Komoriku no hatsuse oguni ni tsuma shi areba ishi wa fumedomo naoshi kinikeri

隠口の泊瀬小国に妻しあれば
石は踏めどもなほし来にけり

Roma-ji: Komoriku no hatsuse oguni ni tsuma shi areba ishi wa fumedomo naoshi kinikeri
English Translation: In the hidden vale,
the little land of Hatsuse,
my wife is waiting;
though I tread the stony ways,
still, in spite of all, I came
Meaning: Because my wife lives in the little land of Hatsuse among the hills, I came all the same, though I had to tread on stones.
Commentary: Book Thirteen Dialogue Poems 3311

Headnote: "Envoy"
This is the envoy to the dialogue chōka (3310). Because his wife is in Hatsuse, he has come all the same, though the road is stony and hard. In the chōka a man who has come courting in the land of Hatsuse through snow and rain finds that the pheasant cries and the cock crows and the night has ended, and he begs her to open the door so he may come in and sleep; it has an old pattern resembling the songs of the god Yachihoko in the Kojiki. The next chōka (3312) and envoy (3313) are the woman’s answer. Poem 3317 of this book also says “though I tread on stones,” sharing the heart that visits without minding the hardship.
The poet is unknown. Book Thirteen is built mainly of anonymous chōka and their envoys, and many of its poems preserve the air of old songs and ritual verse.

The first line, “komoriku no,” is a pillow word for Hatsuse, from its terrain hidden among enclosing hills.
In the second line, “oguni” means a little land, a valley country, the prefix “o” adding affection.
In the third line, “shi” is emphatic and “areba” a realized condition: “because my wife is there.” It is hypermetric.
The fourth line, “ishi wa fumedomo,” means “though I tread on stones,” the concessive “domo” showing the hardness of the way.
In the closing line, “naoshi” means “still, nevertheless”; the perfective “nu” and exclamatory “keri” confirm that he has indeed come.
Source: Manyoshu
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