Hyakunin Isshu: Meet the Poets
Izumi Shikibu

Meaning

I may not be long for this world. As a memory to take beyond — let me meet you just one more time.

Commentary

This poem is remarkable for its directness. The speaker acknowledges she is dying and asks not for comfort in this life, but for one more meeting to carry with her into the next. "Omoide" (keepsake/memory) carries both the sense of a cherished memory and a parting gift taken into death.

Izumi Shikibu was one of the most celebrated female poets of the Heian period, renowned for her passionate loves and natural poetic gift. Lady Murasaki, in her diary, praised her talent while noting her unconventional personal life. She served Empress Shōshi at the same court as Murasaki Shikibu.

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