Practise the thinking. Keep the judgement.
月見れば
Ōe no Chisato · 大江千里
月見れば
千々に物こそ
悲しけれ
わが身ひとつの
秋にはあらねど
Historical kana
つきみれば
ちゞにものこそ
かなしけれ
わがみひとつの
あきにはあらねど
Original English translation
When I look at the moon, a thousand things grow sad, though autumn belongs to more than just my one self.
History and context
Chisato worked with both Chinese learning and Japanese poetry. This poem’s autumn moon belongs to a wider East Asian literary vocabulary of distance, reflection and sorrow.
Imagery and wordplay
A season shared by everyone is felt privately. The speaker notices the disproportion of that personal sadness.
Kokinshū · 古今集秋上193
Japanese text and historical kana follow the linked Wikisource transcription. Classical poems can have variant spellings and wording in different anthologies. The source anthology reference identifies the version represented in this collection, not necessarily its earliest surviving text. English prose translations and reading notes are original interpretations; some wordplay permits more than one reading.