Waga inochi no matakemu kagiri wasureme ya iya hi ni ke ni wa omoi masu tomo

我が命の全けむ限り忘れめや
いや日に異には思ひ増すとも

Roma-ji: Waga inochi no matakemu kagiri wasureme ya iya hi ni ke ni wa omoi masu tomo
English Translation: While my life endures,
for as long as it is whole,
how could I forget;
rather, growing day by day,
my longing will only swell
Meaning: As long as my life lasts, how could I forget you? My longing will only grow greater day by day.
Commentary: Book Four Love Poems 595

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Twenty-four poems sent by Lady Kasa to Ōtomo no Sukune Yakamochi"
As long as her life lasts, how could she forget him? Her longing may grow day by day, but never lessen; she vows an unchanging love. It is one of the most direct statements of the strength of her love in the whole series.
The author, Lady Kasa, was a woman poet of the Nara period who sent many love poems to Ōtomo no Yakamochi. Little else is known of her.

First line, "While my life endures," runs to six syllables: my life.
Second line, "for as long as it is whole," uses matake, an old irrealis of the adjective matashi, "whole, safe," with conjectural mu: so long as my life remains whole.
Third line, "how could I forget," uses me, perfective of mu, with the rhetorical ya: could I forget? Never. The poem breaks after this line.
Fourth line, "rather, growing day by day," uses iya, "ever more," and hi ni ke ni, "day after day."
Fifth line, "my longing will only swell," uses the concessive tomo: though my longing may increase. Far from forgetting, she says, it will only grow.
Author: Lady Kasa
Source: Manyoshu
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