Uedake no moto sae toyomi idete inaba izushi mukite ka imo ga nagekamu

植ゑ竹の本さへ響み出でて去なば
いづし向きてか妹が嘆かむ

Roma-ji: Uedake no moto sae toyomi idete inaba izushi mukite ka imo ga nagekamu
English Translation: The planted bamboo
shaken even to its roots,
if I should set out,
in which direction will she turn,
my wife, to grieve for me?
Meaning: If I set off amid such a stir that even the roots of the planted bamboo shake, which way will my wife turn when she grieves for me?
Commentary: Book Fourteen Azuma Poems 3474

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Sōmon (Love Exchanges)"
If he departs amid such commotion that even the roots of the planted bamboo shake, which way will his wife left behind face as she grieves? The bustle of setting out overlaps with his tender concern for her.
It is one of the love exchanges. Its second half is almost the same as 3357 from Suruga, "izuchi mukite ka imo ga nagekamu," and seems to have been a set phrase for partings. Some take it as a frontier guard's departure poem.
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, "uedake no": Planted bamboo, thought to grow around the house.
Second line, "moto sae toyomi": "Toyomi" means ringing and shaking, the bustle of departure.
Third line, "idete inaba": "If I go out and leave," a hypermetric line.
Fourth line, "izushi mukite ka": "Izushi" is an eastern form of "izuchi," which direction—the same form as in 3357.
Final line, "imo ga nagekamu": "Mu" completes the binding with "ka," ending with the image of his wife's grief.
Source: Manyoshu
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