Skip to main content 

Koko Ni Nomi

By Shonagon Sei - Japan, 966–?
Transitional | Solitude, Nature

ここにのみ
KOKO NI NOMI

ここにのみ
Koko ni nomi

めづらしと見る
medzurashi to miru

雪の山
yuki no yama

所々に
tokoro-dokoro ni

ふりにけるかな
furinikeru ka na

CHARACTER
RŌMAJI
DEFINITION
POSSIBLE SYNONYMS
ふりにける furinikeru (v.) to move downward, typically rapidly and freely without control, from a higher to lower level it falls, it is falling, it piles up, it tumbles down, it descends, it flutters down
かな ka na (phrase) possibly but not certainly I wonder, is it?, possibly, so I’ve heard, I guess, I suppose, perhaps
ここに koko ni (prep.) in, at, or to this place or location here, present, right here
めづらし medzurashi (adj.) not occurring very often rare, unusual, curious, strange, unique, peculiar, special
のみ nomi (adv.) existing with no other or others of the same kind only, alone, uniquely, particularly, singularly, solely, in particular, especially
と見る to miru (v.) receive the impression or sensation of something or noting a particular quality seems (to us) to look like, appears (to us) as, (we) see as, (we) perceive as
所々に tokoro-dokoro ni (adv.) in different places hither and thither, here and there, roundabout, elsewhere, all about, all around, in all parts
yama (n.) the area of land that rises very high above the land around it, a very large amount of something mountain, hill, mound, bank, pile, dune, heap
雪の yuki no (adj.) consisting of water vapor frozen into ice crystals snowy, of snow, of powder, of slush

Bio

Sei Shōnagon was a writer and lady-in-waiting to the Empress Sadako during the Heian period (794–1185) in Japan. She wrote The Pillow Book, a famous compilation of essays, diary entries, and poems about her life in the empress’s court. She was confined to the small aristocratic world within the court, hardly ever venturing beyond its walls. When she was not busy entertaining the empress, she spent her time gossiping and observing the lives of those around her. She was known for her quick wit and for being able to recite hundreds of classical poems from memory. She wrote waka, short five-line poems in which the last two lines add to or modify the meaning of the first three. This poem is one she wrote about the first snowfall in the imperial garden. Though the date and circumstances of her death are mysterious, historians believe that she either lived until 1017 as the wife of a court official, or else died in1025, a miserable, poor Buddhist nun.

This content is only available to members.