Yamakawa o naka ni henarite tōku tomo kokoro o chikaku omōse wagimo

山川を中にへなりて遠くとも
心を近く思ほせ我妹

Roma-ji: Yamakawa o naka ni henarite tōku tomo kokoro o chikaku omōse wagimo
English Translation: Though mountains and rivers
lie between us now
and we are far apart,
think of my heart as near,
my own dear wife
Meaning: Though mountains and rivers lie between us and we are far apart, think of my heart as near to you, my dear wife.
Commentary: Book Fifteen Exchange Poems of Nakatomi no Yakamori and Sano no Otogami no Otome 3764

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Poems exchanged between Nakatomi no Ason Yakamori and Sano no Otogami no Otome"
He calls to his wife: though separated far by mountains and rivers, she should think of his heart as near. Seeking to overcome physical distance by closeness of heart, he encourages the wife left behind. "Yamakawa o naka ni henarite" is the same expression as in 3755 of this book; the separation there lamented as allowing no peace is here countered by closeness of heart.
The author, Nakatomi no Yakamori, was a son of Nakatomi no Azumahito, from the Nakatomi clan in charge of the rites of the gods. He was exiled to Echizen Province for an offense, but was later pardoned and returned to the capital.
A left note reads "the above thirteen poems are by Nakatomi no Ason Yakamori"; the thirteen poems from 3754 to 3766 of this book were sent by Yakamori to the young woman from his place of exile. The latter half of this book contains sixty-three poems exchanged between Nakatomi no Yakamori and Sano no Otogami no Otome. According to the book's table of contents, when Yakamori took as his wife the young woman, a lady-in-waiting of the palace storehouse office, he was exiled to Echizen Province by imperial decree. The place of exile is thought to be Ajimano in Echizen, near present-day Echizen City, Fukui Prefecture.

First line, "yamakawa o": mountains and rivers.
Second line, "naka ni henarite": "henaru" means to lie between: separating us, an expression taking up the third and fourth lines of 3755 of this book.
Third line, "tōku tomo": "tomo" is a concessive conditional: even though we are far apart.
Fourth line, "kokoro o chikaku": think of my heart as near, paired with "tōku" (far) in the third line.
Fifth line, "omōse wagimo": "omohosu" is an honorific of "omou," here imperative, and "wagimo" addresses his dear wife: think so, my wife, the poem ends.
Author: Nakatomi no Yakamori
Source: Manyoshu
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