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Audio: NHK Creative Library
Read by LibriVox volunteer Larry Wilson.
Audio courtesy of LibriVox (Public Domain).
元良親王
わびぬれば
いまはたおなじ
難波なる
みをつくしても
逢はむとぞ思ふ
みをつくし
てもあはむ
とそおもふ
わび
- Poem 20
- わびぬれば
いまはたおなじ
難波なる
みをつくしても 逢はむとぞ思ふ
Author: Prince Motoyoshi (890–943)
Source: Gosen Wakashū, Love
- English Verse Translation
- We met but for a moment, and I'm wretched as before; The tide shall measure out my life,
Unless I see once more The maid, whom I adore.
— William N. Porter, 1909
- Modern Translation
- Since things have come to this, it no longer matters. Even if I must sacrifice everything, I still want to meet you.
- Commentary
- The Gosen Wakashū's headnote reads, "Sent to the Kyōgoku Consort after the affair became known." This tells us that Prince Motoyoshi sent this poem to Fujiwara no Hōshi, a consort of the Retired Emperor Uda, after their relationship became the subject of public rumor. The poem carries the prince's desperate, half-resigned feelings after crossing into a forbidden love.
- About the Poet
- Prince Motoyoshi was the eldest son born to his father, Emperor Yōzei, after Yōzei had already abdicated the throne. He was known for his uninhibited behavior, changing lovers nearly every night — so much so that he was nicknamed "the Prince of One-Night Rounds."
- Prince Motoyoshi's Chart of the Heart
-
A chart and a modern-language reflection of the poet's inner feelings.
The Poet's Feelings (A Personal Interpretation)
I gaze at the channel marker standing in the waves —
it looks like where I'm headed too.I don't care if I'm ruined,
as long as I can see you.
- Poem Illustration
-
This image is based on an illustration from William N. Porter's A Hundred Verses from Old Japan, his 1909 English translation of the Hyakunin Isshu published in England, colorized and reworked using Adobe Firefly (generative AI).