Musasabi wa konure motomu to ashihiki no yama no satsuo ni ainikeru kamo

むささびは木末求むとあしひきの
山のさつ男にあひにけるかも

Roma-ji: Musasabi wa konure motomu to ashihiki no yama no satsuo ni ainikeru kamo
English Translation: The flying squirrel,
seeking the tips of the trees,
foot-weary mountains—
a hunter of the mountains
is what it met instead.
Meaning: The flying squirrel, seeking the highest branches, ran instead into a hunter of the mountains.
Commentary: Book Three Miscellaneous Poems 267

Headnote: "A poem by Prince Shiki"
The poem shows a flying squirrel that, trying to glide to a higher treetop, was caught by a mountain hunter instead. Long read not simply as a hunting scene but as an allegory of a person ruined by aspiring to high station, it has also been linked to events such as the affair of Prince Ōtsu.
The poet, Prince Shiki, was a son of Emperor Tenji and father of Emperor Kōnin. He kept his distance from political strife and is known for limpid poems of nature.

First line "The flying squirrel": the musasabi glides from tree to tree at night, set out as the topic with wa.
Second line "seeking the tips of the trees": konure are treetops, and to expresses purpose—aiming for higher branches.
Third line "foot-weary mountains" renders ashihiki no, a pillow word for "mountain."
Fourth line "a hunter of the mountains": satsuo is a man who hunts game.
Fifth line "is what it met instead": nikeru combines perfective and past, and kamo is exclamatory, ending with a sigh at the unexpected outcome.
Author: Prince Shiki
Source: Manyoshu
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