Amazakaru hina no yatsuko ni amebito shi kaku koisuraba ikeru shirushi ari

天離る鄙の奴に天人し
かく恋すらば生ける験あり

Roma-ji: Amazakaru hina no yatsuko ni amebito shi kaku koisuraba ikeru shirushi ari
English Translation: To a lowly slave
in the far, heaven-distant wilds,
if one from heaven
loves him with such a love,
then there is worth in living.
Meaning: If someone from heaven loves me so—a mere servant in the far countryside beneath the distant sky—then life is truly worth living.
Commentary: Book Eighteen 4082

Headnote: "Poems in reply by Ōtomo no Sukune Yakamochi, governor of Etchū, together with poems of his heart, three in all."
The poet says that if a heavenly person like her loves so dearly one like him, a servant in the distant countryside, then his life is worth living. Answering Lady Sakanoue's 4080, he humbles himself and exalts her, expressing his gratitude for his aunt's deep affection.
Ōtomo no Yakamochi was the son of Ōtomo no Tabito, and from 746 he served as governor of Etchū. He is believed to have played a central role in compiling the Man'yōshū, and this book has the character of a poetic diary of his years in Etchū.
The left note reads, "The above were sent up to the capital by messenger on the fourth," so they were entrusted to a messenger on the fourth day of the fourth month.

First line, "amazakaru": a pillow word for "hina," "far as heaven," echoing "ame" in "amebito" in the third line.
Second line, "hina no yatsuko ni": "hina" is the countryside far from the capital, and "yatsuko" a servant. He speaks humbly of himself in Etchū.
Third line, "amebito shi": "amebito," "a person of heaven," figures Lady Sakanoue in the capital, and "shi" is emphatic. The country "servant" and the "heavenly person" are set in contrast.
Fourth line, "kaku koisuraba": taken to mean "if you love me so"; there are various views on the grammar of "suraba."
Last line, "ikeru shirushi ari": "shirushi" means worth, "there is worth in living." To her "ware wa shinu beku," he replies that he has found reason to live, pairing death and life.
Author: Otomo no Yakamochi
Source: Manyoshu
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