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- Manyoshu
Shimazutai Minume no saki o kogimireba Yamato kōshiku tazu sawa ni naku
As we row from island to island around the cape of Minume, I long for Yamato—and the cranes cry out on every side.
Karu no ike no urami yukimiru kamo sura ni tamamo no ue ni hitori nenaku ni
Even the ducks that swim about the shores of Karu Pond never sleep alone upon the fine weed—yet I do.
Manyoshu - Princess Ki
Tobusa tate Ashigarayama ni funagi kiri ki ni kiriyukitsu atara funagi o
With the treetop set up in offering, I felled on Mount Ashigara a tree fit for a ship—yet it was cut away as common timber. What a waste of fine ship's wood!
Manyoshu - Mansei
Nubatama no sono yo no ume o tawasurete orazu kinikeri omoishi mono o
That night's plum blossoms—I quite forgot them and came home without breaking off a spray, though I had meant to all along.
Manyoshu - Ōtomo no Momoyo
Miezu tomo tare koizarame yama no ha ni isayou tsuki o yoso ni miteshika
Even unseen, who would not long for it? The moon lingering at the mountain's rim—if only I might see it, even from afar.
Manyoshu - Mansei
Shime yuite waga sadameteshi Suminoe no hama no komatsu wa nochi mo waga matsu
The little pine on the shore of Suminoe, which I marked with a rope and claimed as my own, will be mine in the days to come as well.
Manyoshu - Yo no Myōgun
Takumano ni ouru murasaki kinu ni shime imada kizu shite iro ni idenikeri
I dyed my robe with the gromwell growing on the plain of Takuma, and though I have not yet worn it, the color has already shown.
Manyoshu - Lady Kasa
Michinoku no Mano no kayahara tōkedomo omokage ni shite miyu to iu mono o
The grassy plain of Mano in far Michinoku, though so distant, can be seen as a vision in the mind, they say—yet you I cannot see.
Manyoshu - Lady Kasa
Okuyama no iwamotosuge o ne fukamete musubishi kokoro wasurekanetsu mo
Like the sedge rooted deep at the foot of the rocks in the far mountains, the heart with which I bound our pledge runs deep—I cannot forget it.
Manyoshu - Lady Kasa
Imo ga ie ni sakitaru ume no itsumo itsumo narinamu toki ni koto wa sadamemu
The plum in bloom at my beloved's house—when at last it bears fruit, then we will settle the matter.
Manyoshu - Fujiwara no Yatsuka
Imo ga ie ni sakitaru hana no ume no hana mi ni shi narinaba kamo kaku mo semu
The plum blossoms in bloom at my beloved's house—once they have turned to fruit, then I will do whatever must be done.
Manyoshu - Fujiwara no Yatsuka
Ume no hana sakite chirinu to hito wa iedo waga shime yuishi e ni arame ya mo
People say the plum has bloomed and scattered—but could it be the very branch I marked with my rope as mine? Surely not.
Manyoshu - Ōtomo no Surugamaro
Yamamori no arikeru shira ni sono yama ni shime yuitatete yui no haji shitsu
Not knowing that the mountain already had a keeper, I tied my marking rope upon it—and now I am shamed for having tied it.
Manyoshu - Lady Ōtomo no Sakanoue
Yamamori wa kedashi ari tomo wagimoko ga yuikemu shime o hito tokame ya mo
Even if the mountain does have a keeper, would anyone dare untie the rope that you have bound there?
Manyoshu - Ōtomo no Surugamaro
Asa ni ke ni mimaku hori suru sono tama o ika ni seba ka mo te yu karezu aramu
That jewel I long to gaze on morning and day—what can I do to keep it always in my hand?
Manyoshu - Otomo no Yakamochi
Chihayaburu kami no yashiro shi nakariseba Kasuga no nobe ni awa makamashi o
If only there were no shrine of the fearsome god, I would sow millet on the fields of Kasuga—and meet with you.