A Name in Four Directions

Troubles and rough going retreat again and again while a person's name spreads to every quarter. A stipend from an earlier post comes round once more, though the opening of line 3 is uncertain and we give it the plainest sense. In the last line the person climbs higher as blessings grow on their own.

Dai-kichi, Great good fortune, stands printed in the book, and this lot leaves no shadow by its final line, since even the disasters are shown on their way out. Printings differ on one word, with a note recording another first character for line 3.

In contemporary terms, the image is a reputation that has outrun its old setbacks and brought a former role back within reach. Recognition may feel different once the difficulties before it have stopped being the main story.