Ashibe yuku kari no tsubasa o miru goto ni kimi ga obashishi nageya shi omōyu

葦辺行く雁の翼を見るごとに
君が帯ばしし投矢し思ほゆ

Roma-ji: Ashibe yuku kari no tsubasa o miru goto ni kimi ga obashishi nageya shi omōyu
English Translation: Wild geese passing by
over the reeds—their wings,
each time I see them,
the arrows that you bore, my love,
come back into my mind
Meaning: Every time I see the wings of the wild geese flying over the reed beds, I remember the arrows you used to carry.
Commentary: Book Thirteen Elegies 3345

Headnote: "Envoy"
This is the envoy to the chōka (3344). Each time she sees the wings of the wild geese flying over the reeds, she recalls the arrows her husband carried. The chōka is a wife’s elegy: a messenger tells her that the husband she expected home this month has died, and though she would go to find where he is, she does not know the road and can only weep. The left note says that some hold this short poem to be the work of a frontier guard’s wife, in which case the chōka should be known as hers too. The shift from geese’s wings to the feathers of arrows is a vivid visual turn.
The poet is unknown. According to the view reported in the left note, it is the work of a frontier guard’s wife, a woman who lost her husband after he went far off to defend Kyushu.

The first line, “ashibe yuku,” means “flying over the reed beds,” calling up the image of the geese.
The second line, “kari no tsubasa o,” means “the wings of the wild geese,” suggesting the feathers fitted to arrows.
The third line, “miru goto ni,” means “each time I see,” showing grief that returns again and again.
In the fourth line, “obasu” is an honorific of “obu” (to wear): “which you wore at your side,” with “shi” the attributive of the past “ki.”
In the closing line, “nageya” is said to be a throwing arrow or simply an arrow; “shi” is emphatic and “omōyu” means to come to mind unbidden, ending in thoughts of what her husband left behind.
Source: Manyoshu
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