磯城島の大和の国は言霊の
助くる国ぞま幸くありこそ
助くる国ぞま幸くありこそ
- Roma-ji
-
Shikishima no yamato no kuni wa kotodama no tasukuru kuni zo masakiku ari koso
- English Translation
-
Shikishima’s land,
this country of Yamato,
is a land where words’
own spirit lends its aid:
may you fare well and safe
- Meaning
- This land of Yamato is a land where the spirit dwelling in words gives its help. May you be safe and well.
- Commentary
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Book Thirteen Love Poems 3254
Headnote: "Envoy"
This is the envoy to the chōka (3253), which is said to come from the Kakinomoto no Ason Hitomaro Collection. Because Yamato is a land where the spirit of words gives aid, she trusts that if the prayer is spoken aloud, the traveler will come through unharmed. The chōka says that even in a land where, by the gods’ will, people do not voice their wishes aloud, “I will speak out,” deliberately praying in words for the other’s safety. Some read it as a poem of farewell for an envoy to Tang China; together with Yamanoue no Okura’s farewell poem (Book Five, 894) and its “land where the spirit of words brings blessing,” it is one of the chief poems to preserve the word “kotodama.”
The poet is unknown. The headnote of the chōka says “a poem from the Kakinomoto no Ason Hitomaro Collection,” so it is drawn from the collection said to have been compiled by Hitomaro, but whether it is his own work or someone else’s poem he recorded is not settled.
The first line, “Shikishima no,” is a pillow word for Yamato; it shares its first line with 3249 of this book, and the second line nearly overlaps as well.
The second line, “Yamato no kuni wa,” refers to the land, with the topic particle “wa” setting up a statement about its nature.
In the third line, “kotodama” is the spiritual power believed to dwell in words, reflecting the faith that what is spoken aloud comes to pass.
The fourth line, “tasukuru kuni zo,” means “it is a land where that spirit helps,” asserted strongly with “zo”; the poem breaks here.
In the closing line, “ma” is an honorific prefix and “koso” a particle of wish: “may you be safe”—the poem ends in prayer.
- Source
- Manyoshu
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