Kokinshu #314

    The Godless Month weaves
a brocade of leaves into
    Tatsuta River,
using the rains of early
winter as its warp and weft.

—22 November 09

The first of the anthology's winter poems, author unknown -- though if it were known, I wonder whether this would be in the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu, as the conceit looks like it's be right down Teika's alley. Translation notes: The Godless Month (kannazuki) is a former name of the tenth month, roughly November in the old lunisolar calendar, when the eight million Shinto gods supposedly left their local shrines to attend a convention in Izumo -- purely for professional reasons, of course. "Leaves" is left understood in the original, making this an interesting verse to interpret. My first draft honored the form better, but the syntax suffered: "The Godless Month weaves / into Tatsuta River / a brocade of leaves, / using the early winter / rains as its warp and weft." Original:


tatsuta gawa
nishiki orikaku
kannazuki
shigure no ame o
tatenuki ni shite

---L.