Iso no ue ni tateru muro no ki nemokoro ni nani shika fukame omoisomekemu

礒の上に立てるむろの木ねもころに
何しか深め思ひそめけむ

Roma-ji: Iso no ue ni tateru muro no ki nemokoro ni nani shika fukame omoisomekemu
English Translation: Upon the rocky shore
standing there, the juniper,
with its tangled roots,
why so deeply, why so wholly
did I first begin to love?
Meaning: Like the roots of the juniper standing on the rocky shore, why did I ever begin to love so deeply and so wholeheartedly?
Commentary: Book Eleven Love Poems Ancient and Modern I 2488

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Expressing Feelings through Things"
Through the juniper that stands rooted on the rocks of the shore, the speaker wonders why he ever began to love so deeply, questioning the depth of his own love. He looks back, almost reproachfully, on a feeling from which there is now no escape.
The roots of the juniper lead into "nemokoro" (wholeheartedly), which is joined with "fukame" (deeply) to express the depth of love. Poem 2486 in this book likewise has "ne fukamete" (deep-rooted), and its variant reads "nemokoro ni," so poems that speak of love's depth through roots follow one another.
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, "iso no ue ni": "upon the rocks of the shore," opening with a scene of seaside rocks exposed to wind and rain.
Second line, "tateru muro no ki": "the muro tree standing there." The muro is an evergreen growing by the sea, thought to be the needle juniper. The opening through this line forms a preface that, through the image of a tree with spreading roots, leads into "nemokoro ni" in the third line.
Third line, "nemokoro ni": "wholeheartedly, with all one's heart." The word evokes roots finely intertwined, so its link with the preface is natural.
Fourth line, "nani shika fukame": "why so deeply." The "ka" in "nani shika" is an interrogative binding particle, linked to "kemu" in the fifth line.
Fifth line, "omoisomekemu": "did I begin to love?" The past conjectural auxiliary "kemu," in its attributive form, answers the "ka" of the fourth line, conveying wonder at how this love began.
Author: Kakinomoto no Hitomaro Collection
Source: Manyoshu
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