Yoru hikaru tama to iu tomo sake nomite kokoro o yaru ni ani shikame ya mo

夜光る玉といふとも酒飲みて
心を遣るにあにしかめやも

Roma-ji: Yoru hikaru tama to iu tomo sake nomite kokoro o yaru ni ani shikame ya mo
English Translation: Though it be a gem
that can shine throughout the night,
to drink down the wine
and let the heart's cares go free—
could it ever match that joy?
Meaning: Even a jewel that shines in the night—how could it equal drinking sake and letting the heart's troubles go?
Commentary: Book Three Miscellaneous Poems 346

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Thirteen poems in praise of sake by the Governor-General of Dazaifu, Lord Ōtomo"
This is the ninth of the thirteen poems in praise of sake by the Governor-General Lord Ōtomo. Even the famed jewel said to shine in the dark cannot match the lifting of the heart that comes from drinking sake. Drawing on the Chinese legend of the night-shining jade, it follows the "treasure beyond price" of the preceding poem in comparing treasure and wine.
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 "that can shine throughout the night" refers to the night-shining jewel of Chinese legend.
Second line "Though it be a gem" uses the same construction as the preceding poem's second line.
Third line "to drink down the wine" means drinking sake.
Fourth line "and let the heart's cares go free": kokoro o yaru means to dispel one's cares.
Fifth line "could it ever match that joy": shiku means to equal, ending in a rhetorical "never." It pairs with the preceding poem's last line.
Author: Ōtomo no Tabito
Source: Manyoshu
Prev Poem: Atai naki takara to iu tomo hitotsuki no nigoreru sake ni ani masame ya mo
Next Poem: Yo no naka no asobi no michi ni tanoshiki wa einaki suru ni arubeku arurashi