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- Genji Monogatari
Kagiri tote wakaruru michi no kanashiki ni
ikamahoshiki wa inochi narikeri
The road of parting I must take, knowing this is the end, is so full of sorrow—and the road I truly wish to take is the road of staying alive.
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu
Miyagino no tsuyu fukimusubu kaze no oto ni
kohagi ga moto o omoi koso yare
Even in the sound of the wind that gathers the dew on Miyagi moor, my thoughts travel out to that small bush clover and how it fares.
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu
Suzumushi no koe no kagiri o tsukushite mo
nagaki yo akazu furu namida kana
Though the bell cricket spends its whole voice crying, the long night does not break, and my tears keep falling without ever running out.
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu
Itodoshiku mushi no ne shigeki asajū ni
tsuyu okisouru kumo no uebito
In this overgrown house, already thick with the crying of insects, you who come from above the clouds leave behind still more dew of tears.
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu
Araki kaze fusegishi kage no kareshi yori
kohagi ga ue zo shizugokoro naki
Ever since the shelter that kept the rough wind away withered and was gone, my heart has had no rest for the small bush clover left beneath it.
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu
Tazuneyuku maboroshi mogana tsute ni te mo
tama no arika o soko to shirubeku
If only some sorcerer would go searching for her, so that even at second hand I might learn where her soul has come to rest.
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu
Kumo no ue mo namida ni kururu aki no tsuki
ikade sumuramu asajū no yado
If even here above the clouds the autumn moon is blurred with tears, how could it be shining clear over that reed-grown house?
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu
Itokinaki hatsumotoyui ni nagaki yo o
chigiru kokoro wa musubikometsu ya
Into this first binding of a young boy's hair, did you bind also a heart that promises a bond lasting all our years?
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu
Musubitsuru kokoro mo fukaki motoyui ni
koki murasaki no iro shi asezu wa
The heart I bound into this cord runs deep, and so long as its dark purple never fades, the promise will not change.
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu
Te o orite aimishi koto o kazoureba
kore hitotsu ya wa kimi ga uki fushi
If I count on my fingers all that has passed between us, surely this is not the only bitter joint you have known.
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu
Uki fushi o kokoro hitotsu ni kazoekite
ko ya kimi ga te o wakarubeki ori
I have counted these bitter turns in my own heart alone, and now perhaps this is the moment I must let go of your hand.
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu
Koto no ne mo tsuki mo e naranu yado nagara
tsurenaki hito o hiki ya tomekeru
For all that the koto and the moon here are beyond praise, could those strings really have held back the man who would not stay?
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu
Kogarashi ni fukiawasumeru fue no ne o
hikitodomubeki koto no ha zo naki
That flute sounding along with the cold wind—I have no words left that could draw it back and keep it here.
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu
Yamagatsu no kakiho aru tomo oriori ni
aware wa kake yo nadeshiko no tsuyu
Even if the fence of this poor hill house falls to ruin, let your kindness come to us now and then, the way dew settles on the pink.
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu
Sakimajiru iro wa izure to wakanedomo
nao tokonatsu ni shiku mono zo naki
Among all these flowers blooming together I cannot say which color is finest, and still nothing comes near the summer pink.
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu
Uchiharau sode mo tsuyukeki tokonatsu ni
arashi fukisou aki mo kinikeri
On this summer pink, where even the sleeve that brushes off the dust is wet with dew, autumn has come and brought the storm wind with it.
Genji Monogatari - Murasaki Shikibu