Iezakari tabi ni shi areba akikaze no samuki yūbe ni kari nakiwataru

家離り旅にしあれば秋風の
寒き夕に雁鳴き渡る

Roma-ji: Iezakari tabi ni shi areba akikaze no samuki yūbe ni kari nakiwataru
English Translation: Far from home I am,
out upon a journey, and
in the autumn wind's
chill of evening, calling,
the wild geese fly across
Meaning: Far from home, out on my journey, in the chill of an evening swept by autumn wind, the wild geese cross the sky, crying.
Commentary: Book Seven Miscellaneous Poems 1161

Headnote: "Composed on Journeys"
To one traveling far from home, the cries of wild geese crossing the sky on a cold autumn evening ring deeply. The traveler's melancholy and longing for home are deepened by the geese's calls in the autumn dusk.
It is the first poem under the heading "Composed on Journeys," and a long series of poems composed while traveling in various provinces follows. The poet is unknown.

The first line, "Far from home I am," means having left home far behind.
In the second line, "shi" is emphatic: "since I am on a journey," a conditional of fact.
The third line, "in the autumn wind's," introduces the season.
The fourth line, "chill of evening," sets the cold dusk.
The final line, "the wild geese fly across," pictures the geese crossing the sky, crying. Geese were thought to carry messages from afar and stir longing for home.
Source: Manyoshu
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