.
The third line, "kataki yo o," uses the attributive of "katashi" (hard): a world where life is hard to keep.
The fourth line, "omoishiruramu," uses the conjectural "ramu": you must know it now, with a break after the fourth line.
The final line, "sode wa ika ni zo," asks how the tear-soaked sleeves fare.
Author: Retired Emperor Sutoku
Source: Shika Wakashu
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