Taki no ue no Mifune no yama ni iru kumo no tsune ni aramu to waga omowanaku ni

滝の上の三船の山に居る雲の
常にあらむと我が思はなくに

Roma-ji: Taki no ue no Mifune no yama ni iru kumo no tsune ni aramu to waga omowanaku ni
English Translation: Above the rapids,
on Mount Mifune there rests
a cloud unmoving—
yet that I will ever stay
as it does, I do not think.
Meaning: Like the cloud that rests on Mount Mifune above the rapids—yet I do not think that I shall remain forever as it does.
Commentary: Book Three Miscellaneous Poems 242

Headnote: "A poem by Prince Yuge when he went on an excursion to Yoshino"
Seeing a cloud on Mount Mifune in Yoshino, the prince reflects on the frailty of his own life. The cloud seems always to be there, yet he cannot believe he will live on forever—an unease that seeps into a festive outing. In the next poem Prince Kasuga answers with a prayer for his long life, and poem 244 records a variant from the Hitomaro Collection.
The poet, Prince Yuge, was a son of Emperor Tenmu; his mother was Princess Ōe, a daughter of Emperor Tenji. He died young in the third year of Monmu (699).

First line "Above the rapids": taki is the torrent of the Yoshino River near Miyataki, and ue means its banks.
Second line "on Mount Mifune": Mifune rises across the river from Miyataki. The fourth line of the next poem uses the same words in reply.
Third line "a cloud unmoving": iru means to rest in place. Up to here, the image of the cloud forever on the mountain serves as a figure leading to "ever."
Fourth line "that I will ever stay": mu expresses intention—to go on living unchanged.
Fifth line "I do not think": nakuni, the nominal form of the negative with ni, ends in a sighing "though I do not think so." Poem 244 ends with the same line.
Author: Prince Yuge
Source: Manyoshu
Prev Poem: Ōkimi wa kami ni shi maseba maki no tatsu arayamanaka ni umi o nasu kamo
Next Poem: Ōkimi wa chitose ni masamu shirakumo mo Mifune no yama ni tayuru hi arame ya