Nakamana ni ukioru fune no kogidenaba au koto katashi kyō ni shi arazu wa

なかまなに浮き居る船の漕ぎ出なば
逢ふことかたし今日にしあらずは

Roma-ji: Nakamana ni ukioru fune no kogidenaba au koto katashi kyō ni shi arazu wa
English Translation: At Nakamana
there is a boat afloat, waiting:
once it rows away,
hard indeed it will be to meet—
if it is not today.
Meaning: Once the boat floating at Nakamana rows away, it will be hard to meet—unless it is today.
Commentary: Book Fourteen Azuma Poems 3401

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Sōmon (Love Exchanges)"
Once the boat afloat on the river has rowed off, it will be hard to meet again, a woman says; if they are to meet, it must be today. The urgency and resolve of the moment before departure are condensed into a few words.
The left note reads "The four poems above are from Shinano Province," and this is the last of them. "Nakamana" is variously explained as a place in the Chikuma River or as the middle of the river, with no settled view.
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, "nakamana ni": "Nakamana" is thought to be a place of unknown location, or the middle of the river.
Second line, "ukioru fune no": A boat floating at rest, waiting to depart.
Third line, "kogidenaba": "Naba" is suppositional: once it has rowed off.
Fourth line, "au koto katashi": "Meeting will be hard"; the poem pauses here.
Final line, "kyō ni shi arazu wa": "Zu wa" means "unless": if not today. The inversion presses the point at the end.
Source: Manyoshu
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