Waga sato ni ōyuki fureri ōhara no furinishi sato ni furamaku wa nochi

我が里に大雪降れり大原の
古りにし里に降らまくは後

Roma-ji: Waga sato ni ōyuki fureri ōhara no furinishi sato ni furamaku wa nochi
English Translation: Here in my own village
a heavy snow has fallen!
In your Ōhara,
that old and faded village,
it will fall only later.
Meaning: A great snow has fallen here in my village! In your old and faded village of Ōhara, it will not fall until later.
Commentary: Book Two Love Poems 103

Headnote: "A poem bestowed by the Emperor on Lady Fujiwara"
Proudly announcing a heavy snowfall, the Emperor teases his consort that in her old, faded village of Ōhara the snow will come only later.
A section heading reads "the reign of the Emperor who ruled from the Kiyomihara Palace in Asuka," and this is a poem Emperor Tenmu sent to Lady Fujiwara. Ōhara lay close to the palace, close enough that the same snow must surely fall there, and this is the premise of the jest.
The author, Emperor Tenmu, was a son of Emperor Jomei and the younger brother of Emperor Tenji. He triumphed in the Jinshin War and ascended the throne at the Kiyomihara Palace in Asuka.

The first line, "waga sato ni," refers to the area around the Emperor's own Kiyomihara Palace in Asuka.
In the second line, "ōyuki fureri," ri is a perfective and stative auxiliary; he proudly announces that a heavy snow has fallen. The poem pauses here.
In the third line, "ōhara no," Ōhara is a place in Asuka, said to be Lady Fujiwara's home.
The fourth line, "furinishi sato ni," means "in a village grown old," echoing furi, "to fall," with furi, "to grow old."
In the final line, "furamaku wa nochi," maku is the nominalized form of mu: "its falling." Ending on the noun nochi, "later," he teases lightly that her turn will come afterward.
Author: Emperor Tenmu
Source: Manyoshu
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