Practise the thinking. Keep the judgement.
夕されば
Minamoto no Tsunenobu · 大納言経信
夕されば
門田の稲葉
おとづれて
あしのまろやに
秋風ぞ吹く
Historical kana
ゆふされば
かどたのいなば
おとづれて
あしのまろやに
あきかぜぞふく
Original English translation
As evening comes, autumn wind visits the rice leaves before the gate and blows into my reed-roofed hut.
History and context
Tsunenobu held high court office, yet this poem adopts a rural viewpoint. The Kin’yōshū preserves the scene as an autumn poem, where ripening fields and a simple shelter share the same wind.
Imagery and wordplay
Otozure suggests visiting and making a sound. Wind announces itself in the rice before reaching the dwelling.
Kin’yōshū · 金葉集秋183
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.