桜花散らまく惜しみうちひさす
宮路の人ぞとのゐせりける
宮路の人ぞとのゐせりける
- Roma-ji
-
Sakurabana chiramaku oshimi uchihisasu miyaji no hito zo tonoi serikeru
- English Translation
-
Grieving that the blossoms
of the cherry soon would fall,
those who serve the court,
the bright-sunned palace's people,
kept their watch throughout the night.
- Meaning
- Reluctant to see the cherry blossoms fall, the courtiers of the palace stayed on night duty to keep watch over them.
- Commentary
-
Spring Poems 45
Headnote: "Composed on blossoms"
So reluctant were they to see the cherry blossoms fall, the poet says, that the people serving at court stayed overnight on duty to watch over them. Entrusting the love of blossoms to the image of courtiers on night watch, he depicts an elegant night of flowers. With this poem begins the long group of cherry-blossom poems. Kamo no Mabuchi marked it with a circle.
The Ruijū and Teika texts differ in the second and last lines, reading the last as madoi serikeru ("gathered together"). One character in the second line of the base text is hard to read, so the common reading chiramaku oshimi has been adopted.
Line 1, sakurabana ("cherry blossoms"), opens the group of cherry poems.
Line 2: chiramaku means "falling," and oshimi gives the reason, "grieving." It uses the same word as 36.
Line 3, uchihisasu ("bright-sunned"), is a pillow word for "palace."
Line 4: miyaji no hito are those who serve at court, emphasized with zo.
Line 5: tonoi is overnight duty at court, and keru is the attributive concluding zo.
- Author
- Minamoto no Sanetomo
- Source
- Kinkaishu
- Prev Poem
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Sawarabi no moeizuru haru ni narinureba nobe no kasumi mo tanabikinikeri
- Next Poem
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Sakurabana chiraba oshikemu tamaboko no michiyukiburi ni orite kazasamu