Hikoboshi no kawase o wataru saobune no e yukite hatemu kawazu shi omōyu

彦星の川瀬を渡るさ小舟の
え行きて泊てむ川津し思ほゆ

Roma-ji: Hikoboshi no kawase o wataru saobune no e yukite hatemu kawazu shi omōyu
English Translation: The Herdsman Star's boat
crossing over river shoals,
little skiff that goes,
where it reaches, comes to rest,
that ford comes into my mind.
Meaning: I think of the ford where the Herdsman's little boat, crossing the river shoals, will safely arrive and come to rest.
Commentary: Book Ten Autumn Miscellaneous Poems 2091

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Tanabata: Envoy"
This poem says the speaker thinks of the ford where the Herdsman's little boat, crossing the shoals, will safely arrive and moor, and it is a further envoy to the long poem, following the preceding one. The wish for a safe crossing overlaps with thoughts of the place of meeting. Whereas the preceding poem drew the theme toward the speaker's own earthly love, this one turns again to the Herdsman's crossing in heaven.

The first line, "the Herdsman's," names the boat's owner.
The second line, "crossing the river shoals," describes the journey.
In the third line, "saobune no," "sa" is a prefix: a small boat.
In the fourth line, "e yukite hatemu," "e" expresses possibility: where it will manage to go and moor. The line is hypermetric.
In the last line, "kawazu shi omōyu," "shi" is emphatic and "omōyu" means to come to mind, closing with thoughts of the ford.
Source: Manyoshu
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