Sazarenami Isokoshiji naru Notosegawa oto no sayakesa tagitsu se goto ni

さざれ波磯越道なる能登瀬川
音のさやけさたぎつ瀬ごとに

Roma-ji: Sazarenami Isokoshiji naru Notosegawa oto no sayakesa tagitsu se goto ni
English Translation: Ripples on the rocks—
along Isokoshi road,
the Notose River:
how clear and pure is its voice
at every rushing rapid!
Meaning: The Notose River along the Isokoshi road—how clear and fresh its sound at every rushing rapid!
Commentary: Book Three Miscellaneous Poems 314

Headnote: "A poem by Hata no Ason Otari"
The poem praises the pure sound of the Notose River, ringing at every rapid, crossed on a journey. It captures the river's beauty by ear rather than eye, ending the fourth line on a noun in inversion and adding in the last line how the sound rings at each rapid. The Notose River was in Ōmi and is identified with the Amano River flowing through present-day Maibara, Shiga, though some place it in Echizen.
The poet, Hata no Otari, was an official of the Nara period, but little is known of him.

First line "Ripples on the rocks": sazarenami, small rippling waves, is a pillow word for iso, "rocky shore."
Second line "along Isokoshi road": Isokoshiji is thought to be a place name, and naru means "located in."
Third line "the Notose River" is thought to be a river in Ōmi.
Fourth line "how clear and pure is its voice": sayakesa, the noun form of sayakeshi, expresses wonder. The sentence breaks here.
Fifth line "at every rushing rapid": tagitsu means to flow seething and boiling. By inversion, it adds afterward the breadth of the sound echoing at every rapid.
Author: Hata no Otari
Source: Manyoshu
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