Masurao no yuku to iu michi zo ōroka ni omoite yuku na masurao no tomo

大夫の行くといふ道ぞおほろかに
思ひて行くな大夫の伴

Roma-ji: Masurao no yuku to iu michi zo ōroka ni omoite yuku na masurao no tomo
English Translation: For men of valor
this is the road they travel—
not lightly, carelessly
should you think of it and go,
you band of men of valor
Meaning: This is the road that men of valor travel. Do not set out thinking lightly of it, you band of valiant men.
Commentary: Book Six Miscellaneous Poems 974

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "One envoy"
The poem admonishes and encourages the Military Commissioners, telling them that this is the road men of valor travel and must not be taken lightly. The long poem immediately before it (973) is titled "A poem by the Emperor on bestowing wine upon the lords appointed Military Commissioners," and was composed when the Emperor gave wine to the commissioners appointed in Tenpyō 4 (732) and sent them on their way.
The long poem says that if the commissioners go thus to their distant posts, the Emperor can rest at ease with folded arms; he strokes them with his own hands in gratitude and bestows this abundant wine, to be drunk together on the day they return. Receiving that gratitude, this envoy tightens the mood, telling them to go with the weight of their duty engraved on their hearts.
The poet, Emperor Shōmu, was a son of Emperor Monmu, and his mother was Fujiwara no Miyako. He took the throne in Jinki 1 (724) and later vowed to build the Great Buddha of Tōdaiji. The left note records another view that this poem is the work of the Retired Sovereign, that is, the Retired Empress Genshō.

The poem is framed by the same phrase, "men of valor," in its first and final lines. Where the preceding envoy, 972, praised Umakai as "a man," this poem, from the standpoint of the sovereign, addresses the commissioners as "you band of men of valor" and admonishes them, forming a pair of the praise of those who see off and the charge of the one who commands.
The first line, "For men of valor," means fine and brave men, and refers to those setting out as Military Commissioners.
The second line, "this is the road they travel," means "it is the road on which they go," stated forcefully with the emphatic particle "zo." The sense breaks here, after the second line, and the line has an extra syllable.
The third line, "not lightly, carelessly," renders "ōroka ni," meaning half-heartedly or carelessly, and modifies "think" in the next line.
The fourth line, "should you think of it and go," means "do not go thinking so," with "na" a final particle of prohibition. It strongly warns against making light of the duty.
The final line, "you band of men of valor," is a call to the valiant men, "tomo" meaning those who serve together in the same duty. Repeating "men of valor" from the first line and ending on a noun, it strengthens the force of the address.
Author: Emperor Shōmu
Source: Manyoshu
Prev Poem: Chiyorozu no ikusa naritomo kotoage sezu torite kinubeki onoko zo omou
Next Poem: Kakushitsutsu araku o yomi zo tamakiharu mijikaki inochi o nagaku hori suru