これやこの
行くも帰るも
別れては
知るも知らぬも
逢坂の関
Translation-
Truly, this is where
Travelers who go or come
Over parting ways--
Friends or strangers--all must meet:
The gate of "Meeting Hill."
- Semimaru
Notes-
The Osaka Barrier is formed at the border between the old capital Heiankyo (now Kyoto) and the province of Omi (now Shiga Prefecture, with as capital Otsu), where the road to eastern Japan starts.
The poem highlights how the barrier caters to both kind of people. Firstly, people who are parting from their loved ones, biding farewells with moist eyes. And secondly, people who are returning from journeys to meet their loved ones again.
The passing by of people who know each other and those who are complete strangers. One meets in order to part and says goodbye in order to meet again... the world is in a constant flux, a truly Buddhist view of life.
It is quite correctly said that, "Meeting is the beginning of parting."
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Hyakunin Isshu
شِعر100 poems by 100 poets. Classical Japanese anthology of one hundred Japanese waka (short poems) by one hundred poets. Hyakunin isshu can be translated to "one hundred people, one poem (each)." These poems hold a special meaning to me, and so I dec...
