Tōtsuōmi inasa hosoe no miotsukushi are o tanomete asamashi mono o

遠江引佐細江のみをつくし
我れを頼めてあさましものを

Roma-ji: Tōtsuōmi inasa hosoe no miotsukushi are o tanomete asamashi mono o
English Translation: Tōtōmi's waters—
in the inlet Inasa,
the channel markers:
so you made me lean on you,
and your heart was shallow all along.
Meaning: Like the channel markers in the Inasa inlet of Tōtōmi, you let me rely on you—yet your heart was shallow after all.
Commentary: Book Fourteen Azuma Poems 3429

Headnote: "Allegorical Poems"
Like the channel markers of the Inasa inlet, the lover made her trust him, yet his heart proved shallow—so the singer resents. The markers standing in shallow channels are laid over the shallowness of what she relied on.
The section of allegorical poems begins here. The left note reads "The poem above is from Tōtōmi Province." The Inasa inlet is the northeastern arm of Lake Hamana, thought to be near present-day Hosoe in Hamamatsu.
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, "tōtsuōmi": Tōtōmi Province, opening the allegorical section with a province's name.
Second line, "inasa hosoe no": The inlet on the northeastern side of Lake Hamana.
Third line, "miotsukushi": "Miotsukushi" are stakes set up to mark a waterway; "mio" is a shallow channel. The first three lines form a preface.
Fourth line, "are o tanomete": "Tanomete" means having made me rely on you.
Final line, "asamashi mono o": "Asamashi" means shallow, playing on the shallow waters of the markers. "Mono o" is a concessive exclamation.
Source: Manyoshu
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