Arakajime hitogoto shigeshi kaku shi araba shie ya waga seko oku mo ika ni arame

あらかじめ人言繁しかくしあらば
しゑや我が背子奥もいかにあらめ

Roma-ji: Arakajime hitogoto shigeshi kaku shi araba shie ya waga seko oku mo ika ni arame
English Translation: Even from the start
people's gossip is so thick;
if it is like this,
oh, what then, my dearest one,
what will come of us ahead
Meaning: Even before anything has happened, the gossip is thick; if it is like this now, oh, my love, what will become of us later?
Commentary: Book Four Love Poems 659

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Six poems by Lady Ōtomo no Sakanoue"
Their love has only begun, yet gossip is already thick; at this rate, she laments, what will the future hold? The resigned exclamation shie ya conveys her irritation at the rumors.
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, "Even from the start," means beforehand, already now.
Second line, "people's gossip is so thick," means the talk is loud; the poem breaks after this line.
Third line, "if it is like this," means if things are so.
Fourth line, "oh, what then, my dearest one," uses shie ya, an exclamation of exasperation, "oh, well."
Fifth line, "what will come of us ahead," runs to nine syllables; oku means the future: what will become of it?
Author: Lady Ōtomo no Sakanoue
Source: Manyoshu
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