Kasumi iru fuji no yamabi ni waga kinaba izuchi mukite ka imo ga nagekamu

霞居る富士の山びに我が来なば
いづち向きてか妹が嘆かむ

Roma-ji: Kasumi iru fuji no yamabi ni waga kinaba izuchi mukite ka imo ga nagekamu
English Translation: Where the mist settles
on the foothills of Mount Fuji,
if I should come there,
in which direction will she turn,
my wife, to grieve for me?
Meaning: If I travel as far as Fuji's mist-hung foothills, which way will my wife turn when she grieves for me?
Commentary: Book Fourteen Azuma Poems 3357

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Sōmon (Love Exchanges)"
If he journeys as far as the misty foothills of Fuji, the singer wonders which direction his wife left behind will face as she grieves. Fearing that his whereabouts will be lost in the haze, he draws close to her heart.
The left note places it in Suruga. Poem 3474 of this book has almost the same second half, "izushi mukite ka imo ga nagekamu," suggesting this was a set phrase for partings.
The poet is unknown. The Azuma uta are thought to have been sung among the people of the eastern provinces, and they are marked by plain, open-hearted expression mixed with local dialect.

First line, "kasumi iru": "Iru" describes mist lingering in place. The spring haze that veils the view leads into the anxiety of the later lines.
Second line, "fuji no yamabi ni": "Yamabi" means the area around a mountain. After "Fuji's peak" in the preceding poem, the scene moves to Fuji's foothills.
Third line, "waga kinaba": "Naba" is suppositional: if I should come. He imagines the far end of his journey.
Fourth line, "izuchi mukite ka": "Izuchi" means which way, and "ka" is an interrogative binding particle, answered by "mu" in the last line.
Final line, "imo ga nagekamu": "Mu" is conjectural, completing the binding with "ka." The poem ends imagining his wife's grief.
Source: Manyoshu
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