Asanagi ni kiyoru shiranami mimaku hori ware wa suredomo kaze koso yosene

朝なぎに来寄る白波見まく欲り
我れはすれども風こそ寄せね

Roma-ji: Asanagi ni kiyoru shiranami mimaku hori ware wa suredomo kaze koso yosene
English Translation: In the morning calm
the white waves come rolling in—
I long to see them,
so I wish with all my heart,
but the wind will not bring them near
Meaning: I long to see the white waves rolling in on the morning calm—yet it is the wind that will not bring them to me.
Commentary: Book Seven Allegorical Poems 1391

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "On the Sea"
The poet longs to see the white waves rolling in on the morning calm, but the wind will not bring them. The white waves stand for the beloved and the wind for whatever might bring the two together, expressing the frustration of longing to meet without the chance to do so.
It is the last of the poems "On the Sea." Its second line, "the white waves come rolling in," is the same as in poem 1389 in this book; following the preceding poem's watching of the wind, it laments that the wind will not bring the waves near. The poet is unknown.

The first line, "In the morning calm," refers to the still sea when the morning wind has dropped.
The second line, "the white waves come rolling in," is the same as in poem 1389 in this book.
In the third line, "mimaku" is the nominalized form of "mimu": "I long to see them."
The fourth line, "so I wish with all my heart," is concessive: "though I wish."
In the final line, "koso" is answered by the perfective "ne," leaving an adversative sense lingering.
Source: Manyoshu
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