Natsu no yo wa michi tazutazushi fune ni nori kawa no se goto ni sao sashi nobore

夏の夜は道たづたづし船に乗り
川の瀬ごとに棹さし上れ

Roma-ji: Natsu no yo wa michi tazutazushi fune ni nori kawa no se goto ni sao sashi nobore
English Translation: On a summer night
the road is dim and doubtful—
board the boat, and up
at every shallow of the stream
punt your pole and climb the river.
Meaning: On a summer night the road is uncertain; get into the boat and push upstream, setting your pole at every shallow of the river.
Commentary: Book Eighteen 4062

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Seven poems from the time when the Retired Sovereign resided at the Naniwa Palace [this is Empress Kiyotarashihime]."
The poem says that since the road is uncertain on a summer night, one should board the boat and push upstream, setting the pole at every shallow. The banquet seems to have lasted into the night, and the poem advises returning by boat rather than overland; like the preceding poem, it shows concern that the royal boat proceed safely.
The author is not recorded. The left note reads, "The poems above were composed on the day the royal boat was hauled by towropes up the canal for a banquet. The one who recited them is Tanabe no Fubito Sakimaro," showing that Sakimaro passed the poem on.

First line, "natsu no yo wa": singling out the summer night, it shows that the banquet continued until night.
Second line, "michi tazutazushi": "tazutazushi" means uncertain or unsteady, expressing unease on a dark road. The poem pauses after the second line.
Third line, "fune ni nori": against the uncertainty of the road, it recommends returning by boat.
Fourth line, "kawa no se goto ni": taking up "kawa no se mōse" from the preceding poem, it repeats the same "kawa no se." Answering the order to report the shallows, it specifies setting the pole at each one.
Last line, "sao sashi nobore": it ends with an imperative. Echoing "mifune sasu" in the preceding poem, the two poems are bound together by the scene of the royal boat going up the Horie.
Source: Manyoshu
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