Tamakazura hana nomi sakite narazu aru wa ta ga koi ni arame a wa koi mou o

玉葛花のみ咲きてならずあるは
誰が恋にあらめ我れ恋ひ思ふを

Roma-ji: Tamakazura hana nomi sakite narazu aru wa ta ga koi ni arame a wa koi mou o
English Translation: Like the jeweled vine
that only flowers, bearing no fruit—
whose love could that be?
Surely not mine, for I long
and yearn for you as I do.
Meaning: A vine that only blossoms and never bears fruit—whose love could that be? Not mine, for I long for you with all my heart.
Commentary: Book Two Love Poems 102

Headnote: "A poem sent by Lady Kose in reply"
Taking up the threat that a god seizes the fruitless tree, she retorts that if anything only flowers and never bears fruit, it is his love, for she herself longs for him deeply.
A note to the headnote says that Lady Kose was the daughter of Kose no Hito, Major Counselor at the Ōmi court.
The author, Lady Kose, was the daughter of Kose no Hito, Major Counselor under Emperor Tenji; she is said to have become the wife of Ōtomo no Yasumaro and the mother of Ōtomo no Tanushi.

The first line, "tamakazura," takes up the first line of the preceding poem as it stands.
The second line, "hana nomi sakite," means "blooming only," implying a love all words and no substance.
The third line, "narazu aru wa," means "that which bears no fruit," answering "mi naranu" in the preceding poem. It is hypermetric, with six syllables.
In the fourth line, "ta ga koi ni arame," me is the perfective form of mu, forming a rhetorical question: whose love is that? It is none but yours.
In the final line, "a wa koi mou o," o is a concessive exclamation: when I love you so.
Author: Lady Kose
Source: Manyoshu
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