Kurenai ni koromo somemaku hoshikedomo kite niowaba ka hito no shirubeki

紅に衣染めまく欲しけども
着てにほはばか人の知るべき

Roma-ji: Kurenai ni koromo somemaku hoshikedomo kite niowaba ka hito no shirubeki
English Translation: In crimson dye
I would steep a robe, I long,
and yet if I wore it
and its color shone abroad,
would the world not come to know?
Meaning: I long to dye a robe in crimson—but if I wore it and its color glowed, would not everyone come to know?
Commentary: Book Seven Allegorical Poems 1297

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "On Robes"
The poet wishes to dye a robe crimson but hesitates, fearing that if he wore it and the color showed, others would know. The crimson robe is taken to stand for a lovely woman, and the poem expresses fear that if he were joined with her, it would be noticed and talked about.
It is the second poem of the series on robes. Taking up "though I have not worn it yet" in the preceding poem, it worries about being found out once the robe is worn. The motif of wearing a crimson robe underneath or on top also appears in poem 1313 in this book. According to the left note it comes from the Kakinomoto no Hitomaro Collection.

The first line, "In crimson dye," corresponds to the first line of poem 1313 in this book.
In the second line, "somemaku" is the nominal form of the auxiliary "mu": "to dye."
The third line, "I long, and yet," is concessive.
In the fourth line, "if I wore it and its color shone abroad," the particle "ka" is answered by the attributive "beki" in the final line.
The final line, "would the world not come to know?" closes the construction begun by "ka."
Source: Manyoshu
Prev Poem: Ima tsukuru madara no koromo omokage ni ware ni omōyu imada kinedomo
Next Poem: Kanikaku ni hito wa iu tomo oritsugamu waga hatamono no shiroasagoromo