Shiraki e ka ie ni ka kaeru Yuki no shima yukamu tadoki mo omoikanetsu mo

新羅へか家にか帰る壱岐の島
行かむたどきも思ひかねつも

Roma-ji: Shiraki e ka ie ni ka kaeru Yuki no shima yukamu tadoki mo omoikanetsu mo
English Translation: On to Shiragi,
or back home again,
here on Iki Isle,
which way I am to go
I cannot even think
Meaning: Shall I go on to Silla, or return home? Here on the island of Iki I cannot even think how I am to go on.
Commentary: Book Fifteen Poems of the Envoys to Silla 3696

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Two envoys"
An elegy saying that, on the island of Iki, he does not know whether to go on to Silla or return home, nor how to proceed. Faced with a companion's death, it expresses the turmoil of a heart close to losing the will to continue the journey. Echoing "yuki" (going) in Yuki, the old name of Iki, it overlays his sense of having lost the road he should take. The group of elegies mourning Yakamaro closes with this poem.
The author, Muto no Sabamaro, is abbreviated in the left note as "Mutsa" and is identified with Muto no Muraji Sabamaro. He was a member of the embassy to Silla, but nothing further is known of him.
This is one of two envoys attached to the chōka 3694 of this book, an elegy mourning Yuki no Muraji Yakamaro, who died on the island of Iki. A left note reads "the above three are elegies composed by Mutsa."

First line, "Shiraki e ka": "Shiraki" is Silla, the embassy's destination; "ka" expresses a question.
Second line, "ie ni ka kaeru": or shall I return home, a question paired with the first line. The poem breaks after the second line.
Third line, "Yuki no shima": Iki was anciently read "Yuki," its sound echoing "yuki" (going) and leading into "yukamu" in the fourth line.
Fourth line, "yukamu tadoki mo": "tadoki" is a means or clue: even the way to go.
Fifth line, "omoikanetsu mo": "kanu" means unable, "tsu" is perfective, and "mo" exclamatory: I cannot even think of it, the poem ends.
Author: Muto no Sabamaro
Source: Manyoshu
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