年ごとに秋の別れはあまたあれど
今日の暮るるぞわびしかりける
今日の暮るるぞわびしかりける
- Roma-ji
-
Toshi goto ni aki no wakare wa amata aredo kyō no kururu zo wabishikarikeru
- English Translation
-
Year by year I've known
many partings with the autumn,
so many, and yet
that this day draws to its close
is the loneliest of all.
- Meaning
- Every year I have parted with autumn many times, and yet this day's darkening into evening is the loneliest of all.
- Commentary
-
Autumn Poems 305
Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "On the theme 'Regretting autumn'"
The poet has parted with autumn many times year after year, yet the closing of this day, on which this year's autumn ends, feels especially desolate. He portrays a heart that never grows used to these repeated partings and feels a fresh loneliness each time.
The Ruijū and Teika texts give line 1 as toshi goto no. In the source text consulted, a character in line 1 is missing, and ni has been supplied from the syllable count, reading toshi goto ni.
Line 1 means "every year," taking up "with every autumn that comes" in the preceding poem, 304.
Line 2 means "parting with autumn."
Line 3, "though there have been many," is hypermetric, with do a concessive conjunction.
Line 4: zo is a binding particle, pointing strongly to the closing of this one day.
Line 5 is the attributive concluding zo, "is especially desolate." Whereas the preceding poem sang of this day regretted with every autumn, this one sets the many partings against this single day, singing of autumn's parting on the scales of years and of a day.
- Author
- Minamoto no Sanetomo
- Source
- Kinkaishu
- Prev Poem
-
Nagatsuki no ariake no tsuki no tsukizu nomi kuru aki goto ni oshiki kyō kana
- Next Poem
-
Mushi no ne mo honoka ni narinu hanasusuki aki no sueba ni shimo ya okuramu