Komoriku no Hatsuse otome ga te ni makeru tama wa midarete ari to iwazu ya mo

こもりくの泊瀬娘子が手に巻ける
玉は乱れてありと言はずやも

Roma-ji: Komoriku no Hatsuse otome ga te ni makeru tama wa midarete ari to iwazu ya mo
English Translation: Hidden valley land,
the maiden of Hatsuse
wore upon her wrist
jewels—now they lie scattered,
do they not say it is so?
Meaning: The jewels the maiden of Hatsuse wore upon her wrist—do they not say that they now lie scattered?
Commentary: Book Three Elegies 424

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "A poem composed in grief by Prince Yamakuma, likewise on the death of Prince Iwata" — "Two envoys from a certain text"
This is the first of two envoys, from a certain text, to Prince Yamakuma's long poem mourning Prince Iwata. Do they not say that the jewels the maiden of Hatsuse wore upon her wrist have come undone and scattered? he asks, likening a death to the breaking of a jewel string. The left note to the next poem records a view that these two poems were composed by Prince Yamakuma on behalf of Prince Iwata after the death of Princess Ki, and some identify the maiden of Hatsuse with Princess Ki.
The poet, Prince Yamakuma, was a son of Prince Osakabe and a royal of the early Nara period. He died in Yōrō 7 (723).

First line "Hidden valley land" renders komoriku no, "land enclosed by mountains," a pillow word for Hatsuse.
Second line "the maiden of Hatsuse" is thought to stand for the one who died.
Third line "wore upon her wrist" reflects the custom of wearing jewels on the wrist.
Fourth line "jewels—now they lie scattered": jewels spilled from a broken string, figuring a death.
Fifth line "do they not say it is so": ya mo poses a rhetorical question, ending in grief at the news.
Author: Prince Yamakuma
Source: Manyoshu
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