Sake no na o hijiri to ooseshi inishie no ōki hijiri no koto no yoroshisa

酒の名を聖と負ほせしいにしへの
大き聖の言の宣しさ

Roma-ji: Sake no na o hijiri to ooseshi inishie no ōki hijiri no koto no yoroshisa
English Translation: Those who gave to wine
the title "sage" in the past—
those of long ago,
the great sages, how they spoke
words so fitting and so wise!
Meaning: How splendid were the words of the great sages of old, who gave sake the name "sage"!
Commentary: Book Three Miscellaneous Poems 339

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Thirteen poems in praise of sake by the Governor-General of Dazaifu, Lord Ōtomo"
This is the second of the thirteen poems in praise of sake by the Governor-General Lord Ōtomo. Drawing on the tale from the Wei dynasty in China, when drinkers under a prohibition secretly called clear wine "the sage" and cloudy wine "the worthy," it praises the wonderful words of those of old who named wine a sage. It is a witty tribute to wine, drawing on learning in the Chinese classics.
The thirteen poems in praise of sake form a sequence in which Tabito, at Dazaifu, extols wine as a way of rejecting worldly cleverness and consoling life's sorrows, drawing on Chinese precedents such as the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove.
The poet, Ōtomo no Tabito, was a son of Ōtomo no Yasumaro. He served as Middle Counselor and Governor-General of Dazaifu before rising to Great Counselor, and died in Tenpyō 3 (731). Steeped in Chinese letters, he was at the center of a poetic circle with Yamanoue no Okura and others while serving in Tsukushi.

First line "Those who gave to wine" means the name of sake.
Second line "the title 'sage'": oosu means to give a name.
Third line "those of long ago" refers to the people of the Wei era.
Fourth line "the great sages" honors those who named wine a sage, using the same word as in the second line to link wine and people.
Fifth line "how they spoke words so fitting": yoroshisa, the noun form of yoroshi, ends in exclamation.
Author: Ōtomo no Tabito
Source: Manyoshu
Prev Poem: Shirushi naki mono o omowazu wa hitotsuki no nigoreru sake o nomubeku arurashi
Next Poem: Inishie no nana no sakashiki hitotachi mo horiseshi mono wa sake ni shi arurashi