38. Ukon
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A Hundred Verses from Old Japan (The Hyakunin-isshu), tr. by William N. Porter, [1909], at sacred-texts.com
p. 38
38
UKON
Wasuraruru
Mi woba omowazu
Chikahite-shi
Hito no inochi no
Oshiku mo aru kana.
Mi woba omowazu
Chikahite-shi
Hito no inochi no
Oshiku mo aru kana.
MY broken heart I don't lament,
To destiny I bow;
But thou hast broken solemn oaths,—
I pray the Gods may now
Absolve thee from thy vow.
The Lady Ukon is supposed to have been deserted by her husband, and in this poem she regrets, not so much her own sorrow, as the fact that he has broken his sworn oath, and is therefore in danger of divine vengeance. The illustration shows her all alone at the gate, with the house in the background, evidently waiting for the husband who has forsaken her.
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