Shimogumori su to ni ka aru ramu hisakata no yo wataru tsuki no mienaku omoeba

霜曇りすとにかあるらむ久方の
夜渡る月の見えなく思へば

Roma-ji: Shimogumori su to ni ka aru ramu hisakata no yo wataru tsuki no mienaku omoeba
English Translation: Is it that the sky
is clouded with frost-bringing haze?
For through the heavens
the moon that crosses the night
is nowhere to be seen
Meaning: Could it be that the sky has clouded over as frost comes on? For the moon that should be crossing the night heavens cannot be seen.
Commentary: Book Seven Miscellaneous Poems 1083

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "On the Moon"
Because the moon cannot be seen, the poet guesses that the sky has clouded over as a sign of coming frost. Along with his longing for the moon, one senses the growing chill of the night.
Following poem 1079 in this book, which asks whether cloud or mist is hiding the moon, this poem supposes that frost-clouds are the cause, so that poems on the unseen moon are grouped together. The poet is unknown.

The first line, "shimogumori," refers to the sky clouding over as a sign that frost is coming.
The second line, "Is it that...?" is a kakari-musubi construction in which "ka" is answered by the attributive "ramu," and the poem pauses here.
The third line uses the pillow word "hisakata no," which here modifies "the moon that crosses the night" in the fourth line, leading to the moon crossing the heavens.
The fourth line, "the moon that crosses the night," also appears in poems 1077 and 1081 in this book.
In the final line, "mienaku" is the nominalized form of "miezu" (not seen). By inversion, the ground for the guess is given at the end.
Source: Manyoshu
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