Ima yukite kiku mono ni mo ga asukagawa harusame furite tagitsu se no oto o

今行きて聞くものにもが明日香川
春雨降りてたぎつ瀬の音を

Roma-ji: Ima yukite kiku mono ni mo ga asukagawa harusame furite tagitsu se no oto o
English Translation: Now I'd go at once,
if only I could hear it—
the Asuka stream,
swollen with the rain of spring,
its rapids, roaring, rushing!
Meaning: If only I could go right now and hear it—the sound of the Asuka River's rapids, rushing and roaring with the spring rain.
Commentary: Book Ten Spring Miscellaneous Poems 1878

Headnote: "On the River"
This poem wishes it could go at once to hear the rapids of the Asuka River, swollen and rushing with spring rain. Its headnote is "On the River." It holds both nostalgia for the river flowing through the old capital of Asuka and longing for the sound of a clear stream grown vigorous with spring rain. Whereas the spring rain of the preceding poem blocked the path of love, here it enriches the voice of the river.

The first line, "going now," shows the heart that would rush there at once.
In the second line, "kiku mono ni mo ga," "mo ga" is a particle of wishing: if only I could hear it. The poem breaks here.
The third line, "the Asuka River," flows through the Asuka district and was cherished as the river of the old capital even after the court moved to Nara.
The fourth line, "the spring rain falling," gives the reason the river has risen.
In the last line, "tagitsu se no oto o," "tagitsu" means rushing and seething. The line is hypermetric, and by inversion names at the end what the poet longs to hear.
Source: Manyoshu
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