Aigataki kimi ni aeru yo hototogisu adashitoki yu wa ima koso nakame

逢ひかたき君に逢へる夜霍公鳥
他時ゆは今こそ鳴かめ

Roma-ji: Aigataki kimi ni aeru yo hototogisu adashitoki yu wa ima koso nakame
English Translation: Hard as it may be
to meet you, this night we meet—
hototogisu,
more than any other time
now, of all times, sing for us!
Meaning: On this night when at last I meet you, so hard to meet—O hototogisu, now above all other times, sing!
Commentary: Book Ten Summer Miscellaneous Poems 1947

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "On Birds"
On the night of finally meeting a beloved seldom met, this poem asks the hototogisu to sing now of all times. It shows a radiant heart wishing to adorn the joyful night with the bird's voice. Whereas the preceding poem rejected the hototogisu's song as something that makes longing grow, this one seeks it to heighten the joy of a night together, so the reception of the bird's song reverses with the situation of love.

The first line, "aigataki," hard to meet, describes the beloved.
The second line, "the night I meet you," uses "ru," the attributive of "ri."
The third line, "hototogisu," is the one addressed.
In the fourth line, "adashitoki yu wa," "adashitoki" means other times and "yu" marks the standard of comparison: rather than at other times.
In the last line, "ima koso nakame," "koso" is an emphatic particle answered by "me," the perfective of "mu," closing with an urgent plea to sing now.
Source: Manyoshu
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