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- Manyoshu
Waga ōkimi ame shirasamu to omowaneba ō ni zo mikeru Wazuka somayama
Never thinking that our prince would pass away to rule the heavens, I looked on the timber hills of Wazuka with careless eyes.
Manyoshu - Otomo no Yakamochi
Ashihiki no yama sae hikari saku hana no chirinuru gotoki waga ōkimi kamo
Like flowers that bloomed so bright they lit up even the mountains, and then scattered away—such was our prince.
Manyoshu - Otomo no Yakamochi
Hashiki kamo miko no mikoto no arigayoi meshishi Ikuji no michi wa arenikeri
How dear! The road to Ikuji, which our prince so often traveled to gaze upon the view, has fallen into ruin.
Manyoshu - Otomo no Yakamochi
Ōtomo no na ni ou yuki obite yorozuyo ni tanomishi kokoro izuku ka yosemu
Bearing the quiver as befits the name of Ōtomo, I trusted in our prince for ages to come—where now shall I turn my heart?
Manyoshu - Otomo no Yakamochi
Utsusemi no yo no koto ni areba yoso ni mishi yama o ya ima wa yosuka to omowamu
Since this is the way of the mortal world, shall I now take the hills I once saw as nothing to me as the place to remember her?
Manyoshu - Takahashi no Ason
Asatori no ne nomi shi nakamu wagimoko ni ima mata sara ni au yoshi o nami
Like the birds at dawn I will only cry aloud, for there is no way left for me to meet my wife again.
Manyoshu - Takahashi no Ason
Hitohi koso hito mo machiyoki nagaki ke o kaku nomi mataba ari katsu mashiji
Waiting for someone for a single day is easy enough, but if I must go on waiting like this through day after long day, I could not bear to live.
Manyoshu - The Younger Sister of the Naniwa Emperor
Yama no ha ni ajimura sawaki yuku naredo ware wa sabushie kimi ni shi araneba
Flocks of teal go clamoring along the ridge of the hills, I hear, and yet how lonely I am, for none of them is you.
Manyoshu - The Okamoto Emperor
Ōmiji no toko no yama naru isayagawa ke no korogoro wa koitsutsu mo aramu
Like the Isaya River flowing by Mount Toko on the Ōmi road, whose very name says "who can tell," I cannot know what lies ahead, but through these days of late I will go on longing.
Manyoshu - The Okamoto Emperor
Kimi matsu to waga koioreba waga yado no sudare ugokashi aki no kaze fuku
As I sit longing and waiting for you, the bamboo blind of my house stirs, and it is only the autumn wind blowing.
Manyoshu - Princess Nukata
Kaze o dani kouru wa tomoshi kaze o dani komu to shi mataba nani ka nagekamu
How I envy you, who can long even for the wind; if I could at least wait for the wind to come, what would I have to grieve over?
Manyoshu - Princess Kagami
Mano no ura no yodo no tsugihashi kokoro yu mo omoe ya imo ga ime ni shi miyuru
Like the plank bridge that runs unbroken across the still pool at the bay of Mano, is it because she thinks of me from the depths of her heart that my beloved keeps appearing in my dreams?
Manyoshu - Fufuki no Toji
Kawakami no itsumo no hana no itsumo itsumo kimase waga seko tokijikeme ya mo
Like the flowers of the itsumo weed along the river, always, always come to me, my love; is there any time that is not the right time?
Manyoshu - Fufuki no Toji
Koromode ni toritodokōri naku ko ni mo masareru ware o okite ika ni semu
More than a child who clings to your sleeve and weeps, I grieve; how could you go away and leave me behind?
Manyoshu - Toneri no Enami
Okite inaba imo koimu kamo shikitae no kurokami shikite nagaki kono yo o
If I go and leave you behind, will you long for me, my love, lying alone with your black hair spread upon the bedding through this long night?
Manyoshu - Tanabe no Ichihiko
Wagimoko o ai shirashimeshi hito o koso koi no masareba urameshimi omoe
As my longing grows, it is the very person who brought my beloved and me together whom I find myself resenting.
Manyoshu - Tanabe no Ichihiko (attributed)