Nageki seba hito shirinubemi yamagawa no tagitsu kokoro o sekaete aru kamo

嘆きせば人知りぬべみ山川の
たぎつ心を塞かへてあるかも

Roma-ji: Nageki seba hito shirinubemi yamagawa no tagitsu kokoro o sekaete aru kamo
English Translation: Should I sigh aloud,
others surely would find out;
like a mountain stream
my heart that rushes seething
I hold back with all my strength
Meaning: If I were to sigh, people would surely know—so I hold back my heart, which rushes and seethes like a mountain stream.
Commentary: Book Seven Allegorical Poems 1383

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "On Rivers"
Because sighing would let others know, the poet dams up a heart that rushes and seethes like a mountain stream. The torrent stands for a love hard to restrain, and the poem conveys the pain of enduring in silence so as not to be found out.
It is one of the poems "On Rivers," voicing the fear of being found out. Following the preceding poem's fierce resolve, it shows that passion held in check because of others' eyes. The poet is unknown.

The first line, "Should I sigh aloud," states the condition.
In the second line, "-bemi" is the "-mi" form of "beshi": "because others would surely know."
The third line, "like a mountain stream," leads to "rushes seething" in the fourth line.
The fourth line refers to a heart that seethes and surges.
The final line uses "seku," to dam, as a word associated with the river, and "kamo" expresses emotion.
Source: Manyoshu
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