いにしへの難波のことを思ひ出でて
高津の宮に月のすむらむ
高津の宮に月のすむらむ
- Roma-ji
-
Inishie no naniwa no koto o omoiidete takatsu no miya ni tsuki no sumuramu
- English Translation
-
Recalling, perhaps,
the Naniwa of the past
and its ancient days,
the moon now shines clear and dwells
at the palace of Takatsu
- Meaning
- Perhaps remembering the Naniwa of long ago, the moon now shines clear and dwells at the site of the Takatsu Palace.
- Commentary
-
Book Three Autumn Poems 197
Remembering the once-flourishing capital of Naniwa, the moon must be shining clear over the site of the Takatsu Palace and dwelling there. The poet lays his nostalgia on the moon shining over the ruins of the palace of Emperor Nintoku.
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, Moroyori, is Minamoto no Moroyori. A son of the Minister of the Left Minamoto no Toshifusa, he rose to Senior Second Rank and Major Counselor and was known as the Ononomiya Counselor. A story survives of how swiftly he could compose a hundred-poem sequence.
First line, 'inishie no', means of long ago, expressing nostalgia.
Second line, 'naniwa no koto o', means the things of Naniwa, the ancient capital of Emperor Nintoku.
Third line, 'omoiidete', means remembering, portraying the moon as though it were a person. The line has an extra syllable.
Fourth line, 'takatsu no miya ni', names the Takatsu Palace of Emperor Nintoku at Naniwa.
Final line, 'tsuki no sumuramu', is a pivot word in which sumu means both for the moon to shine clear and to dwell at the palace site; ramu is the auxiliary of present conjecture.
- Author
- Minamoto no Moroyori
- Source
- Kinyo Wakashu
- Prev Poem
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Kagamiyama mine yori izuru tsuki nareba kumoru yo mo naki kage o koso mire
- Next Poem
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Kiku no ue ni tsuyu nakariseba ika ni shite koyoi no tsuki o yoru to shiramashi