露の身の消えて仏になることは
つとめてのちぞ知るべかりける
つとめてのちぞ知るべかりける
- Roma-ji
-
Tsuyu no mi no kiete hotoke ni naru koto wa tsutomete nochi zo shiru bekarikeru
- English Translation
-
That this dewdrop self
should vanish and become
a Buddha at last —
only after morning's toil
is that something one can know
- Meaning
- That this dewdrop self will vanish and become a Buddha is something one can know only after the early morning — only after devoted practice.
- Commentary
-
Book Ten Miscellaneous Poems II 412
That a dewdrop self vanishes and becomes a Buddha, the poem says, is known only after accumulating devotion, just as dew vanishes after the early morning. Playing "tsutomete" as both "early morning" and "having practiced devotion," it overlays the morning scene of vanishing dew with the principle of attaining Buddhahood through practice.
From the next poem, 413, poems seeking the Buddhist way within the heart follow, and the book closes with thoughts on the Buddhist path.
The first line, "tsuyu no mi no," refers to a self as fleeting as dew.
The second line, "kiete hotoke ni," overlays dew vanishing with the self dying and becoming a Buddha.
The third line, "naru koto wa," singles out becoming a Buddha with "wa."
The fourth line, "tsutomete nochi zo," is a pivot word joining "tsutomete" (early morning) and "tsutomete" (having practiced devotion), stressed with "zo."
The final line, "shiru bekarikeru," closes "zo" with the potential "beshi" and attributive exclamatory "keri," a kakari-musubi: it is something one can know.
- Author
- Unknown Poet
- Source
- Shika Wakashu
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