Are nomi zo kimi ni wa kouru waga seko ga kou to iu koto wa koto no nagusa zo

我れのみぞ君には恋ふる我が背子が
恋ふといふことは言のなぐさぞ

Roma-ji: Are nomi zo kimi ni wa kouru waga seko ga kou to iu koto wa koto no nagusa zo
English Translation: It is I alone
who am longing so for you;
when you say, my dear,
that you long for me as well,
those are merely words of comfort
Meaning: I alone am the one who longs for you; when you say you long for me, my love, it is only words to comfort me.
Commentary: Book Four Love Poems 656

Headnote: "Six poems by Lady Ōtomo no Sakanoue"
This is the first of Lady Sakanoue's six poems. She alone longs, she says; when he says he loves her, it is mere words of comfort. Doubting the sincerity of his words, she reproaches him sharply while showing the depth of her own love.
The author, Lady Ōtomo no Sakanoue, was a daughter of Ōtomo no Yasumaro and half-sister of Ōtomo no Tabito. She left many poems in the Man'yōshū and is esteemed as a leading woman poet.

First line, "It is I alone," uses zo, closed by kouru in the second line.
Second line, "who am longing so for you," means who long for you; the poem breaks after this line.
Third line, "when you say, my dear," means you, my love.
Fourth line, "that you long for me as well," runs to eight syllables: your saying that you love me.
Fifth line, "those are merely words of comfort," names nagusa, consolation: it is only comfort in words.
Author: Lady Ōtomo no Sakanoue
Source: Manyoshu
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