Omouramu hito ni aranaku ni nemokoro ni kokoro tsukushite kouru are kamo

思ふらむ人にあらなくにねもころに
心尽して恋ふる我れかも

Roma-ji: Omouramu hito ni aranaku ni nemokoro ni kokoro tsukushite kouru are kamo
English Translation: Not a one, it seems,
who is thinking fond of me,
yet so earnestly,
spending all my heart and soul,
here am I still longing so
Meaning: You are not one who thinks of me, and yet here I am, longing for you with all my heart and soul.
Commentary: Book Four Love Poems 682

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Three poems by Ōtomo no Sukune Yakamochi on parting from a friend"
In the last of the three, he wryly observes himself devoting all his heart to one who does not think of him. The sequence on parting from a friend closes with a lament for unreturned feeling.
The author, Ōtomo no Yakamochi, was the son of Ōtomo no Tabito and a poet thought to have been deeply involved in compiling the Man'yōshū. He later rose to the rank of Middle Counselor.

First line, "Not a one, it seems," means who might think of me.
Second line, "who is thinking fond of me," runs to eight syllables: though you are not such a one.
Third line, "yet so earnestly," means with all care, wholeheartedly.
Fourth line, "spending all my heart and soul," means exhausting my heart.
Fifth line, "here am I still longing so," means such am I who long, with the exclamatory kamo.
Author: Otomo no Yakamochi
Source: Manyoshu
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