We gather and gather the plantains;
Now off the ears we must tear.
Yes, gather and gather the plantains,
And now the seeds are laid bare.
We gather and gather the plantains,
The seeds in our skirts are placed.
Yes, gather and gather the plantains.
Ho! safe in the girdled waist!
~The Affection of the Wives on the Joo~
Along the raised banks of the Joo,
To hew slim stem and branch I wrought,
My lord away, my husband true,
Like hunger-pang my troubled thought!
Along the raised banks of the Joo,
Branch and fresh shoot confessed my art.
I've seen my lord, my husband true,
And still he folds me in his heart.
As the toiled bream makes red its tail,
Toil you, Sir, for the Royal House;
Amidst its blazing fires, nor quail:—
Your parents see you pay your vows.
BOOK II
THE ODES OF SHAOU AND THE SOUTH
~The Marriage of a Princess~
In the magpie's nest
Dwells the dove at rest.
This young bride goes to her future home;
To meet her a hundred chariots come.