Hyakunin Isshu, Poem 85
during all the nights
that I spend full of longing
daylight refuses to come
and even the gaps in the shutters
are cruel to me
yo mo sugara
mono omou koro wa
ake yaranu
neya no hima sae
tsurenakarikeri
夜もすがら
物思ふ頃は
明けやらぬ
ねやのひまさへ
つれなかりけり
Priest Shun'e (1113–1191)
Written on the set topic of "love," this poem was composed from the point of view of the woman. She complains about her cruel lover, who doesn't show up, and while endlessly waiting, even the first signs of light don't come peeking through the gaps in the shutters (or the door) to end her vigil.
Notes
- yo mo sugara: the whole night
- mono omou koro wa: the longing for her cold lover. "koro wa" indicates that such a situation continues every night.
- neya no hima sae: "neya" is "bedroom." "hima" is a "gap." Here the gaps in the door or the shutters of the bedroom are meant. "Sae" means: her lover is cruel, and even the gaps in the shutters are also cruel."
- tsurenakarikeri: "tsurenachi" is "cruel, cold." "-keri" indicates a sigh, a lament.
The Poet
Shun'e Hoshi was the son of Minamoto no Toshiyori (poem 74). He was tutored in waka composition by his father, but after the latter died he took monastic orders in Todaiji. In his residence in Shirakawa in Heiankyo he held poetry meetings and contests. Among his students was Kamo no Chomei, who recorded Shun'e's words in his Mumyosho. Shun'e has 83 poems in the Shikashu and other imperial collections; his personal poetry collection is also extant.
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: Wikipedia
Hyakunin Isshu Index