山の端に雲の衣を脱ぎ捨てて
ひとりも月のたちのぼるかな
ひとりも月のたちのぼるかな
- Roma-ji
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Yamanoha ni kumo no koromo o nugisutete hitori mo tsuki no tachinoboru kana
- English Translation
-
At the mountain's rim
casting off and leaving there
its robe of cloud,
all alone the moon now
rises up into the sky
- Meaning
- Casting off its robe of cloud at the mountain's rim, the moon rises all alone into the sky.
- Commentary
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Book Three Autumn Poems 194
Seeing the clouds on the mountain's rim as a robe, the poet pictures the moon casting it off and rising alone into the sky. Through this personification, the poem captures the purity of the moon as it leaves the clouds behind.
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, Toshiyori, is Minamoto no Toshiyori. A son of Minamoto no Tsunenobu, he compiled this anthology, the Kin'yōwakashū, at the command of Retired Emperor Shirakawa, and is known for his innovative style.
First line, 'yamanoha ni', means at the mountain's rim.
Second line, 'kumo no koromo o', likens the clouds over the moon to a robe.
Third line, 'nugisutete', means casting off, comparing the clouds drifting away to the moon shedding a garment.
Fourth line, 'hitori mo tsuki no', means the moon all alone, shining by itself in the sky free of cloud.
Final line, 'tachinoboru kana', is a pivot word in which tachi is both tatsu, to rise, and tatsu, to cut cloth, associated with 'robe' and 'cast off'; kana is exclamatory.
- Author
- Minamoto no Toshiyori
- Source
- Kinyo Wakashu
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Teru tsuki no hikari saeyuku yado nareba aki no mizu ni mo kōri inikeri
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Ashine hai katsumi mo shigeki numamizu ni warinaku yadoru yowa no tsuki kana