Iwao sura yuki tōru beki masurao mo koi to iu koto wa nochi kuinikeri

巌すら行き通るべきますらをも
恋といふことは後悔いにけり

Roma-ji: Iwao sura yuki tōru beki masurao mo koi to iu koto wa nochi kuinikeri
English Translation: Even through bedrock
he should be able to pass,
a man of valor,
yet of the thing that is called love,
he came at last to repent
Meaning: Even a valiant man, who should be able to pass straight through solid rock, has come in the end to regret the thing called love.
Commentary: Book Eleven Love Poems Ancient and Modern I 2386

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Expressing One's Feelings Directly"
Even a brave man strong enough to push his way through solid rock comes to regret love in the end: so the poem says. By stating that even a man proud of his strength cannot prevail over love, it conveys the pain of love and how hard it is to resist.
The headnote continues from the preceding poem, "Expressing One's Feelings Directly." Poem 2376 also depicts a valiant man losing his senses to love, and the pairing of the valiant man and love recurs within this group.
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, "iwao sura": "iwao" means a great rock. The particle "sura," "even," offers an extreme example.
Second line, "yuki tōru beki": "able to pass through." The auxiliary "beshi" expresses possibility, describing a man who has such strength.
Third line, "masurao mo": "masurao" means a brave and noble man. The particle "mo" carries the sense "even such a man."
Fourth line, "koi to iu koto wa": "as for the thing called love." A line with an extra syllable, in which the particle "wa" singles out love from all other matters.
Fifth line, "nochi kuinikeri": "came to regret it afterward." "Kui" is the continuative form of "kuyu," to regret, followed by the perfective "nu" and the exclamatory "keri," expressing a lament newly realized.
Author: Kakinomoto no Hitomaro Collection
Source: Manyoshu
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