Miwataseba chikaki mono kara iwagakuri kagayou tama o torazu wa yamaji

見わたせば近きものから岩隠り
かがよふ玉を取らずはやまじ

Roma-ji: Miwataseba chikaki mono kara iwagakuri kagayou tama o torazu wa yamaji
English Translation: When I gaze out there,
it lies so near, and yet
hid among the rocks,
the jewel that glints and gleams—
I will not stop till I take it
Meaning: Though it lies so near when I look out, it glimmers hidden among the rocks—that jewel I will not rest until I take.
Commentary: Book Six Miscellaneous Poems 951

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Four poems composed when the Emperor made a progress to the palace at Naniwa in the fifth year, the year of the Earth Dragon"
This poem declares the resolve to take, at any cost, a jewel that glitters hidden among the rocks though it seems near enough when one looks out. According to the headnote, this is one of four poems composed when Emperor Shōmu made a progress to the palace at Naniwa in Jinki 5 (728). None of the four is a poem praising the progress; all of them entrust feelings of love to mountains, jewels, pines and the like.
The jewel shining in the shadow of the rocks is understood as a figure for a woman who is close by yet not easily reached. Where the preceding poem, 950, speaks of an outward barrier, a forbidden mountain, this poem speaks of the frustration of seeing what one cannot take.
The left note reads, "The above poems appear among the poems of Kasa no Asomi Kanamura. Some say they were composed by Kurumamochi no Asomi Chitose." They were included in Kasa no Kanamura's collection, but there is also a tradition attributing them to Kurumamochi no Chitose, so the author remains undetermined. Both Kasa no Kanamura and Kurumamochi no Chitose were court poets who accompanied the sovereigns on their progresses from the reign of Empress Genshō to that of Emperor Shōmu.

The final line of this poem, "I will not stop till I take it," takes the same form as the final line of the preceding poem, 950, "I will not stop till I enter," and the two poems form a pair, restating the resolve to seek what is hard to reach.
The first line, "When I gaze out there," is an opening that calls to mind the shore of Naniwa spread before the eyes.
The second line, "it lies so near, and yet," uses the concessive particle "mono kara," "though." The contradiction of being near yet unattainable is the theme of the poem.
The third line, "hid among the rocks," shows that the jewel lies where it cannot easily be reached. Like "Hid behind islands" in 944 and "hidden in the bay" in 945 of this book, it is a word built on "-gakuri," "hidden."
The fourth line, "the jewel that glints and gleams," describes a jewel shimmering here and there, conveying that its beauty can be glimpsed even though it is hidden.
The final line, "I will not stop till I take it," shows the firm will to win the jewel of the fourth line at any cost.
Source: Manyoshu
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