Ise no ama no asana yūna ni kazuku chō mirume ni hito o aku yoshi mogana - Kokin Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

伊勢の海人の朝な夕なにかづくてふ
みるめに人をあくよしもがな

Roma-ji: Ise no ama no asana yūna ni kazuku chō mirume ni hito o aku yoshi mogana
English Translation: As the fisherfolk of Ise
by morning and by evening
dive, so it is said,
for sea-pine, might I see you
till at last I had my fill.
Meaning: As the fisherfolk of Ise dive morning and evening for sea-pine, I wish there were some way to meet you so often that at last I could have my fill of you.
Commentary: Book Fourteen Love Poems IV 683

Headnote: "Topic unknown"
Just as the fisherfolk of Ise dive morning and evening to gather sea-pine, the speaker wishes to meet the beloved again and again until satisfied. By making "mirume" mean both the seaweed and a chance to meet, the poem turns a seaside scene into a lover's longing.
Taking up "akazu mo aru" in the preceding poem, it inverts the thought, wishing for some way at last to have one's fill of a love that never satisfies. The closing "yoshi mogana" has the same form as "au yoshi mogana" in 697 of this book.

The first line, "Ise no ama no," refers to the fisherfolk of the sea of Ise and has six syllables, one more than usual.
The second line, "asana yūna ni," means "every morning and every evening," expressing repetition.
The third line, "kazuku chō," means "who dive, it is said," "chō" being a contraction of "to iu." Up to here the lines form a preface to "mirume" in the fourth line.
In the fourth line, "mirume ni hito o," "mirume" is a pivot word meaning both sea-pine seaweed and "a chance to see" the beloved.
The final line, "aku yoshi mogana," means "if only there were a way to have my fill," closing with the particle of wishing "mogana."
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Kokin Wakashu
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