My Translation
By Lady Koshikibu no Naishi (999-1025)
Far away—
From Mount Oe
To Ikuno Road
And the Heaven’s Bridge:
As yet unseen
| Original Japanese | Pronunciation |
| | |
| 小式部内侍 | Koshikibu no Naishi |
| | |
| 大江山 | Oeyama |
| いく野の道の | Ikuno no michi no |
| とほければ | To kereba |
| まだふみも見ず | Mada fumi mo mizu |
| 天の橋立 | Ama no Hashidate |
Literal Notes
Oe Mountain
[Go field/go plain/Ikuno] ’s road ’s
[Far if/while or far reject if/while]
[As yet/not yet] [letter/writings/step on/experience/distaste] [see not]
Heaven ’s bridge standing/rising
The main pivot word here is “fumi,” which could either mean “trod on” or “letter.” So you could equally well read the line as “I have not seen a letter” or “I have not trod on and seen...” Mount Oe, Ikuno Road, and the “Bridge Rising to Heaven” are all landmarks along the way to Tango Bay, arranged in geographical order.
Lady Koshikibu is the daughter of Izumi Shikibu (#56), a famous poet. People suspected her mother was helping her write poetry, so one day when her parents were vacationing at Tango Bay, she was selected for a poetry contest. According to the story, one of the male poets, Sadoyori (#64), of the court stopped her and suggested she must be anxiously awaiting a letter from her mother. At that, she is said to have made up this tanka on the spot. Sadoyori, unable to respond in kind, walked away. After that, her fame as a poet increased rapidly.
Year:
2012
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