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to the interpretation of the Ise Monogatari and the Genji Monogatari, and wrote a number of other erudite treatises which are still valued by scholars. Like most of the Wagakusha, he was a poet, and has left both Tanka and Naga-uta, which in metre, diction, and sentiment are little more than echoes of the Manyōshiu. They are adorned with the same devices of pillow and pivot words and are in short the old wine in the old bottles. The following simple effusion is in its way not unpleasing:—

The First Day of Spring

"Bending its magic bow,^[1]The spring hath come:The eternal heavens,Likewise the ore-yielding earth,Are dim with haze;The snow begins to meltOn the mountain's rim,And the ice dissolvesFrom the surface of the pond;The nightingale's tender noteSounds (oh! how lovely!)From amid the first blossomsOf the plum branch.Now from the memory fadeOur regrets for the bygone year.How many days must passBefore we can go forth into the meadowsAnd pluck the young pot-herbs?^[2]When will the willowFlame into bud?

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1. Haru in Japanese means "to bend" and also "spring." Hence this conjunction. There is no intention of personifying spring as an archer. A small bow forms part of a magician's outfit in Japan.
2. An old custom in early spring.