A speaker sits quietly by a pool and looks down, only to meet his own reflection. That ordinary moment becomes painful: the sight of his face is so upsetting that he wishes he could not see at all. “O that I were blind!” is not mere exaggeration. It suggests deep self-loathing, shame, or grief—some part of who he is, or what he has become, feels unbearable. The poem does not explain why he feels this way, and that open-endedness makes the pain feel more immediate and personal. The calm setting sharpens the emotion. A pool normally offers a clear mirror, but here clarity brings no comfort, only an image he wants to escape. The tone is quiet and sorrowful, with a sudden edge of despair. In three brief lines, the speaker goes from stillness to a desperate wish to shut out the truth. The reader is left with that painful contrast: a peaceful scene, and a mind at war with itself.
Japanese Hokku 12 — Summary
Sitting by the pool, I looked in and saw my face. O that I were blind!