Kusamakura tabi yuku kimi o sakiku are to iwaibe suetsu aga toko no he ni

草枕旅行く君を幸くあれと
斎瓮据ゑつ我が床の辺に

Roma-ji: Kusamakura tabi yuku kimi o sakiku are to iwaibe suetsu aga toko no he ni
English Translation: Grass for a pillow,
as you set out on your way,
that you fare safely
I have set the sacred jar
beside the place where I sleep
Meaning: Praying that you who set out on your journey may come to no harm, I have placed a sacred jar beside my bed.
Commentary: Book Seventeen 3927

Headnote: "Ōtomo no Sukune Yakamochi was appointed Governor of Etchū in the intercalary seventh month of the eighteenth year of Tenpyō and set out for his post in the seventh month. At that time his aunt, Lady Sakanoue of the Ōtomo, sent him two poems"
Praying that he may travel safely, the poet has set a sacred jar beside her bed—a poem wishing Yakamochi a safe journey. This is one of two poems that Lady Sakanoue, Yakamochi's aunt and mother-in-law, sent him in 746 as he set off for his new post as Governor of Etchū. Setting out a sacred jar to worship the gods was an old custom for praying for a traveler's safety, and the poem is filled with deep affection for her nephew bound for distant Etchū.
The poet, Lady Ōtomo no Sakanoue, was a daughter of Ōtomo no Yasumaro and half-sister of Tabito. She was Yakamochi's aunt and, since her daughter Sakanoue no Ōiratsume became his wife, also his mother-in-law.

First line, "kusamakura": "grass for a pillow," a pillow word for journeys.
Second line, "tabi yuku kimi o": "you who set out on a journey," meaning Yakamochi bound for his post in Etchū.
Third line, "sakiku are to": sakiku means safe and sound—"may you be well," quoting the words of prayer.
Fourth line, "iwaibe suetsu": iwaibe is a sacred jar used in worship; tsu is perfective—"I have set it in place." The poem pauses here.
Fifth line, "aga toko no he ni": "beside my bed," giving afterward, by inversion, where the jar was set. Poem 3930, which closes the next pair, also prays to the gods of the land for Yakamochi's protection, so the four poems she sent begin and end with prayer.
Author: Lady Ōtomo no Sakanoue
Source: Manyoshu
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