Year
Nukata no Ookimi (a.k.a. Princess Nukata, 630-690 AD)
Winter hides
And spring has come.
The birds that haven’t chirped
Begin to sing
And the closed up flowers
Begin to bloom.
The mountains grow with thicket
And I can join, but do not want to;
The grass grows deep
And I can touch, but do not want to.
In autumn
I see the mountain trees
And the leaves change to yellow and red;
I pluck them and remember.
I take these green leaves,
But drop them and lament;
It is a shame,
But I am with the autumn mountains.
Original Text | Modern Text | Pronunciation |
額田王 | 額田王 | Nukata no Ookimi |
冬木成 | 冬こもり | Fuyu komori |
春去来者 | 春さり来れば | Haru sari kure ba |
不喧有之 | 鳴かずありし | Nakazu arishi |
鳥毛来鳴奴 | 鳥も来鳴きぬ | Tori mo ki nakinu |
不開有之 | 咲かずありし | Sakazu arishi |
花毛佐家礼抒 | 花も咲けれど | Hana mo sake do |
山乎茂 | 山を茂み | Yama wo shigemi |
入而毛不取 | 入りても取らず | Iritemo torazu |
草深 | 草深み | Kusa-fukami |
執手母不見 | 取りても見ず | Toritemo mizu |
秋山乃 | 秋山の | Aki-yama no |
木葉乎見而者 | 木の葉を見ては | Konoha wo mite ha |
黄葉乎婆 | 黄葉をば | Momichi wo ba |
取而曽思努布 | 取りてぞ偲ふ | Toritezo shinou |
青乎者 | 青きをば | Aoki wo ba |
置而曽歎久 | 置きてぞ嘆く | Okite zo nageku |
曽許之恨之 | そこし恨めし | Sokoshi urameshi |
秋山吾者 | 秋山吾は | Akiyama ware ha |
Translation Notes
冬こもり | Winter shut-up/hidden [Winter has passed] |
春さり来れば | Spring does come as [Spring has come] |
鳴かずありし | Chirp not are [Birds which have not sung for awhile] |
鳥も来鳴きぬ | Birds too come sing finished [Birds come out and sing] |
咲かずありし | Blossom not are [Flowers not blooming] |
花も咲けれど | Flowers too bloom and |
山を茂み | Mountains overgrown/thicket |
入りても取らず | Enter yet touch not [Can get in but do not want to touch] |
草深み | Grass deep |
取りても見ず | Touch yet see not [Can touch but do not want to see] |
秋山の | Autumn mountain ’s |
木の葉を見ては | Tree ’s leaves see |
黄葉をば | Yellow leaves [Can also mean red leaves or autumn-colored leaves] |
取りてぞ偲ふ | Pick and remember. |
青きをば | Green leaves [which had fallen before turning yellow] |
置きてぞ嘆く | Put-them-back lament |
そこし恨めし | That is shame but |
秋山吾は | Autumn mountain I |