Hito mizu wa waga sode mochite kakusamu o yaketsutsu ka aramu kizute kinikeri

人見ずは我が袖もちて隠さむを
焼けつつかあらむ着ずて来にけり

Roma-ji: Hito mizu wa waga sode mochite kakusamu o yaketsutsu ka aramu kizute kinikeri
English Translation: If none were watching,
with my sleeve I would cover
and hide it from sight—
is it burning all the while?
I came without my robe on.
Meaning: If no one were looking, I would cover it with my sleeve—is it still burning? But I have come without my robe.
Commentary: Book Three Miscellaneous Poems 269

Headnote: "A poem by Lady Abe on Yabe Slope"
Composed at Yabe Slope, the poem has long been considered obscure. The prevailing reading is that she playfully likens the slope's bare red earth to scorched skin, saying she would cover it with her sleeve if no one were watching, but she has come without her robe. Another view takes it as an allegory of a heart burning with love. The location of Yabe Slope is unknown.
The poet, Lady Abe, was a woman of the Abe clan, but several women bore this name and her identity is unclear.

First line "If none were watching": zu wa expresses a negative condition.
Second line "with my sleeve" means using her own sleeve.
Third line "I would cover and hide it": o is concessive—"I would hide it, but."
Fourth line "is it burning all the while": ka is an interrogative binding particle concluded by the attributive of mu. The red slope is thought to be likened to burned skin.
Fifth line "I came without my robe on": nikeri voices realization, ending in regret that she has no robe with which to cover it.
Author: Lady Abe
Source: Manyoshu
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