Asami koso sode wa hitsurame namidagawa mi sae nagaru to kikaba tanomamu - Kokin Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

浅みこそ袖はひつらめ涙川
身さへ流ると聞かば頼まむ

Roma-ji: Asami koso sode wa hitsurame namidagawa mi sae nagaru to kikaba tanomamu
English Translation: Because it is shallow,
only your sleeves are wet, I think,
in that river of tears;
if I hear your very self is swept away,
then I will put my trust in you
Meaning: Your river of tears must be shallow, since it only wets your sleeves. If I hear that it has swept away your very body, then I will rely on your heart.
Commentary: Book Thirteen Love Poems III 618

Headnote: "Composed as a reply on behalf of that woman."
This is the reply that Narihira composed on the woman's behalf to Toshiyuki's courting poem. A river of tears that only wets the sleeves is still shallow; if he hears it has carried the body away, she will believe him, the poem answers, as if testing his sincerity. Its charm lies in the wit that takes up the suitor's "river of tears" and turns it into a question of depth.
The author, recorded as Narihira Ason, is Ariwara no Narihira. He was the fifth son of Prince Abo and is counted among the Six Poetic Immortals and the Thirty-Six Poetic Immortals.
In section 107 of The Tales of Ise, the man is said to have been so moved by this reply that he cherished the woman.

The first line, "asami koso," gives the reason with the suffix mi. The emphatic koso is resolved by rame in the second line.
The second line, "sode wa hitsurame," uses rame, the conclusive form of the conjectural ramu, to complete the koso construction, with a pause after the second line.
The third line, "namidagawa," takes up the third line of the preceding poem word for word, following the custom of answering with the sender's own words.
The fourth line, "mi sae nagaru to," means "not only the sleeves but even the body," with sae adding to what came before.
The final line, "kikaba tanomamu," closes with the conditional ba and the volitional mu, setting a condition before she will rely on him.
Author: Ariwara no Narihira
Source: Kokin Wakashu
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