Shiranami no ato naki kata ni yuku fune mo kaze zo tayori no shirube narikeru - Kokin Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

白波の跡なき方に行く舟も
風ぞたよりのしるべなりける

Roma-ji: Shiranami no ato naki kata ni yuku fune mo kaze zo tayori no shirube narikeru
English Translation: Even the boat that goes
toward the trackless waters
of the white-capped waves
finds in the wind its only aid
the guide that shows the way
Meaning: Even a boat rowing out toward the open sea of white waves, where no wake remains, finds that the wind is the guide it relies on.
Commentary: Book Eleven Love Poems I 472

Headnote: "Topic unknown"
This poem observes that even a boat crossing the vast sea, where no wake remains, can make its way by trusting the wind. Placed among love poems, it can be read as a wish, entrusted to boat and wind, that some connection might carry one's feelings to a beloved beyond reach. Without using the word love, it conveys through metaphor alone both the uncertainty and the hope of love's path.
The poet, Fujiwara no Kachiomi, came from the Northern branch of the Fujiwara and was the son of Fujiwara no Nario, Assistant Governor of Echigo. He served as Provisional Secretary of Awa. His dates are unknown, but he seems to have been active from the Jogan to the Kanpyo eras, and three of his poems were included in the Kokinshu.

First line, "of the white-capped waves": shiranami, white waves, presents the scene of the wide sea.
Second line, "toward the trackless waters": ato naki kata is a direction where the boat's wake does not remain, that is, a sea without signposts. It hints at a beloved with no means of approach.
Third line, "even the boat that goes": the particle mo gives the sense of "even such a boat."
Fourth line, "finds in the wind its only aid": tayori means something to rely on, a means, and also suggests tidings or a letter. The particle zo forms a kakari-musubi with keru at the end. After the flowing water of the preceding poem, 471, this poem turns to the wind, continuing the device of entrusting love to the forces of nature.
Fifth line, "the guide that shows the way": shirube means a guide. Keru is the attributive form of the exclamatory auxiliary keri, concluding the zo. In poem 477 the same word appears again as love's guide: "only longing is the guide."
Author: Fujiwara no Katsumine
Source: Kokin Wakashu
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