Murasaki wa ne o kamo ouru hito no ko no uraganashike o ne o oenaku ni

紫草は根をかも終ふる人の子の
うら愛しけを寝を終へなくに

Roma-ji: Murasaki wa ne o kamo ouru hito no ko no uraganashike o ne o oenaku ni
English Translation: The murasaki—
do they use its roots up all?
Someone's daughter, dear,
so dear to me in my heart,
yet our sleeping's not yet done.
Meaning: The gromwell's roots are used up in the dyeing, they say—but with someone's dear daughter, so dear to my heart, I have not yet slept my fill.
Commentary: Book Fourteen Azuma Poems 3500

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Sōmon (Love Exchanges)"
The roots of the gromwell are said to be used up as dye, yet the singer has not yet lain with the beloved girl. Within the wordplay on "ne," root and sleep, lies the longing of an unfulfilled love.
It is one of the love exchanges. The roots of the gromwell were used for purple dye, and the east was known for producing it.
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, "murasaki wa": A plant whose roots were used for purple dye.
Second line, "ne o kamo ouru": "Ne," root, puns on "ne," sleep: are the roots used up? "Kamo" asks a question.
Third line, "hito no ko no": Someone's daughter, a girl of another household.
Fourth line, "uraganashike o": "Uraganashi" means dear from the heart, with the eastern form "ke."
Final line, "ne o oenaku ni": "Ne" is sleeping together, punning with "ne" in the second line; "naku ni" is an exclamatory negative.
Source: Manyoshu
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