Onajiku wa are na inishie omoide no nakereba totemo shinobazu mo nashi - Shin Kokin Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

同じくはあれないにしへ思ひ出の
なければとても偲ばずもなし

Roma-ji: Onajiku wa are na inishie omoide no nakereba totemo shinobazu mo nashi
English Translation: If it's all the same,
let there be memories
of the days of old,
for though I have none, still
it is not that I don't long.
Meaning: If it is all the same, let me have memories of days gone by; for even without them, it is not that I do not long for the past.
Commentary: Book Eighteen Miscellaneous Poems III 1779

Headnote: "Topic unknown."
A poem longing for the past. If it is all the same, let there be memories of old days, for even without them it is not that he does not long for the past. He says that even one with nothing in particular to remember still yearns for bygone days, and wishes at least for something to recall. The headnote gives no topic, and the circumstances of composition are not recorded.
The author, "Minamoto no Suekage," is a figure whose career has not come down in detail.

The first line, "onajiku wa," means "if it is all the same."
The second line, "are na inishie," means "let there be—of old." "Are na" is the imperative of "ari" with the exclamatory particle "na," expressing a wish, and the poem pauses here.
The third line, "omoide no," means "memories," joined with "inishie" of the second line to mean memories of the past.
The fourth line, "nakereba totemo," means "even though there are none."
The last line, "shinobazu mo nashi," means "it is not that I do not long." The double negative shows that even one without memories longs for the past; following the preceding poem's grief over lost hopes, it turns to thoughts of former days.
Author: Minamoto no Suekage
Source: Shin Kokin Wakashu
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