Hyakunin Isshu: Meet the Poets
Master of the Left Capital Akisuke

Meaning

Through the gaps in the clouds trailing in the autumn wind, the moonlight filters through, so clear and still.

Commentary

The poem is built from motion: wind trailing clouds, clouds opening in gaps (taema), moonlight spilling through. The final word "sayakesa" (clarity, brilliance) arrives as a release — the sustained visual buildup resolves in one luminous moment. The structure mirrors the experience of waiting for moonlight to break through.

Fujiwara no Akisuke served as Master of the Left Capital and compiled the Shika Wakashū. He had a famously difficult relationship with his father Nakatsuna. His poem here is admired for its dynamic, radiant imagery — notably different from the quiet introspection that dominates much late-Heian verse.

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