Gosenshu 10

後撰和歌集　巻第十　恋二

• 恋二] 恋歌二（行）

601

女のもとにはじめてつかはしける

Sent to a woman for the first time

藤原忠房朝臣

Lord Fujiwara no Tadafusa

人を見て　思ふおもひも　ある物を　そらにこふるぞ　はかなかりける

Seeing the person / the thoughts I think / are there, and yet / empty longing / is transient.

• おもひも] おもひは（八*）
• こふるぞ] こふるは（八*）
• はかなかりける] はかなかりけり（八*)

人を見て

This may mean catching a glimpse of the woman (as is common in monogatari), or it may refer to the couple spending a night together.

--

Tadafusa has either spent one night with the woman or just glimpsed her -- he has those memories, but even so his current position, where he has to long for her with no hope of meeting, is difficult to tolerate. Kifune sees a series of wordplays that conceal a phrase 陽もあるものを、空に...降る.

Other sources:

• 新撰万葉集４５４. Second line 思ふことだに.
• 寛平后宮歌合１６１, anonymous. Second line 思ふことだに. Kudo thinks that this is a separate poem drawn on by Tadafusa, perhaps because Tadafusa may have been too young to participate in this poetry competition (although his birth year is uncertain).

602

壬生忠岑

Mibu no Tadamine

ひとりのみ　おもへばくるし　如何して　おなじ心に　人ををゝしへむ

It hurts me to think alone. (1-2) / how can I / teach you the same heart (4-5)?

• おもへば] おもふは（ハイ・標・新）

如何して

Every other text reads いかにして, so it's likely that Teika intended 如何 to be read as いかに. いかにして....む is "How can I..." or perhaps "I want somehow to..."

--

The prose prefaces in the Tadamine Collection version of this poem give a different possible context; with the context carried over from the previous poem it sounds like Tadamine has only seen or heard of the woman and is now sending a message for the first time. It was common in such introductory letters to already be talking of how much you were burning with love for the other person.

Perhaps this is based on the anonymous KKS 541:

よそにして恋ふればくるし入れ紐の同じ心にいざむすびてむ

It hurts me to long for you from afar. Let's pledge our love and be together like beads on a string.

Other sources:

• 古今和歌六帖２６３０・あひおもはぬ. Also ２１３８・ざふの思ひ. First line ひとすれず (only in 2138).
• 忠岑集１５７. Prose preface ある女の、いみじう本意なくはべりしかば(IV) or ある女のいみじう心つよくはべりしかば(II).

603

紀友則

Ki no Tomonori

わが心　いつならひてか　見ぬ人を　思ひ・やりつつゝ　こひしかるらん覧

My heart / when did it become used to / sending my thoughts to (4) / and longing for (3) / a person I have not seen?

• 見ぬ人を] 見ぬ人の（雲・坊・新イ）

--

Another "first contact" poem, telling the woman how much he has been thinking of her despite not having met.

Other sources:

• 古今和歌六帖２５３２・しらぬ人・友則. Third line 見ぬ人の.
• 友則集３８. Second and third lines いつにならひて　見ぬ人の.

604

まだ年わかかゝりける女につかはしける

Sent to a girl who was still young

源中正

Minamoto no Nakatada

葉をわかみ　ほにこそいでね　花すすゝき　したの心に　むすばざらめや

The leaves are young, and so / the flower has not appeared / the susuki / how can we not tie together (5) / the underlying thought? (4)

葉をわかみ

The を...み structure means が....ので.

ほにこそいでね

This either refers to the woman who has not yet come of age, or to the man, whose feelings are not yet made known.

したの心

This suggests both the bottom part of the plant as well as the author's intentions.

--

This sort of poem could be sent to a girl's parents as part of a politically arranged marriage. However, it may also be that the girl is not actually below marriageable age but just much younger than the author (on the other hand, the Tale of Genji reminds us that a man could take a romantic interest in a very young girl...)

605

人をいひはじめむとて

He talked to her for the first time

兼覧王

Prince Kanemi

あしひきの　山したしげく　はふくずの　尋ねてこふる　我としらずや

[the foot dragging] / bottom of the mountain, profuse / with crawling kudzu vine / [like that] I seek for you longing / do you not know me?

• 山したしげく] 山したしげみ（荒・片・新イ）
• 我としらずや] 我としらなむ（堀・坊・新イ）

あしひきの

A pillow word for 山.

はふくずの

The first three lines are a preface for 尋ぬ, because the vines grow profusely and seek out every place to expand.

--

Kigin suggests that this is a 有心序, where the blindly growing vines represent the poet who is seeking after the woman despite not having any letter or communication from her, and perhaps also the way he is drawn to her. Kifune notes that the はふくず was a symbol of love in the MYS as well, and praises this poem's beautiful sound and evocative scenery.

Other sources:

• 古今和歌六帖３６６０・くず・兼覧
• 新時代別歌合３９・兼覧王. Fourth line うらみてこふる.

606

忠房朝臣

Lord Tadafusa

• (no preface)] いとしのびたる人を月日へていひ侍りて（堀・雲・新イ）、年月をへて忍びていひ侍る人に（中・荒・片・承・慶・坊・ハイ・新イ）

かくれぬに　忍び・わびぬる　わが身かな哉　ゐでのかはづと　成り・やしなまし

In a hidden marsh / lamenting secretly / that is my body! / Shall I become (5) / a frog in Ide? (4)

• 忍びわびぬる] 忍びかねぬる（荒・片*)
• かはづと] かはづに（堀）

かくれぬに

隠れ沼; this is a deep marsh that is hidden under thick plants and reeds. It may act as a pillow word for 忍ぶ.

ゐで

A place in Yamashiro, but here it is simply used for its association with frogs.

--

The poet compares his laments to a croaking frog, which fits with the "marsh" of the beginning. As you can see from the collation notes, most texts of this poem have a prose preface rather than continuing the previous one. If we take the base text as given, the poet is lamenting in secret because the woman does not yet know of his love. The prefaces make the situation more explicit (that he has been in love with her for a long time).

Other source:

• 五代歌枕　歌枕名寄

607

女の曹司に、夜々たちよりつつ、物などいひてのち

• いひてのち] のたうひのち（行）、いふついでに（荒・片・慶・新イ）
• などいひてのち] の給ひなどしてのついでに（堀・雲）、もうしてのついでに（新イ）

藤原輔文

Fujiwara no Sukefumi

• 輔文] すけもと（堀・雲・慶・新イ）、すけむと（中）、すけふさ（白）、輔仁（荒・片）、すけのぶ（片イ）、源助元（新イ）、一本輔仁（定本勘物）

あぶくまの　きりとはなしに　終夜(よもすがら)　立ち・渡り・つつゝ　世をもふるかな哉

• 終夜] ふよのよを（荒・片*）

藤原輔文

No information is available on this person. As you can see from the collation notes, the name varies widely in different manuscripts. This poem is not found in any contemporary source, making it impossible to tell who the author is.

終夜

Most texts read よもすがら in kana, and this reading of the 終夜 kanji is confirmed by the 類聚名義抄. Perhaps the variant reading of ふゆのよを comes from a misreading or miscopying of 終 as 冬.

--

Other sources:

• 歌枕名寄