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- Manyoshu
Waga yado ni sakishi akihagi chirisugite mi ni naru made ni kimi ni awanu ka mo
The autumn bush clover that bloomed at my home has scattered and gone to seed—and still you have not met me.
Waga yado no hagi sakinikeri chiranu ma ni haya kite mibeshi nara no satobito
The bush clover at my home has bloomed—come quickly and see it before it scatters, you people of Nara.
Ishibashi no mama ni oitaru kaobana no hana ni shi arikeri aritsutsu mireba
Like the kaobana growing between the stepping stones, you were only a passing flower—so I realize, having watched you all this while.
Fujiwara no furinishi sato no akihagi wa sakite chiriniki kimi machikanete
The autumn bush clover in the old village of Fujiwara, now fallen into decline, has bloomed and scattered, weary of waiting for you.
Akihagi o chirisuginubemi taorimochi miredomo sabushi kimi ni shi araneba
Fearing the autumn bush clover would soon scatter, I broke a sprig and hold it—but though I gaze at it, I am lonely, for it is not you.
Ashita saki yūbe wa kenuru tsukikusa no kenubeki koi mo are wa suru ka mo
Like the dayflower that blooms in the morning and fades by evening, mine is a love that seems about to vanish.
Akizuno no obana karisoe akihagi no hana o fukasane kimi ga kariho ni
Cut the pampas grass of Akizu Plain and add it in, and thatch your makeshift hut with blossoms of autumn bush clover.
Sakeri tomo shirazu shi araba moda mo aramu kono akihagi o misetsutsu motona
Had I not known it was in bloom, I could have stayed at peace—but you keep showing me this autumn bush clover to no purpose.
Aki sareba kari tobikoyuru tatsutayama tachite mo ite mo kimi o shi zo omou
Like Mount Tatsuta, which the wild geese cross in autumn—whether I stand or sit, it is you alone I think of.
Waga yado no kuzuha hi ni ke ni irozukinu kimasanu kimi wa nanigokoro zo mo
The kudzu leaves at my home are turning color more each day—and you who do not come, what is in your heart?
Ashihiki no yama sanakazura momitsu made imo ni awazu ya aga koioramu
Until the sanakazura vines of the mountains turn color, must I go on longing, never meeting my beloved?
Momichiba no sugikatenu ko o hitozuma to mitsutsu ya aramu koishiki mono o
Must I only look upon her as another man's wife—the girl who, like autumn leaves that will not fall, never leaves my heart—though I long for her so?
Kimi ni koi shinae urabure waga oreba akikaze fukite tsuki katabukinu
As I sat, wilting and forlorn with longing for you, the autumn wind blew, and the moon sank low.
Aki no yo no tsuki ka mo kimi wa kumogakuri shimashiku mineba kokoda koishiki
Are you the moon of an autumn night? Hidden in the clouds, you are unseen for a while, and how I long for you!
Nagatsuki no ariake no tsukuyo aritsutsu mo kimi ga kimasaba are koime ya mo
Like the moon of a Ninth Month dawn that lingers on, if only you would always come to me, would I long for you like this?
Yoshieyashi koiji to suredo akikaze no samuku fuku yo wa kimi o shi zo omou
Well, let it be—I try to stop loving you, yet on nights when the autumn wind blows cold, it is you I think of.