Ise no umi no iso mo todoro ni yosuru nami kashikoki hito ni koiwataru kamo

伊勢の海の礒もとどろに寄する波
畏き人に恋ひわたるかも

Roma-ji: Ise no umi no iso mo todoro ni yosuru nami kashikoki hito ni koiwataru kamo
English Translation: On the sea of Ise,
thundering against the rocks,
waves come rolling in;
one who fills my heart with awe,
him I love and love on still
Meaning: Like the waves that thunder on the rocky shores of the sea of Ise, I go on longing for one who fills me with awe.
Commentary: Book Four Love Poems 600

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Twenty-four poems sent by Lady Kasa to Ōtomo no Sukune Yakamochi"
With the waves that thunder on the rocky shore of the sea of Ise as its preface, she says she goes on longing for one of awe-inspiring rank. The fearsome power of the waves is joined to her awe of a man above her. It shares its last line with poems 597 and 599 of this book, so that the three close in the same words.
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, "On the sea of Ise," runs to six syllables.
Second line, "thundering against the rocks," means so that even the rocky shore roars, conveying the violence of the waves.
Third line, "waves come rolling in," names the incoming waves; the first three lines form a preface to "awe" in the fourth line.
Fourth line, "one who fills my heart with awe," means one who is exalted, far above her, referring to Yakamochi.
Fifth line, "him I love and love on still," is the same last line as poems 597 and 599.
Author: Lady Kasa
Source: Manyoshu
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