Watarimori fune watase o to yobu koe no itaraneba ka mo kaji no oto no senu

渡り守舟渡せをと呼ぶ声の
至らねばかも楫の音のせぬ

Roma-ji: Watarimori fune watase o to yobu koe no itaraneba ka mo kaji no oto no senu
English Translation: "O ferryman, come,
row the boat across!" I cry—
does my calling voice
fail to reach you, that I hear
not a single sound of oars?
Meaning: I call to the ferryman, "Bring the boat across!"—but perhaps my voice does not reach him, for I hear no sound of oars.
Commentary: Book Ten Autumn Miscellaneous Poems 2072

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Tanabata"
This poem, in the Herdsman's voice, frets that perhaps his call to the ferryman to bring the boat does not reach him, since no sound of oars can be heard. It shows both a heart hurrying to the meeting and the frustration of things not going as wished. Whereas 2067 and others knew the beloved's arrival by the sound of oars, this poem laments that no oars can be heard, reversing the composition around the same sound.

The first line, "watarimori," names the ferryman who keeps the boat at a crossing.
In the second line, "fune watase o to," "o" is an interjectory particle strengthening the call: bring the boat across!
The third line, "the calling voice," names what does not reach.
In the fourth line, "itaraneba ka mo," "ka mo" is an interrogative particle in kakari-musubi with "nu" in the last line: is it because it does not reach?
In the last line, "kaji no oto no senu," "nu" is the attributive of the negative "zu," answering "ka mo," closing with frustration at hearing no oars.
Source: Manyoshu
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