Ima yori wa ki no yamamichi wa sabushikemu waga kayowamu to omoishi mono o

今よりは城の山道は寂しけむ
我が通はむと思ひしものを

Roma-ji: Ima yori wa ki no yamamichi wa sabushikemu waga kayowamu to omoishi mono o
English Translation: From this moment on
the mountain road by Ki
will be lonely now;
I had thought to travel it,
going often to see you
Meaning: From now on the mountain road by Ki will be a lonely one, though I had thought to travel it often to visit you.
Commentary: Book Four Love Poems 576

Headnote: "A poem composed in grief by Fujii no Muraji Ōnari, Governor of Chikugo, after Lord Ōtomo, Governor-General of the Dazaifu, had gone up to the capital"
After Ōtomo no Tabito returned to the capital, Fujii no Ōnari, Governor of Chikugo, composed this poem in grief. The mountain road by Ki, which he used to travel to visit Tabito, will be lonely from now on, he says, mourning the loss of a superior he revered. Through a well-worn road, he expresses the emptiness of parting.
The author, Fujii no Ōnari, was an official said to come from a clan of immigrant descent, and he served as governor of Chikugo.

First line, "From this moment on," marks the time after Tabito's departure.
Second line, "the mountain road by Ki," is taken to be the road over the mountain of the Kii fortress, linking the Dazaifu and Chikugo.
Third line, "will be lonely now," uses the conjectural kemu: it will surely be lonely. The poem breaks after this line.
Fourth line, "I had thought to travel it," uses the volitional mu: I meant to go back and forth.
Fifth line, "going often to see you," means though I had thought so, mono o carrying concession and lament.
Author: Fujii no Ōnari
Source: Manyoshu
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