Hisakata no ame ni wa kinu o ayashiku mo waga koromode wa hiru toki naki ka

ひさかたの雨には着ぬをあやしくも
我が衣手は干る時なきか

Roma-ji: Hisakata no ame ni wa kinu o ayashiku mo waga koromode wa hiru toki naki ka
English Translation: Not in the rain from
the far-off heavens did I wear it,
yet how strange it is—
these sleeves of my robe, it seems,
never have a time to dry
Meaning: I never wore it out in the rain, and yet, strangely, the sleeves of my robe never have a moment to dry.
Commentary: Book Seven Allegorical Poems 1371

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "On Rain"
The poet says that, though the robe was never worn in the rain, strangely its sleeves are never dry. Through the rain, the poem suggests that what wets the sleeves is not rain but the tears of love.
It is one of the poems under the heading "On Rain," and like the preceding poem it concerns rain. The poet is unknown.

The first line uses "hisakata no," a pillow word for "heaven" and "rain."
In the second line, "did I wear it," the particle "o" is concessive.
The third line, "yet how strange it is," expresses wonder.
The fourth line, "these sleeves of my robe," names the sleeves.
In the final line, "never have a time to dry," "ka" is exclamatory, and it implies that what wets the sleeves is tears.
Source: Manyoshu
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