My Translation
By Lady Murasaki Shikibu (~ 973-1014)
A chance encounter,
Seeing a vanished friend—
Or was it?
The cloud-covered
Midnight moon
Original Japanese | Pronunciation |
紫式部 | Murasaki Shikibu |
めぐりあひて | Meguri aite |
見しやそれとも | Mishi ya sore to mo |
わかぬ間に | Wakanu ma ni |
雲がくれにし | Kumo-gakure ni shi |
夜半の月かげ | Yowa no tsuki kage |
Literal Notes
[Around /concerning/pass a time] [companion/partner/lose interest/tire of]
[See have] [or/or else/either... or.../if it were/that friend]
Understand [not time-period/so or not]
[Disappear/vanish/go away]
[Midnight/middle-of-night] ’s moon light
Lady Murasaki Shikibu is the author of the classic story, Tale of Genji. The note to the poem says it was written after seeing a childhood friend at night.
“Sore to mo” as “soretomo” can be read as “or” or “if it were,” but if “sore tomo,” it means “that friend.” Although the most common meaning of “meguri aite” would be something like “we met,” “around when we met,” or “we met by chance,” individually, the words could mean “passing time” and “losing interest.” Some sources have the last word as “kana,” an exclamation, instead of “kage,” meaning light or shadow.
Year:
2012
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