Yume no uchi ni aimimu koto o tanomitsutsu kuraseru yoi wa nemu kata mo nashi - Kokin Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

夢の内に逢ひ見むことを頼みつつ
暮らせる宵は寝む方もなし

Roma-ji: Yume no uchi ni aimimu koto o tanomitsutsu kuraseru yoi wa nemu kata mo nashi
English Translation: Within a dream
trusting that we two might meet
I passed the whole day
yet now that evening's here
I know no way to sleep
Meaning: All day I lived trusting that I would meet you in a dream, yet now that night has come, I do not know how to fall asleep.
Commentary: Book Eleven Love Poems I 525

Headnote: "Topic unknown"
The poet spent the day sustained by the hope of meeting the beloved in a dream, but when night comes he is too expectant to sleep. It depicts the contradiction that one must sleep to meet in dreams, yet the very hope keeps sleep away. It is a poem that captures the psychology of a lover with fine detail.

First line, "Within a dream": yume no uchi ni, in a dream; the line has an extra syllable.
Second line, "trusting that we two might meet": aimimu koto wo means meeting, where aimiru refers to lovers meeting and uniting.
Third line, "I passed the whole day": tanomitsutsu means while relying on it, with tsutsu marking continuation.
Fourth line, "yet now that evening's here": kuraseru yoi wa means the evening after passing the day.
Fifth line, "I know no way to sleep": nemu kata mo nashi means not knowing how to sleep. It shares the ending kata mo nashi with "no way to settle my pillow" in poem 516 of this book, the two poems of longing to meet in dreams echoing each other.
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Kokin Wakashu
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