宇治川の川瀬も見えぬ夕霧に
槙の島人舟呼ばふなり
槙の島人舟呼ばふなり
- Roma-ji
-
Ujigawa no kawase mo mienu yūgiri ni maki no shimabito fune yobau nari
- English Translation
-
On the Uji River,
in the evening mist that hides
even the shallows,
from the isle of Maki someone
calls and calls out for a boat
- Meaning
- In the evening mist so thick that even the shallows of the Uji River are hidden, I hear someone from the isle of Maki calling for a boat.
- Commentary
-
Book Three Autumn Poems 240
From the evening mist that hangs so thick over the Uji River that even its shallows are hidden comes the voice of someone on the isle of Maki calling for the ferry. The poem depicts an evening on the Uji where, in the mist, only voices can be heard.
This is a poem on mist, placed between the poems on plume grass and those on chrysanthemums.
First line, 'ujigawa no', is the Uji River in Yamashiro, famous for its mists.
Second line, 'kawase mo mienu', means even the shallows cannot be seen, showing how thick the mist is.
Third line, 'yūgiri ni', means in the evening mist.
Fourth line, 'maki no shimabito', is a person living on Maki no Shima, a sandbar island in the Uji River.
Final line, 'fune yobau nari', uses yobau, to call repeatedly, and the auditory inferential nari: I hear them calling for a boat.
- Source
- Kinyo Wakashu
- Prev Poem
-
Uzura naku mano no irie no hamakaze ni obana nami yoru aki no yūgure
- Next Poem
-
Sakari naru magaki no kiku o kesa mireba mada sora saenu yuki zo tsumoreru