Ate sugite itoka no yama no sakurabana chirazu mo aranamu kaerikuru made

足代過ぎて糸鹿の山の桜花
散らずもあらなむ帰り来るまで

Roma-ji: Ate sugite itoka no yama no sakurabana chirazu mo aranamu kaerikuru made
English Translation: Past Ate I go,
and on Itoka Mountain
the cherry flowers—
O do not scatter, stay
until I come back home
Meaning: Cherry blossoms of Mount Itoka beyond Ate—do not scatter, stay in bloom until I come back again.
Commentary: Book Seven Miscellaneous Poems 1212

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Composed on Journeys"
The poet asks the cherry blossoms on Mount Itoka, crossed after passing Ate, not to scatter until he comes back. His attachment to the beauty of the blossoms seen on his journey and his wish to see them again on the way home are clearly expressed.
With the same idea as poem 1188 in this book, which asked the rock azaleas to wait in bud "until I come back," it wishes the flowers to remain unchanged until his return. Mount Itoka is thought to be in the Arida district of Kii. It is regarded as coming from the Old Collection. The poet is unknown.

The first line, "Past Ate I go," names Ate, a place in Kii; the line has an extra syllable.
The second line names Mount Itoka in Kii.
The third line, "the cherry flowers," names the blossoms.
In the fourth line, "namu" is a particle of wishing addressed to others: "do not scatter." The poem pauses here.
The final line, "until I come back home," adds the limit by inversion and answers "until I come back" in the fourth line of poem 1188.
Source: Manyoshu
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