Practise the thinking. Keep the judgement.
山がはに
Harumichi no Tsuraki · 春道列樹
山がはに
風のかけたる
しがらみは
流れもあへぬ
紅葉なりけり
Historical kana
やまがはに
かぜのかけたる
しがらみは
ながれもあへぬ
もみぢなりけり
Original English translation
Across the mountain stream, the barrier the wind has built is autumn leaves unable to flow away.
History and context
The Kokinshū headnote places Tsuraki’s poem on a journey through the mountains. Instead of a human-built fishing barrier, leaves caught in the stream become the structure holding back the flow.
Imagery and wordplay
Wind acts as a builder. A temporary accumulation of leaves becomes a shigarami, a weir.
Kokinshū · 古今集秋下303
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.