青柳の糸もて貫ける白露の
玉こき散らす春の山風
玉こき散らす春の山風
- Roma-ji
-
Aoyagi no ito mote nukeru shiratsuyu no tama kokichirasu haru no yamakaze
- English Translation
-
Strung on the threads
of the green willow branches,
the bright white dewdrops—
those pearls are stripped and scattered
by the mountain wind of spring.
- Meaning
- The spring mountain wind strips off and scatters the white dewdrop pearls strung on the threads of the green willow.
- Commentary
-
Spring Poems 40
Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Willows"
Likening the white dew along the willow branches to pearls strung on thread, the poet depicts the mountain wind stripping them off and scattering them. Combining a delicate image with the wind's motion, it is a showy conceit. Kamo no Mabuchi said the phrase about stripping and scattering the dewdrop pearls is a later manner, and added that the willow is not a mountain tree.
The image of dew strung as pearls on willow threads has a precedent in Archbishop Henjō's Kokinshū poem on the spring willow that twists its pale green threads and strings white dew as pearls.
Line 1, "the green willow," takes up "the threads of the green willow" closing the preceding poem, 39.
Line 2: mote means "with," and ru, the attributive of ri, shows the state of being strung; "thread," "string," and "pearl" are associated words.
Line 3 names the dew lying on the willow branches.
Line 4: koku means to strip off, picturing the wind scattering the dewdrops.
Line 5 ends on a noun. Mabuchi questioned it because the willow is not a mountain tree.
- Author
- Minamoto no Sanetomo
- Source
- Kinkaishu
- Prev Poem
-
Haru kureba nao iro masaru yamashiro no tokiwa no mori no aoyagi no ito
- Next Poem
-
Aoyagi no ito yori tsutau shiratsuyu o tama to miru made harusame zo furu