Hyakunin Isshu Commentary: 'Even if you try to deceive me with the false cry of a bird in the night, I will not let you pass the barrier of Osaka'

Hello!
I am Yorozu Hagiha, a classical literature Vtuber who loves all kinds of words.

The 62nd poem of the Hyakunin Isshu,

This is a waka poem bySei Shonagon. Sei Shonagon is a writer from the mid-Heian period, known for writing The Pillow Book.
She served Empress Teishi, the consort of Emperor Ichijo.

The situation in which this poem was composed is described in detail inThe Pillow Book, 'When the Head Chamberlain came to the Empress's office', so this time we will look at the content of the waka along with the content of that Pillow Book entry!

The Pillow Book, 'When the Head Chamberlain came to the Empress's office'

Paraphrased content

When the Head Chamberlain, Fujiwara no Yukinari, came to the Empress's office (the room where the Empress was) and we were chatting,
'The night has grown quite late. I am scheduled to be on duty tomorrow for the Emperor's abstinence, so it would be problematic if it becomes the hour of the Ox (2:00 AM),' he said, and returned to the palace.

The next morning, he stacked some Kamiyagami paper (paper made at the imperial paper mill) from the Kurando-dokoro (the office of the Emperor's secretaries) and wrote,
'I have regrets today. I intended to spend the night talking about old times, but I was hurried away by the voice of the first rooster,'
and the handwriting of his long-winded excuse was truly magnificent.
In my reply, I wrote,
'The bird that cries in the middle of the night must be the fake bird from the story of Lord Mengchang.'
Then, in Yukinari's reply, he wrote,
'Lord Mengchang's rooster opened the Hangu Pass, allowing three thousand retainers to escape. But the barrier I want to open is the Osaka barrier, the barrier of love between you and me.'
Since he wrote that, I replied,

I wrote and sent that. Then another reply came,

he wrote. As for those letters, the first one was taken by the monk Ryuen (Empress Teishi's younger brother), who insisted on having it. The later letters I gave to Empress Teishi.
By the way, I was overwhelmed by the waka 'Since the Osaka barrier is easy for people to cross...' and could not reply. That was very unfortunate.

After that, Yukinari came and said,
'All the courtiers have seen your letter,'
so I said,
'Only now do I realize that you truly think of me. It is pointless if a wonderful waka is not seen by others. I decided to hide your unsightly waka and not show it to anyone. Comparing our feelings for each other, it is the same thing, isn't it?'
When I said that, Yukinari laughed and said,
'The fact that you say things as if you understand so well shows that you are different from others. I thought you would complain like an ordinary woman, saying things like 'you did something rash and terrible.''
I said,
'Well, why? I would rather thank you.'
Yukinari said,
'I am also happy that you hid my letter. If you had shown it to others, how painful it would have been. I will continue to trust you.'

Then, Minamoto no Tsunefusa came and said,
'Do you know that Yukinari praises you very much? He wrote about what happened the other day in his letter to me. It is truly a happy thing when the person you like is praised.'
It is interesting that he said that so seriously.
I said,
'I have two things to be happy about. That Yukinari praised me, and that I was included among the people you like.'
Tsunefusa said,
'You are rejoicing over that as if it were something rare now.'

What is the 'story of Lord Mengchang'?

I will explain the Chinese story that appeared in this tale.
This is a story recorded in the Chinese history book 'Records of the Grand Historian'.

When Lord Mengchang was escaping from the State of Qin, he needed to pass through the Hangu Pass barrier.
This barrier would not open until morning, and it was still the middle of the night.
So, Lord Mengchang had his subordinate imitate the cry of the first rooster. The guard, hearing this, mistook it for morning and opened the barrier, allowing them to escape safely.

It was precisely because both of them knew this story that they were able to have this exchange.
At the time, knowledge of Chinese poetry was not considered necessary for women.
However, for the ladies-in-waiting who served Empress Teishi, knowledge of the 'Records of the Grand Historian' was something they were expected to know.
This story, in a roundabout way, shows what a wonderful master Empress Teishi was.

What is the 'Barrier of Osaka'?

It is a famous utamakura (poetic pillow word).
It was a checkpoint located on the border between present-day Kyoto and Shiga Prefectures, and
'Osaka' is a kakekotoba (pivot word) for 'meeting'—it is often used in waka poetry as a barrier of love, simply meaning the boundary between being together or not.

The Sanseki (Three Brush Traces) - Kōzei

It is said that the Sōzu (a high-ranking monk) wanted a letter written by Kōzei.
Kōzei was an excellent calligrapher, and along with his contemporariesFujiwara no SariandOno no Michikazehe is known as one of the'Sanseki' (Three Brush Traces).When referring to him as a calligrapher, his name is often read as 'Kōzei'.

Kōzei's original handwriting still exists today and is designated as a National Treasure; it is truly beautiful, even to the eyes of a layperson.
This means that even back then, Kōzei's original handwriting was something everyone wanted to possess.

Meaning of the Waka

Now, let's look at the waka poems, keeping the context in mind.

It is hard to understand from a literal translation, but the meaning of these two waka poems is:

Sei Shōnagon'I am well-guarded, so I will not be deceived by your lies or easily swayed.'
Kōzei'You say that, but I heard that you are willing to be with anyone.'

That is what they mean.
That is quite a rude waka poem.

Sei Shōnagon was likely the only woman who would send a reference to Chinese poetry in response to a man's romantic advances.
Kōzei seemed to like that about her.
The relationship between these two appears often in The Pillow Book, but rather than lovers... they seem to have been close friends who could joke with each other.

☆ Commentary in video

Tō no Ben, upon arriving at his post, 'In the dead of night' <The Pillow Book / Hyakunin Isshu>

[Hyakunin Isshu] *Re-edited: Sei Shōnagon's extremely difficult waka! 'Even if you try to deceive me with the false cry of a rooster in the dead of night, the barrier of Osaka will never let you pass.'