Practise the thinking. Keep the judgement.
御垣守
Ōnakatomi no Yoshinobu · 大中臣能宣朝臣
御垣守
衛士のたく火の
夜はもえ
晝は消えつつ
ものをこそ思へ
Historical kana
みかきもり
ゑじのたくひの
よるはもえ
ひるはきえつつ
ものをこそおもへ
Original English translation
Like the fires the palace guards light, burning at night and dying by day, I keep living in thoughts of love.
History and context
Traditionally attributed to Yoshinobu, a court poet from a ritual family. The poem draws on the visible night fires of palace guards, turning an institutional scene into an intimate comparison.
Imagery and wordplay
Night burning and daytime fading form a repeated cycle. The fire conveys both ardour and exhaustion.
Shikashū · 詞花集恋上224
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.