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- Manyoshu
Waga seko ga yado no tachibana hana o yomi naku hototogisu mi ni zo waga koshi
Because the orange blossoms in your garden are so lovely, I have come to see the cuckoo that sings among them.
Manyoshu - Ominokimi no Morotachi
Hototogisu itaku na nakiso hitori ite i no neraenu ni kikeba kurushi mo
O cuckoo, do not cry so much; alone and unable to sleep, it pains me to hear you.
Manyoshu - Lady Ōtomo no Sakanoue
Natsu makete sakitaru hanezu hisakata no ame uchifuraba utsuroinamu ka
The hanezu blossoms that opened as summer arrived: if the rain comes down from the heavens, will their color fade away?
Manyoshu - Otomo no Yakamochi
Waga yado no hanatachibana o hototogisu kinakazu tsuchi ni chirashitemu to ka
The orange blossoms in my garden: does the cuckoo mean to let them fall to the ground without ever coming to sing?
Manyoshu - Otomo no Yakamochi
Hototogisu omowazu ariki konokure no kaku naru made ni nani ka kinakanu
O cuckoo, I never thought it would be so: why have you not come to sing, even now that the trees have grown dark with leaves?
Manyoshu - Otomo no Yakamochi
Izuku ni wa naki mo shinikemu hototogisu wagie no sato ni kyō nomi zo naku
Elsewhere it must have sung already, but here in the village of my home the cuckoo sings for the very first time today.
Manyoshu - Otomo no Yakamochi
Waga yado no hanatachibana wa chirisugite tama ni nukubeku mi ni narinikeri
The orange blossoms in my garden have all fallen, and now the tree has borne fruit fit to be strung as beads.
Manyoshu - Otomo no Yakamochi
Hototogisu matedo kinakazu ayamegusa tama ni nuku hi o imada tōmi ka
I wait for the cuckoo, but it does not come to sing; is it because the day for threading sweet flag into beads is still far off?
Manyoshu - Otomo no Yakamochi
Unohana no sugiba oshimi ka hototogisu amama mo okazu koyu nakiwataru
Is it because it would grieve to see the deutzia pass? The cuckoo crosses over here singing, not even waiting for a break in the rain.
Manyoshu - Otomo no Yakamochi
Kimi ga ie no hanatachibana wa narinikeri hana no aru toki ni awamashi mono o
The orange tree at your house has already come to fruit; how I wish I had met you while it was still in flower.
Waga yado no hanatachibana o hototogisu kinaki toyomete moto ni chirashitsu
The cuckoo came to the orange blossoms in my garden, filled the air with its song, and scattered them at the foot of the tree.
Manyoshu - Ōtomo no Murakami
Natsuyama no konure no shige ni hototogisu naki toyomu naru koe no harukesa
Deep in the thick treetops of the summer mountains, a cuckoo's song rings out; how far away its voice sounds.
Manyoshu - Otomo no Yakamochi
Ashihiki no ko no ma tachikuku hototogisu kaku kikisomete nochi koimu kamo
Now that I have begun to hear the cuckoo darting through the trees on the mountain like this, I will surely long for it later.
Manyoshu - Otomo no Yakamochi
Waga yado no nadeshiko no hana sakari nari taorite hitome misemu ko mo gamo
The pinks in my garden are in full bloom; if only there were a girl to whom I could pick some and show them, if only for a glance.
Manyoshu - Otomo no Yakamochi
Tsukubane ni waga yukeriseba hototogisu yamabiko toyome nakamashi ya sore
Had I gone to Mount Tsukuba, would the cuckoo there have sung for me, setting the mountain echoes ringing?
Manyoshu - Takahashi no Mushimaro
Itoma nami kimasanu kimi ni hototogisu are kaku kou to yukite tsugekoso
O cuckoo, go to the one who does not come because he has no time, and tell him how deeply I long for him.
Manyoshu - Lady Ōtomo no Sakanoue