Sayo fukete yonaka no kata ni ōoshiku yobishi funabito hatenikemu kamo

さ夜更けて夜中の方におほほしく
呼びし舟人泊てにけむかも

Roma-ji: Sayo fukete yonaka no kata ni ōoshiku yobishi funabito hatenikemu kamo
English Translation: Late in the night,
around the middle hours,
faint and dim
the boatmen called out—
have they reached harbor now?
Meaning: Deep in the night, around midnight, I heard boatmen calling faintly through the dark—have they reached a harbor by now, I wonder?
Commentary: Book Seven Miscellaneous Poems 1225

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Composed on Journeys"
Recalling the boatmen's calls that came faintly through the darkness late at night, the poet wonders whether they have safely reached a harbor. The poem carries a traveler's fellow feeling for unknown boatmen.
Following the preceding poem's anxiety at not knowing where to moor, this poem worries for boatmen on the night sea; its first line, "Late in the night," is the same as the third line of the preceding poem. It is regarded as coming from the Old Collection. The poet is unknown.

The first line, "Late in the night," is the same as the third line of the preceding poem.
The second line, "around the middle hours," means around midnight.
The third line, "faint and dim," describes voices heard vaguely in the dark.
The fourth line, "the boatmen called out," refers to the boatmen who were calling.
In the final line, "kemu" is past conjecture and "kamo" interrogative: "have they arrived by now?"
Source: Manyoshu
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