Hyakunin Isshu, Poem 66
Translation and comments by Ad Blankestijn
(version September 2022)
mountain cherry!
let us cheer
each other up -
no one understands me
the way your blossoms do
morotomo ni
aware to omoe
yamazakura
hana yori hoka ni
shiru hito mo nashi
もろともに
哀れと思へ
山桜
花より外に
知る人もなし
Gyoson 行尊 (c. 1055-1135)
[Mountain cherries in Arashiyama]
According to the head note composed on Mt Omine when suddenly seeing a cherry tree in bloom.
Notes
- morotomo ni: together, like me
- aware to omoe: let us feel compassion for each other
- hana yori hoka ni shiru hito mo nashi: only the blossoms know my heart
The Poet
Gyoson was the son of Minamoto no Motohira. At age 12 he entered Miidera (Onjoji) and eventually became its abbot. He started ascetic practices around 1070 in Mt. Omine, Mt. Katsuragi, and Kumano, thus he came to be known as an ascetic Buddhist priest. He was appointed to Kumano sanzan kengyo (Inspector of the Three Kumano Shrines). It was instrumental in laying out the route between Kumano and Omine for yamabushi. In May 1107, the title Hogen (the second highest rank for Buddhist priests) was conferred upon him. In addition, in January, 1108, he was appointed as Gojiso (a priest who stays near the Emperor and prays for the safety of the emperor) at the enthronement of Emperor Toba. His incantations had remarkably miraculous efficacy, thus he was highly venerated by court nobles. Later he was appointed to Chori (chief priest) of Onjoji Temple, and in 1123 he became Tendai-zasu (the Head Priest of the Tendai sect). However, he stayed in that position for only six days before resigning due to a conflict between Enryakuji and Onjoji Temples. Since then he held the post of Betto (the head priest) of various temples successively, while he restored the declining Onjoji Temple.Gyoson himzelf practiced yamabushi austerities and made various pilgrimages throughout the country. Almost fifty of his poems were included in imperial anthologies, and he also produced a private collection of poetry. His poetry records his experiences on his pilgrimages, and in later ages he was celebrated as a spiritual precursor to Saigyo. In addition to his poetry, he was also known as a skilled biwa performer and calligrapher. He appears in many setsuwa-type miracle tales.
References: Pictures of the Heart, The Hyakunin Isshu in Word and Image by Joshua S. Mostow (University of Hawai'i Press, 1996); One Hundred Poets, One Poem Each, by Peter MacMIllan (Penguin Classics); Traditional Japanese Poetry, An Anthology, by Steven D. Carter (Stanford University Press, 1991); Hyakunin Isshu by Inoue Muneo, etc. (Shinchosha, 1990); Genshoku Hyakunin Isshu by Suzuki Hideo, etc. (Buneido, 1997); Chishiki Zero kara no Hyakunin Isshu, by Ariyoshi Tamotsu (Gentosha); Hyakunin Isshu Kaibo Zukan, by Tani Tomoko (X-Knowledge); Ogura Hyakunin Isshu at Japanese Text Initiative (University of Virginia Library Etext Center); Hyakunin Isshu wo aruku by Shimaoka Shin (Kofusha Shuppan); Hyakunin Isshu, Ocho waka kara chusei waka e by Inoue Muneo (Chikuma Shoin, 2004); Basho's Haiku (2 vols) by Toshiharu Oseko (Maruzen, 1990); The Ise Stories by Joshua S. Mostow and Royall Tyler (University of Hawai'i Press, 2010); Kokin Wakashu, The First Imperial Anthology of Japanese Poetry by Helen Craig McCullough (Stanford University Press, 1985); Kokinshu, A Collection of Poems Ancient and Modern by Laurel Rasplica Rodd and Mary Catherine Henkenius (University of Tokyo Press, 1984); Kokin Wakashu (Shogakkan, 1994); Shinkokin Wakashu (Shogakkan, 1995); Taketori Monogatari-Ise Monogatari-Yamato Monogatari-Heichu Monogatari (Shogakkan, 1994).
Photo: own work.
Hyakunin Isshu Index