とりもあへずはかなく暮れて行く年の
しばしとどむる関守もがな
しばしとどむる関守もがな
- Roma-ji
-
Tori mo aezu hakanaku kurete yuku toshi no shibashi todomuru sekimori mogana
- English Translation
-
Before I can grasp it,
in a fleeting way it ends,
the year that passes—
if only there were a guard
at the barrier to hold it a while.
- Meaning
- Before I can grasp anything, the year darkens and fades away—if only there were a barrier guard to hold it back, even for a little while.
- Commentary
-
Winter Poems 398
Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "The year's end"
Before anything can be done, the year darkens and passes in a fleeting way, and the poet wishes for a barrier guard who would hold it back even for a little while. Likening the departing year to a traveler, he voices a wish to stop it at the barrier.
According to the source's note, the Ruijū and Teika texts give lines 3 and 4 as yuku toshi o shibashi todomen. This edition follows the source text.
Line 1 is hypermetric, "before I can do anything."
Line 2 means "ending in a fleeting way."
Line 3 is the same as that of the preceding poem, the departing year.
Line 4 means "holding it back for a little while."
Line 5: mogana is a final particle of wishing, "if only there were a barrier guard." Where 396 wished for a hiding place the year could not reach, this wishes for a guard to stop the departing year.
- Author
- Minamoto no Sanetomo
- Source
- Kinkaishu
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Mononofu no yaso ujigawa o yuku mizu no nagarete hayaki toshi no kure kana