Mikemukau minabuchiyama no iwao ni wa furishi hadare ka kienokoritaru

御食向ふ南淵山の巌には
降りしはだれか消え残りたる

Roma-ji: Mikemukau minabuchiyama no iwao ni wa furishi hadare ka kienokoritaru
English Translation: Facing the royal feast,
on Minabuchi Mountain
upon the great rocks,
is it the patchy snow that fell
lingering there unmelted still?
Meaning: On the great rocks of Mount Minabuchi, is that the thin snow that fell some time ago, still lingering unmelted?
Commentary: Book Nine Miscellaneous Poems 1709

Headnote: "A poem presented to Prince Yuge"
The poet wonders whether the whiteness on the rocks of Mount Minabuchi is patchy snow that fell earlier and has not yet melted. It captures vividly the white of snow left on the hills in early spring.
This poem was presented to Prince Yuge. Mount Minabuchi is in Inabuchi, Asuka, Takaichi District, Nara. A left note says these poems come from the collection of Kakinomoto no Asomi Hitomaro, showing that the poems from 1682 to this one were taken from the Hitomaro Collection.
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, mikemukau, "facing the royal feast," is a pillow word for Minabuchi, said to come from the sound mina, a river snail offered as food.
The second line, "on Minabuchi Mountain," names the peak where snow remains.
The third line, "upon the great rocks," refers to the boulders of the mountain.
The fourth line, "is it the patchy snow that fell," uses the question particle ka, forming a kakari-musubi with taru in the last line.
The final line, "lingering there unmelted still?" ends in the attributive of the continuative tari. Like "the snow that lingers still" in 1695, it speaks of snow yet unmelted.
Author: Kakinomoto no Hitomaro
Source: Manyoshu
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