Takubusuma Shiraki e imasu kimi ga me o kyō ka asu ka to iwaite matamu

栲衾新羅へいます君が目を
今日か明日かと斎ひて待たむ

Roma-ji: Takubusuma Shiraki e imasu kimi ga me o kyō ka asu ka to iwaite matamu
English Translation: White as hempen quilts
you go off to Shiragi;
to meet your eyes
I shall wait, keeping pure in prayer,
thinking today, or tomorrow
Meaning: You are going away to Silla; for the day I meet your eyes again, I shall wait, keeping myself pure in prayer, thinking it may be today, or tomorrow.
Commentary: Book Fifteen Poems of the Envoys to Silla 3587

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "The envoys sent to Silla grieve at parting and exchange poems, express their sorrowful feelings on the sea route, and recite old poems suited to the places they pass"
The wife resolves to wait, keeping herself pure in prayer, for the return of her husband as he departs for Silla, thinking it may be today or tomorrow. Here the wife herself takes up and vows the "iwai" on which her husband relied in 3583. With the urgent phrase "today, or tomorrow," she anticipates the long days of waiting for his return.
The first half of this book gathers the poems of the embassy sent to Silla in the eighth year of Tenpyō (736), arranged in the order of the journey from the departure at Naniwa to the return. A left note reads "the above eleven poems are an exchange," and these opening eleven poems are the parting exchanges between the envoys and their wives before departure. None of the authors is named.

First line, "takubusuma": a white bedcover woven from paper-mulberry fiber; through the sound of "shira" (white) it is a pillow word for "Shiraki" (Silla).
Second line, "Shiraki e imasu": Silla was anciently read "Shiraki"; "imasu" is an honorific for "go."
Third line, "kimi ga me o": "me" (eyes) means the person's presence, meeting: the day I see you.
Fourth line, "kyō ka asu ka to": the longing of one who waits, wondering whether he will return today or tomorrow.
Fifth line, "iwaite matamu": "iwau" is to purify oneself and pray for safety; the poem ends with her resolve to wait while praying for his safety.
Source: Manyoshu
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