Izumi Shikibu

Izumi Shikibu lived in the late 10th and early 11th centuries. She married twice and was the lover of both Prince Tametaka and Prince Atsumichi, Tametaka’s brother. Her poems and correspondence, part of a tradition of court love poetry, frequently combine erotic and romantic longing with Buddhist contemplation.

I cannot say

I cannot say

which is which:

the glowing

plum blossom is

the spring night's moon. 

— Izumi Shikibu

 [English version by Jane Hirshfield | Original Language Japanese]