Ōhara no kono ichishiba no itsu shika to aga omou imo ni koyoi aeru kamo

大原のこのいち柴のいつしかと
我が思ふ妹に今夜逢へるかも

Roma-ji: Ōhara no kono ichishiba no itsu shika to aga omou imo ni koyoi aeru kamo
English Translation: At Ōhara here,
the thick brushwood, ichishiba,
"when, oh when," I cried,
thinking of my own dear one,
and tonight at last we meet
Meaning: Like the thick brushwood at Ōhara, ichishiba, whose name sounds out "when, oh when," I have longed for her, and tonight at last I have met my beloved.
Commentary: Book Four Love Poems 513

Headnote: "A poem by Prince Shiki"
With the thick brushwood of Ōhara as its preface, this poem sings the joy of meeting at last, tonight, the woman he had long been waiting to see. It expresses in plain words the happiness of a meeting that comes after long yearning. In a book with many poems on the pain of waiting, this one stands out by celebrating the joy of meeting after the wait.
The author, Prince Shiki, was a son of Emperor Tenji and father of Emperor Kōnin, a poet known for his clear and graceful nature poems.

First line, "At Ōhara here," names Ōhara in Takechi District of Yamato, today's Ohara in Asuka village.
Second line, "the thick brushwood, ichishiba," means dense brushwood or perhaps oak brush; the sound ichi draws out itsu shika in the third line, and with the first line it forms a preface.
Third line, "'when, oh when,' I cried," means longing for it to come soon, the wish he has held all along: when will it be?
Fourth line, "thinking of my own dear one," means the woman I love, showing she is one he has long cherished.
Fifth line, "and tonight at last we meet," uses ru, the attributive of the perfective ri, and the exclamatory kamo: tonight I have met her. It states plainly the joy that follows long waiting.
Author: Prince Shiki
Source: Manyoshu
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