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Dhammapada · narration sample

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A Hundred Verses from Old Japan · 38 of 101

37. Asayasu Bunya: Bunya no Asayasu

37

Asayasu Bunya

Bunya No Asayasu

Shira tsuyu ni Kaze no fukishiku Aki no no wa Tsuranuki-tomenu Tama zo chiri keru.

THIS lovely morn the dewdrops flash Like diamonds on the grass— A blaze of sparkling jewels! But The autumn wind, alas! Scatters them as I pass.

Asayasu, the son of the author of verse No. 22, lived about the end of the ninth century. He is said to have composed this verse at the request of the Emperor Daigo in the year 900. To liken the dewdrops to jewels or beads (tama) is typical of Japanese verse. The picture shows the grass, and the dewdrops scattered on the ground in front of the poet.