Watatsumi no toyohatakumo ni irihi sashi koyoi no tsukuyo sayakeku ari koso

海神の豊旗雲に入日さし
今夜の月夜さやけくありこそ

Roma-ji: Watatsumi no toyohatakumo ni irihi sashi koyoi no tsukuyo sayakeku ari koso
English Translation: On the sea god's clouds,
those great billowing banners,
the setting sun shines;
may the moon of this night be
bright and clear in all its light.
Meaning: The setting sun lights the great banner-like clouds trailing over the sea. Tonight, may the moon shine clear and bright.
Commentary: Book One Miscellaneous Poems 15

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "The Three Hills poem by Naka no Ōe — envoy"
Before the grand sight of the setting sun glowing on clouds that stream like banners over the sea, the poet prays that tonight's moon will shine clear. Its power of depicting vast nature is celebrated as among the finest in the Man'yōshū. The left note remarks that it does not resemble an envoy but has been kept here because an older text placed it so. It seems to have been composed on the shore at Inami, and is thought to carry a prayer for a safe voyage. The reading of the last line is disputed.
Prince Naka no Ōe, son of Emperor Jomei and Empress Kōgyoku (Saimei), later became Emperor Tenji. With Nakatomi no Kamatari he overthrew the Soga clan and led the Taika Reforms, and he later moved the capital to Ōtsu in Ōmi, where he took the throne.

In the first line, watatsumi is the god who rules the sea, and by extension the sea itself. Presenting the great ocean as a god's domain, it opens the vast scene.
In the second line, toyo is a praising prefix, and hatakumo are clouds trailing like great banners—clouds also regarded as an auspicious sign.
The third line, irihi sashi, shows the sinking sun striking the clouds, pausing on a continuative form. One senses the rich colors of clouds dyed by sunset.
The fourth line, "the moon of this night," uses tsukuyo for the moon itself, moving time forward from dusk to the night moon.
In the last line, sayakeshi means clear and bright, and koso is a particle of wish: "may it shine clear." Taking up the sunset's radiance, the poem closes in a prayer for pure moonlight. The line is hypermetric.
Author: Prince Naka no Ōe
Source: Manyoshu
Prev Poem: Kaguyama to miminashiyama to aishi toki tachite mi ni koshi inami kunihara
Next Poem: Miwayama o shika mo kakusu ka kumo dani mo kokoro ara namo kakusō beshi ya