Omowanu ni itaraba imo ga ureshimi to emamu mayobiki omōyuru kamo

思はぬに至らば妹が嬉しみと
笑まむ眉引き思ほゆるかも

Roma-ji: Omowanu ni itaraba imo ga ureshimi to emamu mayobiki omōyuru kamo
English Translation: Should I come to her
unlooked for, my love would be
glad, and break in smiles:
the arch of her painted brows
rises up before my eyes
Meaning: If I should arrive unexpected, my wife would be glad and smile: I can picture the line of her brows as she does.
Commentary: Book Eleven Love Poems Ancient and Modern I 2546

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Expressing One's Feelings Directly"
If he arrived unexpectedly, his wife would be delighted and smile, and he can already see the line of her brows: this is a man's love poem. Focusing on her brows, he pictures his wife's face lit with joy at a surprise visit, and cheerfully conveys his wish to see her soon.
Poem 2526 in this book reads "If I reach her who must be waiting, my love will be glad and smile; I will go and quickly see her," sharing with this poem everything from the second line to the start of the fourth. A poem of going to a waiting wife and a poem of calling on her unexpectedly form a pair, both picturing the wife's smile.
The author is unknown. The anonymous poems of Book Eleven gather love poems by people whose names have not come down to us.

First line, "omowanu ni": "when she does not expect it," referring to a visit she has not anticipated. It contrasts with the first line of poem 2526, "matsuramu ni," "while she must be waiting."
Second line, "itaraba imo ga": "if I arrive, my love." "Ba" after the irrealis forms a hypothetical condition.
Third line, "ureshimi to": "feeling glad." It is the stem of an adjective with "mi," expressing her joy.
Fourth line, "emamu mayobiki": "the brows with which she would smile." "Mu" is the attributive of the conjectural auxiliary, and "mayobiki" means eyebrows drawn with brow ink.
Fifth line, "omōyuru kamo": "they rise in my mind." "Omōyu" means to come to mind naturally, followed by the exclamatory "kamo."
Source: Manyoshu
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