Miwataseba chikaki watari o tamotōri ima ka kimasu to koitsutsu zo oru

見わたせば近き渡りをた廻り
今か来ますと恋ひつつぞ居る

Roma-ji: Miwataseba chikaki watari o tamotōri ima ka kimasu to koitsutsu zo oru
English Translation: When I look across,
the crossing is close at hand,
yet I wander round,
thinking, "Now he comes, he comes,"
and I stay here, longing still
Meaning: Looking out, I see the crossing so near, yet I wander back and forth about it, longing for you, thinking that now, surely now, you will come.
Commentary: Book Eleven Love Poems Ancient and Modern I 2379

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Expressing One's Feelings Directly"
Though the crossing can be seen just over there, the beloved does not come, and the speaker paces back and forth nearby, waiting impatiently, wondering if now, now he will appear. The frustration of being unable to meet someone so near, and the restless figure of the one who waits, are drawn in concrete terms.
The headnote continues from the preceding poem, "Expressing One's Feelings Directly." Whereas the preceding poem tried to push away the one who does not come with the rhetorical "koitsutsu oramu," this poem uses the same words "kimasu," "koitsutsu," and "oru" to portray someone still waiting, and the two are arranged almost as a pair.
The author is unknown; according to the left note, the poem comes from the Kakinomoto no Hitomaro Collection. That collection is thought to contain both Hitomaro's own poems and poems by others that he recorded. Kakinomoto no Hitomaro was a court poet active in the reigns of Empress Jito and Emperor Monmu, and is counted among the Thirty-Six Immortal Poets.

First line, "miwataseba": "when I look across." The particle "ba" means "when," leading into the scene before the eyes.
Second line, "chikaki watari o": "watari" is a place for crossing a river, a ford. The particle "o" here carries the concessive sense "although it is."
Third line, "tamotōri": the continuative form of the verb "tamotōru," to walk back and forth or wander round. It expresses the restlessness of one who cannot bear to wait.
Fourth line, "ima ka kimasu to": "is he coming now?" The particle "ka" marks a question, and "kimasu" is an honorific of "ku," to come.
Fifth line, "koitsutsu zo oru": "I am here, longing." The particle "zo" is answered by "oru" in the attributive form, and "tsutsu" conveys the long time spent waiting.
Author: Kakinomoto no Hitomaro Collection
Source: Manyoshu
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