KKS Kanajo 7

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ここに古いにしへの事をも歌の心をも知れる人、わづかに一人二人なりき。しかあれど、これかれ得たるところ、得ぬ所、互ひになんある。かの御時より、このかた年は百年ももとせあまり、世は十継とつぎになんなりにける。古いにしへの事をも歌をも知れる人、詠む人多からず。今、この事を言ふに、司つかさ・位くらゐ高き人をば、たやすきやうなれば、入れず。

そのほかに、近き世にその名聞こえたる人は、すなはち僧正遍昭そうじゃうへんぜうは、歌の様は得たれども、真まこと少くなし。たとへば、絵に描ける女を見て、いたづらに心を動かすがごとし。

（「浅緑糸よりかけて白露を玉にもぬける春の柳か」、「蓮葉の濁りにしまぬ心もてなにかは露を玉とあざむく」、嵯峨野にて馬より落てよめる、「名にめでて折れるばかりぞ女郎花我落ちに来と人に語るな」）

在原業平は、その心あまりて、言葉足らず。しぼめる花の色なくて、にほひ残れるがごとし。

（「月やあらぬ春や昔の春ならぬ我が身ひとつはもとの身にして」、「おほかたは月をもめでじこれぞこのつもれば人の老いとなるもの」、「寝ぬる夜の夢をはかなみまどろめばいやはかなにもなりまさるかな」）

文屋康秀ふんやのやすひでは言葉はたくみにて、その様、身におはず。いはば商人あきびとのよき衣きぬ着たらんがごとし。

（「吹くからに野辺の草木のしほるればむべ山風をあらしといふらん」、深草の帝の御国忌に、「草深き霞の谷にかげ隠してる日のくれし今日にやはあらぬ」）

宇治山の僧喜撰は、言葉かすかにして、初め終わりたしかならず。いはば秋の月を見るに暁の雲にあへるがごとし。

（「わがいほはみやこのたつみしかぞすむ世をうぢ山と人はいふなり」）

詠める歌多く聞こえねば、かれこれをかよはしてよく知らず。

小野小町は、古いにしへの衣通姫そとほりひめの流りうなり。あはれなるやうにて強よからず。いはばよき女のなやめる所あるに似たり。強からぬは女の歌なればなるべし。

（「思ひつつぬればや人の見えつらん夢としりせば覚めざらましを」、「色見えでうつろふ物は世中の人の心の花にぞありける」、「わびぬれば身をうき草のねをたえてさそふ水あらばいなんとぞ思ふ」、衣通姫の歌、「我がせこがくべきよひなりささがにのくものふるまひかねてしるしも」）

大伴黒主はその様さまいやし。いはば薪負へる山人の花の蔭に休めるがごとし。

（「思ひいでて恋しき時ははつかりのなきてわたると人は知らずや」、「鏡山いざたちよりて見てゆかん年へぬる身はおいやしぬると」）

このほかの人々、その名聞こゆる、野辺に生おふる葛かづらの這はひひろごり、林に繁き木の葉のごとくに多かれど、歌とのみ思ひて、その様知らぬなるべし。

In this age, there are only a few people who understand the heart of poetry or the things of old. However, with each of these people, there are both things they succeed at and things they don't.

From that time period to now, it has been more than 100 years, and 10 reigns. There are not many people who understand poetry or things of old, and compose [such] poetry. Now in saying this, this does not include those of high rank or office, since it would be flippant to discuss them. Aside from them, in the recent age, among those whose reputation is known, there is Bishop Henjō. His poems have style but little truth. It is like looking at a woman in a painting and having one's heart fruitlessly moved.

(KKS 27, KKS 165, KKS 226)

Ariwara no Narihira has overflowing heart, but insufficient words. It is like a wilted flower that has no color but scent still remains.

(KKS 747, KKS 879, KKS 644)

Fun'ya no Yasuhide's words have skill, but the style does not fit with the feeling. It is like a merchant wearing good clothing.

(KKS 249, KKS 846)

Priest Kisen of Uji Mountain's words are unclear, and the beginning and end are uncertain. It is like looking at the moon on an autumn night and the dawn clouds appearing.

(KKS 983)

We do not hear many of his poems, so we cannot take several of them and figure out [his style].

Ono no Komachi is in the [poetic] lineage of Princess Sotoori of old. The style has pathos, and is not strong. It resembles a beautiful woman who is ill. Perhaps this is because women's poetry is not strong.

(KKS 552, KKS 979, KKS 938)

Ōtomo no Kuronushi's style is low class. It is like a mountain person bearing firewood, resting under the shade of a flowering tree.

(KKS 735, KKS 899)

There are others that we know by reputation, they are as many as the kudzu spreading widely in the fields, and [their poems] are as many as the leaves of the profusely blooming woods, but they are only poems, and we do not know their style.

Notes

In this age

The first sentence repeats information from the next one and is a bit vague; some commenters suspect textual corruption but it may simply be laying out the topic and then explaining it later. Tsurayuki is now talking about the period between the Man'yōshū and his own time.

things of old

This presumably refers to the history of poetry and the methods of the great poets of the past.

From that time

This is another difficult phrase in the context of the chronological problems discussed in the previous section. Katagiri uses this as proof that the "Nara Era" referred to Emperor Heizei (since that is ten reigns prior to Daigo). Takeoka instead says the ten reigns are from Kammu to Uda, omitting Daigo because he is the current Emperor.

those of high rank

There were poems composed by those in the elite of society, but Tsurayuki does not include discussion of them, and the six poets discussed in this section are all low ranking. Whether the reason given here is true or a convenient excuse is difficult to say -- there are also few poems by societal elite in the KKS itself.

poems have style

The word sama here is the same used for the "six styles" in section 4. However, the majority of manuscripts of the KKS read uta no kokoro "the heart of the poem" instead. Judging from the metaphor, regardless of the term, the meaning seems to be that the poem has feeling but the words are untrue.

overflowing heart

This seems to mean the feeling found in his poetry.

style does not fit with the feeling

There is some uncertainty about the meaning of this, but judging from the metaphor it seems to mean that there is not enough "style" to fit the skill of the words.

beginning and end are uncertain

Takeoka interpret this as the parts of the poem not cohering, whereas Katagiri says the poem suddenly ends.

We do not hear many of his poems

KKS 983 is the only poem attributed to him other than one more in the Gyokuyōshū, which may be a later fabrication.

Sotoori-hime

She is a figure that appears in both the Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki. She is the author of KKS 1110. The comparison between Komachi and her seems to be based on this poem and the idea of the woman waiting for the man's visit.

mountain person

Takeoka seems to try to interpret this in a less negative way, associating it with a kind of artisan's group that did woodworking. Katagiri more directly reads it as a lowly mountain woodcutter or charcoal maker.

we do not know their style

In other words, they qualify as 31-syllable waka but they have no discernible sama.

Analysis

This section introduces the so-called "six sages of poetry" (rokkasen), although that term postdates the KKS by quite a while. There are two main interpretive questions: why were these six people chosen, and why are Tsurayuki's comments about them so negative?

Takeoka outlines some factors that may have encouraged the selection of the six figures -- either they were known for their good poetry, or they were in significant poetic lineages, with Kisen being chosen because of his supposed authorship of the poetic treatise called Waka sakushiki. Katagiri, on the other hand, thinks that by the time Tsurayuki wrote the preface, these six individuals had already become a fixed group -- this would account both for the choice of the obscure Kisen, and also Tsurayuki's relatively harsh criticism of the poets.

If you come to this part of the preface having heard of the "Six Poetic Immortals," it may be surprising to see how harsh Tsurayuki is about their poetry. The criticism is especially puzzling considering that all six of the poets poems in the KKS.

Takeoka seems to deal with this issue by trying to interpret Tsurayuki's comments in as favorable a light as possible. Thus he interprets the comparison of Kuronishi to a "mountain person" as having a somewhat positive meaning, and his reading of Narihira's critique is positive as well.

Katagiri's reading is similar to the previous section -- Tsurayuki's main goal here is to show that poetry was in decline between the Man'yōshū and the reign of Daigo, so his harsh criticism of these poets shows that even the best poets from that era were not up to the standards now.

The criticism may also be judged in light of the fact that these six figures have a total of 74 poems in the collection, which is about 6.5% of the total. And of these 74, most of them are by Henjō, Narihira, and Komachi, whose receive somewhat less severe judgments than the others.

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