VOLUME-4
☆Kasa-no Iratsume’s poem:
皆人を
寝よとの鐘は
打つなれど
君をし思へば
寝ねかてぬかも
(笠郎女 巻4-607)
Mina hitowo
Neyotono kaneha
Utsunaredo
Kimiwoshi omoheba
Inekatenukamo
Clockmasters always
Tell people to go to bed
By ringing their bells –
Do they know I can’t but stay
Up late, thinking of my love…
(Vol.4-607)
We notice that as many as 29 Tankas are listed in Man-Yoh-Shuh as Kasa’s poetic works, and this ranks her as the poetess having left the second-most number of works there, only after Ootomo-no Sakanoue-no Iratsume. Besides, all of them are poems sent to Ootomo-no Yakamochi! To this dedicated lady, it was only 2 answer songs Yakamochi sent back. This imbalance may speak a lot about the relationship between the man and the woman.
Having said that, you never know if this tells everything and a true story. Yakamochi, as the editor/compiler of Man-Yoh-Shuh, must have had the option of what to let in and what not. This point remains a mystery.
At any rate, it is certain that Lady Kasa was a unique and passionate woman, with overflowing sentiments irrespective of the feeling of the other party(ies).
(partly based upon Mr. Tada’s observation)
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