Practise the thinking. Keep the judgement.
夏の夜は
Kiyohara no Fukayabu · 清原深養父
夏の夜は
まだ宵ながら
あけぬるを
雲のいづこに
月宿るらむ
Historical kana
なつのよは
まだよひながら
あけぬるを
くものいづこに
つきやどるらむ
Original English translation
The summer night has dawned while it still seemed evening; in which part of the clouds is the moon lodging?
History and context
Fukayabu’s poem belongs to the Kokinshū summer section. Its brief night offers a different seasonal experience from the long autumn nights found elsewhere in the collection.
Imagery and wordplay
The vanishing moon becomes a traveller seeking lodging. The question prolongs a night already over.
Kokinshū · 古今集夏166
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.