GSS 1
Text
正月一日、二条の后の宮にて、白き大袿を賜はりて
藤原敏行朝臣
ふる雪の みのしろ衣 うちきつつ 春きにけりと おどろかれぬる
Translation
On the first day of the first month, he received a large robe at the Nijō Empress' residence.
Lord Fujiwara no Toshiyuki
Straw robe \ of falling snow \ while I wear it, \ spring has come, \ I am surprised [to see].
Textual notes
- 正月一日] 元日に (行・雲・八*・増*・標*・新*・旧大観), 元日 (荒). Although 元日 is read がんじつ in the 日葡辞書, the 日本国語大辞典 may indicate that it was read がんにち in the Heian period.
- おほうちきを] おほうちき（＋を）(底本・安)
Other Sources
- 敏行集 1
- 俊頼髄脳 和歌童蒙抄 奥儀抄 八雲御抄 色葉和難集
- 古来風体抄 定家八代抄
- 前摂政家歌合(1443年) ２６２. The poem is referred to in a judgment, probably written by Ichijo Kanera. The poem is 時雨ふるま木のいた屋にね覚して冬きにけりとおどろかれぬる. The judge was unimpressed with this poem, noting that the last two lines are exactly the same as the poem above, with “winter” substituted for “spring.” Evidently he felt this was an improper use of the honka-dori technique.
Notes
- 正月一日
- This is probably meant to be read as むつきのついたち. The reading むつき for 正月 is found in both the 伊呂波字類抄 and the 八雲御抄. Katagiri assigns it this reading his edition; all other editions do not specify a reading, and all the manuscripts have just the kanji (or the alternate reading of 元日 seen above). In KKS 8, however, 正月三日 is written as むつき三日 in several manuscripts. Manuscripts of the Tale of Genji, Ise Monogatari, and other Heian period texts contain readings of "[Month name]のついたち", and the other possible readings of 一日 seem to be confined to other meanings of the word.
- 大袿
- This is a large robe worn underneath the outer garment. It was "large" (uncut) so that it could be tailored later to the person. It is frequently given as a ceremonial gift (禄). In the Tale of Genji, it is among the gifts given to Genji at his coming of age ceremony. Tales of Yamato 132 and the Murasaki Shikibu Diary also mention the gift robe.
- 賜はりて
- The humble たまはる is used for Toshiyuki with respect to the Nijō Empress.
- 朝臣
- This compound, read あそみ in older texts but perhaps あそむ in the early Heian period, is used with someone higher than 5th rank. Other texts and sources suggest that the の particle should be inserted between the name and 朝臣.
- ふる雪
- This may indicate that snow was actually falling on the day it was given, but it also creates wordplay for 古行の身.
- みのしろ衣
- みの（蓑） is a straw jacket worn to protect against rain or snow. 蓑代衣 appears to be a coat worn instead of the normal straw coat to (better?) protect against the elements. It creates a play on 白衣 referring to the Empress' gift. A good deal of the early commentary on this poem in sources like the Ogisho are devoted to defining this term and perhaps questioning its poetic appropriateness. Several commentators note that the word is not in the MYS; a 古歌 ("old poem") cited by a few commentators appears in no other known source. It occurs once again in the GSS in poem 1354 by Nakahara no Muneki. Minamoto no Toshiyori thought that Muneki had used Toshiyuki’s poem as a precedent to compose his own, but without knowing anything about Muneki, it’s hard to say. The Waka dōmōshō attempts to call on a Chinese precedent, a story of Emperor Xiàowǔ [430–464] from the Book of Sòng (which I could not find).
- うちきつつ
- This plays on the robe 袿 and also うち着つつ (wear again and again). Kifune connects it with a ritual done upon receiving the clothing: 「拝領した衣服を被く（謝意を表し、肩に掛けて拝舞などする）」（全釈）Katagiri agrees.
- 春きにけり
- The "realization" けり on the surface seems to suggest surprise that spring has come given the lingering snow. 春 is also often used to refer to the beneficence of a ruler (in this case, the Empress).「幸せな時の託意」（全釈）
- おどろかれぬる
- おどろく here may indicate suddenly noticing something (see KKS 169, the opening autumn poem, also by Toshiyuki: あききぬとめにはさやかに見えねども風のおとにぞおどろかれぬる). The れ is the 自発 passive and the ぬる is the completion auxiliary in RT form, which has a nominalizing effect like のだ in modern Japanese. 「はっとして気づく。注意がひかれる。」（国語大辞典）
Comment
The opening poem of the collection sounds a keynote for the special qualities of the GSS in comparison to the other collections.
The KKS and the SIS both begin with poems about the new year. The KKS' poem is a logical, witty poem that is typical of the elevated KKS style, whereas the SIS poem was written for a poetry contest.
- としのうちに春はきにけりひととせをこぞとやいはむことしとやいはむ
- Spring has come before the end of the year. Shall we say the year is last year or this year? (KKS 1)
- はるたつといふばかりにや三吉野の山もかすみてけさは見ゆらん
- Is it only because spring has started that we Yoshino this morning obscured by mist? (SIS 1)
The GSS, on the other hand, begins with an occasional congratulatory poem. It recalls KKS 8 which was also composed in response to the Nijō Empress. Since the lunar calendar’s spring began when it was still cold and often snowy, early poems in the imperial collections frequently contain the theme of conflict between the calendar and the actual conditions. Without a prose preface, this poem could be read as entirely a seasonal poem – essentially a complaint that the poet is surprised spring has come, given that he has to keep wearing his snow clothes.
Most commentaries read this as being composed in the falling snow (or at least with snow on the ground) although the preface does not specify that. Kifune sees a connection between the snow and old age/white hair (as in KKS 8), although there's no way to tell when this was composed. It's also not clear that it has anything to do with political ambitions or rank.
Another reason for this poem's selection is that KKS ends with a poem by Toshiyuki, so the compilers created a link between the previous Imperial collection and this one.
The poem was included in Shunzei's Korai futeisho as well as Teika's Teika hachidaisho.