My Translation

The man under the tree

No longer lives on the moon!

(Rain blocks our view)


Original Japanese


桂男すまずなりけり雨の月


Pronunciation


Katsura-otoko

Suma-zu nari-keri

Ame no tsuki


Literal


[Katsura tree] man

Live not become has

Rain ’s/of moon


Katsura trees are native to China and Japan and are also a mythical tree on the moon where a Daoist immortal is said to sit under and also has the connotation of a “handsome man.” The last kanji of the first line and the second line comes from Tale of Ise, “otoko suma-zu nari-ni-keri,” meaning “the man turned out to not live (with her).” “Ame no tsuki” is the harvest moon blocked by rain.

Year: 
2011