A Hundred Verses from Old Japan/Poem 48

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4381371A Hundred Verses from Old Japan — Poem 48William Ninnis PorterMinamoto no Shigeyuki

48


MINAMOTO NO SHIGE-YUKI

Kaze wo itami
Iwa utsu nami no
Onore nomi
Kudakete mono wo
Omou koro kana.


SHIGE-YUKI MINAMOTO

The waves that dash against the rocks
Are broken by the wind
And turned to spray; my loving heart
Is broken too, I find,
Since thou art so unkind.


The writer of this verse is said to have died in the year 963; for a note about the great Minamoto family, see verse No. 28. In the picture we see Shige-yuki, with an attendant carrying his sword, walking on the shore, while the waves break into spray at his feet.