Haru tachite kozue ni kienu shirayuki wa madaki ni sakeru hana ka to zo miru - Kinyo Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

春立ちてこずゑに消えぬ白雪は
まだきに咲ける花かとぞ見る

Roma-ji: Haru tachite kozue ni kienu shirayuki wa madaki ni sakeru hana ka to zo miru
English Translation: Now that spring has come,
the white snow that will not melt
upon the treetops
seems to be the early bloom
of blossoms come before their time
Meaning: Even now that spring has arrived, the white snow lingering unmelted on the treetops looks to me like blossoms that have bloomed before their time.
Commentary: Book One Spring Poems 2

Snow still clinging to the treetops after the first day of spring is likened to blossoms that have opened ahead of the season. In the lingering snow of winter, the poet glimpses the spring flowers he longs for.
Seeing snow as blossoms is a convention that goes back to the Kokinshū. By placing it just after the turn of spring, this poem sharpens the sense of eager waiting for the flowers.
The author, Kinzane, is Fujiwara no Kinzane. A son of Fujiwara no Sanesue, he rose to Provisional Major Counselor and also served as Master of the Crown Prince's Household. He was an active poet in the circle of Emperor Horikawa.

First line, 'haru tachite', means with the coming of spring, marking the turn of the calendar. It follows 'spring has come at last' in poem 1 and likewise sings of the season's beginning.
Second line, 'kozue ni kienu', uses nu, the attributive form of the negative zu, to describe snow that remains unmelted on the branches.
Third line, 'shirayuki wa', sets out the topic, and the lower half of the poem reveals what the snow is taken to be.
Fourth line, 'madaki ni sakeru', uses madaki, before the proper time, to express the feeling that the flowers have bloomed early.
Final line, 'hana ka to zo miru', likens snow to blossoms, the particle zo closing on the attributive miru. The pairing of snow and flowers leads on to the exchange of 'first snow' and 'first flowers' in poems 7 and 8.
Author: Fujiwara no Kinzane
Source: Kinyo Wakashu
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