Saho watari wagie no ue ni naku tori no koe natsukashiki hashiki tsuma no ko

佐保渡り我家の上に鳴く鳥の
声なつかしきはしき妻の子

Roma-ji: Saho watari wagie no ue ni naku tori no koe natsukashiki hashiki tsuma no ko
English Translation: Flying over Saho,
calling out above my house,
there a bird is singing;
like its voice so dear to me,
you, my wife, my darling one
Meaning: Like the voice of the bird that flies over Saho and sings above my house, how dear to me you are, my beloved wife.
Commentary: Book Four Love Poems 663

Headnote: "A poem by Ato no Sukune Toshitari"
With a bird that flies over Saho and sings above his house as its preface, he says his wife is as dear to him as its voice. The familiar, appealing song of the bird is overlaid on his tenderness for his wife.
The author, Ato no Toshitari, was an official of whom little is known.

First line, "Flying over Saho," means crossing the Saho area.
Second line, "calling out above my house," means above my home.
Third line, "there a bird is singing," names the singing bird; the first three lines form a preface to "voice."
Fourth line, "like its voice so dear to me," uses natsukashi, "appealing, dear."
Fifth line, "you, my wife, my darling one," means my dear wife, ending on a noun.
Author: Ato no Toshitari
Source: Manyoshu
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