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- Manyoshu
Michi no he no obana ga shita no omoigusa imasara sara ni nani o ka omowamu
Like the thought-flower growing beneath the pampas grass by the roadside—why should I brood over anything now, after all this?
Kusa fukami korogi sawa ni naku yado no hagi mi ni kimi wa itsu ka kimasamu
At my home, where the grass grows so deep that crickets sing in great number—when will you come to see the bush clover?
Akizukeba mikusa no hana no aenu gani omoedo shiraji tada ni awazareba
As autumn deepens, I long so much that I am like the water-grass flowers about to spill—yet you will not know, since we have not met face to face.
Nani su to ka kimi o itowamu akihagi no sono hatsuhana no ureshiki mono o
Why would I ever shun you? You are a joy to me, like the first blossoms of the autumn bush clover.
Koimarobi koi wa shinu tomo ichishiroku iro ni wa ideji asagao no hana
Though I toss and turn and die of love, I will not let it show so plainly in my face as the asagao blossom shows its color.
Koto ni idete iwaba yuyushimi asagao no ho ni wa sakidenu koi mo suru ka mo
To put it into words would be too fearful—so mine is a love that never blossoms openly, unlike the asagao flower.
Karigane no hatsukoe kikite sakidetaru yado no akihagi mi ni ko waga seko
The autumn bush clover at my home, which bloomed on hearing the wild geese's first cry—come and see it, my love.
Saoshika no irino no susuki hatsuobana izure no toki ka imo ga te makamu
Like the first plumes of pampas grass on Irino, where the stag goes in—when will the time come that I may pillow my head on my beloved's arm?
Kouru hi no kenagaku shi areba misonou no karaai no hana no iro ni idenikeri
The days of longing have gone on so long that, like the cockscomb flowers in my garden, my love has come to show its color.
Waga sato ni ima saku hana no ominaeshi aenu kokoro ni nao koinikeri
Like the maidenflower now blooming in my village, with a heart unable to bear it, I have fallen in love all the same.
Hagi no hana sakeru o mireba kimi ni awazu makoto mo hisa ni narinikeru ka mo
Seeing the bush clover in bloom, I realize how truly long it has been since I last met you.
Asatsuyu ni sakisusabitaru tsukikusa no hi kutatsu nae ni kenubeku omōyu
Like the dayflower blooming so freely in the morning dew, which fades as the day wanes, I feel as though I might vanish.
Nagaki yo o kimi ni koitsutsu ikerazu wa sakite chirinishi hana naramashi o
Rather than live on longing for you through the long nights, I wish I were a flower that had bloomed and fallen.
Wagimoko ni ōsakayama no hadasusuki ho ni wa sakidezu koiwataru ka mo
Like the pampas grass of Mount Ōsaka, whose name speaks of meeting my beloved, I go on longing without letting it show in plumes.
Isasame ni ima mo mi ga hoshi akihagi no shinai ni aruramu imo ga sugata o
If only for a moment, I long to see her now—my beloved's figure, supple as the bending autumn bush clover.
Akihagi no hanano no susuki ho ni wa idezu aga koiwataru komorizuma wa mo
Like the pampas grass in the fields of flowering bush clover that does not show its plumes, I go on loving her without showing it—my hidden wife.