Tachite ite sube no tadoki mo ima wa nashi imo ni awazute tsuki no henureba

立ちて居てすべのたどきも今はなし
妹に逢はずて月の経ぬれば

Roma-ji: Tachite ite sube no tadoki mo ima wa nashi imo ni awazute tsuki no henureba
English Translation: Standing or sitting,
I can find no way at all,
no means left to me now,
for without meeting my love
the months have slipped away
Meaning: Standing or sitting, I have no idea what to do now, for the months have passed without my meeting her.
Commentary: Book Twelve Expressing Thoughts Directly 2881

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Expressing Thoughts Directly"
The poem sings of a restless heart at a loss, unable to settle whether standing or sitting, as the months pass without meeting. A variant text gives the last two lines as "kimi ga me mizute tsuki no henureba," making it a woman's poem.
The poet is unknown. Book Twelve, titled the second part of "Love Poems Exchanged Old and New," gathers love poems by people whose names have not come down to us, arranged by category.

Line one, "tachite ite," means "standing or sitting," showing restlessness. Poem 2887 in this book opens with the same line.
Line two, "sube no tadoki mo," means "any clue of what to do." Poem 2892 in this book uses the same expression, "sube no tadoki mo ware wa nashi."
Line three, "ima wa nashi," means "there is none now," and the poem pauses here.
Line four, "imo ni awazute," means "without meeting her."
Line five, "tsuki no henureba," means "since the months have passed."
Author: Unknown
Source: Manyoshu
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