Ame furazu tonogumoru yo no nurunuru to koitsutsu oriki kimi machigateri

雨降らずとの曇る夜のぬるぬると
恋ひつつ居りき君待ちがてり

Roma-ji: Ame furazu tonogumoru yo no nurunuru to koitsutsu oriki kimi machigateri
English Translation: Though no rain falls down,
like a night of heavy clouds,
damp and drearily
I kept on longing for you,
waiting for you all the while.
Meaning: Like a night overcast though no rain falls, I kept on longing for you in a damp, heavy mood, waiting all the while for you to come.
Commentary: Book Three Miscellaneous Poems 370

Headnote: "A poem by Lord Abe no Hironiwa"
Like the damp air of a night covered in cloud though no rain falls, the poet waited on and on for the one he loved, his heart unable to clear. The meaning of nurunuru to in the third line is debated and the poem has long been considered obscure, but it is read as overlaying the heavy dampness of a cloudy night with the heart of one who waits in love.
The poet, Abe no Hironiwa, was a son of the Minister of the Right Abe no Miushi; he rose to Middle Counselor and died in Tenpyō 4 (732).

First line "Though no rain falls down" means without rain.
Second line "like a night of heavy clouds": tonogumoru means to be overcast; up to here serves as a preface to the third line.
Third line "damp and drearily": the meaning of nurunuru to is debated, taken as moist and heavy, or as a heart that will not loosen.
Fourth line "I kept on longing for you": tsutsu expresses continuation and ki the past; the sentence breaks here.
Fifth line "waiting for you all the while": gateri means "while doing," ending in inversion.
Author: Abe no Hironiwa
Source: Manyoshu
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