Ima wa wa wa shinamu yo waga se koi sureba hitoyo hitohi mo yasukeku mo nashi

今は我は死なむよ我が背恋すれば
一夜一日も安けくもなし

Roma-ji: Ima wa wa wa shinamu yo waga se koi sureba hitoyo hitohi mo yasukeku mo nashi
English Translation: Now I shall die,
I tell you, my dear lord;
while I am in love,
not for one night or one day
is there any peace for me
Meaning: Now I may as well die, my love; while I am in love, there is not a single night or day of peace for me.
Commentary: Book Twelve Expressing Thoughts Directly 2936

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Expressing Thoughts Directly"
A woman, unable to rest a single night or day for love's pain, calls to her lover that she might as well die. Its first two lines nearly match poem 2869 in this book, making the two a pair with the roles of man and woman exchanged.
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, "ima wa wa wa," means "now, I," the same opening as poem 2869 in this book.
Line two, "shinamu yo waga se," means "I shall die, my love"; replacing "wagimo" of 2869 with "waga se," it becomes a woman's poem. The poem pauses here.
Line three, "koi sureba," means "while I am in love."
Line four, "hitoyo hitohi mo," means "not one night or one day," pairing night and day to express unbroken suffering.
Line five, "yasukeku mo nashi," means "there is no peace," the same final line as 2869.
Author: Unknown
Source: Manyoshu
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