荒津の海我れ幣奉り斎ひてむ
早帰りませ面変りせず
早帰りませ面変りせず
- Roma-ji
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Aratsu no umi ware nusa matsuri iwaitemu haya kaerimase omogawari sezu
- English Translation
-
To Aratsu's sea
I will make my offerings
and pray in purity;
come back to me soon, my love,
your face unchanged by time
- Meaning
- I will make offerings to the sea at Aratsu and pray in purity for you; come home soon, without your face having changed.
- Commentary
-
Book Twelve Dialogue Poems 3217
Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Dialogue Poems"
A woman calls to her departing lover that she will make offerings to the sea at Aratsu and pray for his safety, asking him to return soon without his face having changed. With the man's reply in the next poem, it forms a question-and-answer pair.
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, "Aratsu no umi," means "to the sea at Aratsu," read "Aratsu no umi" in the kana line, a hypermetric line of six syllables.
Line two, "ware nusa matsuri," means "I will make offerings."
Line three, "iwaitemu," means "and pray in purity," and the poem pauses here. Poem 2975 in this book also has "iwaite matedo."
Line four, "haya kaerimase," means "come back soon," and the poem pauses again.
Line five, "omogawari sezu," means "without your face changing," wishing that he return safely without being worn down by the journey.
- Author
- Unknown
- Source
- Manyoshu
- Prev Poem
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Kusamakura tabi yuku kimi o Aratsu made okuri zo kinuru akitarane koso
- Next Poem
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Asana sana Tsukushi no kata o idemitsutsu ne nomi zo aga naku ita mo subenami