Kumori naki kage o todomeba yamanoha ni iru tomo tsuki o oshimazaramashi - Kinyo Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

曇りなき影をとどめば山の端に
入るとも月を惜しまざらまし

Roma-ji: Kumori naki kage o todomeba yamanoha ni iru tomo tsuki o oshimazaramashi
English Translation: If its cloudless light
could be made to linger here,
though it should go down
behind the mountain's rim,
I would not mourn the moon
Meaning: If I could keep its cloudless light here with me, I would not grieve for the moon even as it sinks behind the mountain's rim.
Commentary: Book Three Autumn Poems 192

If the cloudless moonlight could be held back, the poet says, he would not grieve even when the moon sets behind the mountain. Because the light cannot in fact be kept, he cannot help mourning the setting moon, and this is expressed as a contrary-to-fact supposition.
Like poem 190 in this book, which wishes to hold back the moon with a weir, it sings of regret for the setting moon.
From poem 174 through poem 217 in this book a long sequence of moon poems follows, from the evening moon through the bright moon of the fifteenth night of the Eighth Month to the moon at dawn, singing of the moon in all its aspects and of the heart that gazes on it.
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, 'kumori naki', means without a cloud, the clear moonlight.
Second line, 'kage o todomeba', uses kage for moonlight: if I could keep it, a supposition answered by mashi in the final line.
Third line, 'yamanoha ni', means at the mountain's rim, where the moon sets.
Fourth line, 'iru tomo tsuki o', means even if it sets, the moon, tomo expressing a concessive supposition.
Final line, 'oshimazaramashi', means I would not regret it, closing with the contrary-to-fact mashi and implying that in truth he cannot help regretting.
Author: Fujiwara no Kinzane
Source: Kinyo Wakashu
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