松波光興

詞書

本文

聘来■（與）失■（歳）寒心。
君子原知親此君。
莫道両（兩）三竿也足。
千秋相對緑成林。

署名

光興

読み下だし

英訳

Since coming to serve, we've lost the will to be brave when times are hard.
The gentleman is ever aware that bamboo must be kept nearby:
Do not say that two or three stalks of bamboo are enough;
Look at them for a thousand autumns, they'll become a forest of green.

Line one: This translation is only tentative, owing to difficulties interpreting the first three characters in the line.

Line two: Another reading of this line would be, "We gentlemen always know to treat bamboo with affection ." Bamboo is a common symbol of human nobility, honor, fortitude, and longevity, the color green representing the fresh hue of burgeoning life. See above, the notes to SBK 2. The poet seems to be recommending a healthy optimism in the face of setbacks. The expression denoting bamboo here, 此君 (shikun, kono kimi), literally "this gentleman," has various connections to the lore of kings. Wang Hui-chih of the Eastern Chin dynasty, upon taking up residence at a new place, ordered that bamboo be planted there, explaining that he simply could not live a single day without "this gentleman," as he affectionately called the plant. In this way, loving bamboo came to be associated with the possession of well-cultivated tastes and high-mindedness. For these and other references to the significance of bamboo in Chinese thought, see Matsuura Tomohisa, Ueki Hisayuki, et al., comp., Kanshi no jiten Taishūkan Shoten, 1999, pp. 645 - 46.

Line three: The stalks of bamboo may be a metaphor for children, the poet perhaps obliquely reminding a newly-married man of the desirability of having numerous progeny.

Line four: In other words, one must remember that great trees or forests grow from small seeds.

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