Kumogakuri kari naku toki wa akiyama no momichi katamatsu toki wa suguredo

雲隠り雁鳴く時は秋山の
黄葉片待つ時は過ぐれど

Roma-ji: Kumogakuri kari naku toki wa akiyama no momichi katamatsu toki wa suguredo
English Translation: Hidden in the clouds,
when the wild geese call their cry,
the autumn mountain's
crimson leaves I wait for still,
though the season passes by.
Meaning: When the geese cry hidden in the clouds, I wait and wait for the autumn leaves on the mountains, though the season slips away.
Commentary: Book Nine Miscellaneous Poems 1703

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Three poems presented to Prince Yuge"
When the season comes for geese to cry hidden in the clouds, the speaker waits intently for the autumn leaves, though that time passes by. The waiting for leaves is read as expressing a hope for the prince's favor.
This is the third of three poems presented to Prince Yuge. Its unusual structure, repeating toki wa, "the time," in the second and fifth lines, has given rise to various interpretations.
The author, Kakinomoto no Hitomaro, was a court poet active in the reigns of Jitō and Monmu. This poem is taken from the Hitomaro Collection, which is thought to contain both Hitomaro's own poems and poems by others that he gathered. Prince Yuge was a son of Emperor Tenmu and died in the third year of Monmu (699).

The first line, "hidden in the clouds," points to geese heard but not seen.
The second line, "when the wild geese call their cry," contains toki wa, which corresponds to that of the final line.
The third line, "the autumn mountain's," names the hills where leaves turn.
The fourth line, "crimson leaves I wait for still," uses katamatsu, "to wait intently." The same word appears in "I who wait" in 1705 and "so hard to wait for" in 1763.
The final line, "though the season passes by," trails off concessively, leaving a lingering mood. Repeating toki wa, it contrasts the time of waiting with the time that slips away.
Author: Kakinomoto no Hitomaro
Source: Manyoshu
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