Ashihiki no yamada tsukuru ko hidezu tomo nawa dani haeyo moru to shiru gane

あしひきの山田作る子秀でずとも
縄だに延へよ守ると知るがね

Roma-ji: Ashihiki no yamada tsukuru ko hidezu tomo nawa dani haeyo moru to shiru gane
English Translation: On the rugged hills
you who till the mountain field,
though the ears aren't out,
stretch at least a rope around,
so they'll know you're keeping guard.
Meaning: You who work the mountain paddy, even if the ears have not yet come out, at least stretch a rope around it, so people will know it is guarded.
Commentary: Book Ten Autumn Miscellaneous Poems 2219

Headnote: "On the Paddy Fields"
This poem calls on someone working a mountain paddy to stretch a rope around it, even before the ears come out, to show it is guarded. Its headnote is "On the Paddy Fields." On the surface it is a poem of farm work, but it is often read as an allegory urging one to mark a still-young girl as one's own early on. Like 2114, where someone staked a claim on bush clover, it uses the device of marking ownership.

The first line, "ashihiki no," is a pillow word attached to "mountain."
The second line, "you who work the mountain paddy," names the one addressed.
In the third line, "hidezu tomo," "hizu" means for ears to come out and "tomo" marks a concessive supposition; the line is hypermetric.
In the fourth line, "nawa dani haeyo," "dani" means at least and "haeyo" is an imperative.
In the last line, "moru to shiru gane," "gane" is a particle of purpose: so that people know it is guarded.
Source: Manyoshu
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