Yama takami shirayūbana ni ochitagitsu natsumi no kawato miredo akanu kamo

山高み白木綿花に落ちたぎつ
夏身の川門見れど飽かぬかも

Roma-ji: Yama takami shirayūbana ni ochitagitsu natsumi no kawato miredo akanu kamo
English Translation: The mountains are high,
so like white flowers of mulberry cloth
the falling torrents foam;
the river crossing of Natsumi,
I could look and never tire.
Meaning: Because the mountains are high, the waters tumble down like white flowers of mulberry cloth; the river crossing at Natsumi I could gaze on and never tire.
Commentary: Book Nine Miscellaneous Poems 1736

Headnote: "A poem composed at Yoshino by Shikibu Yamato"
Because the mountains are high, the water foams down like white cloth flowers at the Natsumi crossing, and the speaker praises it as a sight he could never tire of. The whiteness of the Yoshino rapids is likened to mulberry-cloth flowers in praise of the place.
Natsumi is thought to be around Natsumi in Yoshino, Nara. The closing phrase "I could look and never tire" recurs in poems praising Yoshino and is the same as the final line of 1725 in this book.
The author, Shikibu Yamato, is thought to have been a man of the Yamato family serving in the Ministry of Ceremonial (Shikibu), though his given name is not recorded.

The first line, "the mountains are high," uses mi to express cause.
The second line, "like white flowers of mulberry cloth," compares the foaming water to white artificial flowers.
The third line, "the falling torrents foam," uses the same verb as the first line of 1714, depicting the Yoshino rapids.
The fourth line, "the river crossing of Natsumi," names the ford.
The final line, "I could look and never tire," ends with the exclamatory kamo and matches the final line of 1725, placing poems in praise of the Yoshino River side by side.
Author: Shikibu Yamato
Source: Manyoshu
Prev Poem: Waga tatami mie no kawara no iso no ura ni kaku shi mo ga mo to naku kawazu kamo
Next Poem: Ōtaki o sugite natsumi ni chikazukite kiyoki kawase o miru ga sayakesa