Okitsu nami takaku tatsu hi ni aeriki to miyako no hito wa kikitekemu kamo

沖つ波高く立つ日にあへりきと
都の人は聞きてけむかも

Roma-ji: Okitsu nami takaku tatsu hi ni aeriki to miyako no hito wa kikitekemu kamo
English Translation: That on the day
the offshore waves rose high
we met with danger,
the people in the capital,
have they heard of it by now
Meaning: Have the people in the capital heard by now that we met with the day when the waves of the open sea rose high?
Commentary: Book Fifteen Poems of the Envoys to Silla 3675

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Seven poems composed while anchored at Hikitsu Lodge"
He wonders whether the people in the capital have heard by now that the embassy met with the day when the waves rose high. It is thought to refer to the ordeal of drifting after meeting contrary winds in the sea off Saba, and one senses his worry that the news may have reached his family and caused them anxiety. It expresses an awareness of distance: only rumor and news link the faraway capital and the place of travel.
The author, Mibu no Udamaro, was an official who served as senior secretary (daihangan) of the embassy to Silla; he is also written Mibu no Omi Udamaro. A left note reads "the above two poems are by the senior secretary," assigning the first two poems at Hikitsu Lodge to him.
According to the headnote, this is one of seven poems composed while anchored at Hikitsu Lodge. Hikitsu was a harbor in Shima District, Chikuzen Province, thought to be near Hikitsu Bay in Shima, present-day Itoshima, Fukuoka Prefecture.

First line, "okitsu nami": the waves of the offing, the rough waves of the open sea.
Second line, "takaku tatsu hi ni": on the day the waves rose high, thought to refer to the ordeal in the sea off Saba.
Third line, "aeriki to": "au" means to meet with, "ri" is continuative and "ki" past: that we met with it.
Fourth line, "miyako no hito wa": the people in the capital, especially their families.
Fifth line, "kikitekemu kamo": "te" is perfective, "kemu" past conjecture, and "kamo" an exclamation with a question: have they heard by now, the poem ends.
Author: Mibu no Udamaro
Source: Manyoshu
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