Tomoshibi no hikari ni miyuru sayuribana yuri mo awamu to omoi someteki

灯火の光りに見ゆるさ百合花
ゆりも逢はむと思ひそめてき

Roma-ji: Tomoshibi no hikari ni miyuru sayuribana yuri mo awamu to omoi someteki
English Translation: Seen in the soft glow
of the burning lamplight there,
the lily blossoms—
"later, too, let us meet again,"
so my heart began to think.
Meaning: Like the lilies glowing in the lamplight, whose name means "later," I have come to hope that we will meet again hereafter.
Commentary: Book Eighteen 4087

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "On the ninth of the same month, the officials gathered for a banquet at the residence of the junior clerk Hata no Imiki Iwatake. The host made three garlands of lilies, piled them on a stemmed dish, and presented them to the guests. Each composed a poem on the garland; three poems."
The poet says that, like the name of the lilies glowing in the lamplight, he has begun to hope that they will meet again hereafter. Using the lily garland as his occasion, he expresses the joy of the day's banquet and his wish to continue their friendship, showing affection for the host and the company.
Kura no Nawamaro was the vice-governor (suke) of Etchū province, serving as Yakamochi's deputy.
The left note reads, "The poem above is by the vice-governor, Kura no Imiki Nawamaro." In the next poem, 4088, Yakamochi responds by taking up this poem's third and fourth lines.

First line, "tomoshibi no": a rewording of "aburahi no" in the preceding poem, singing of the lamps of the same night banquet.
Second line, "hikari ni miyuru": exactly the same as the second line of the preceding poem, making the two a pair.
Third line, "sayuribana": the lines so far form a preface, leading through the sound "yuri" to "yuri" in the fourth line.
Fourth line, "yuri mo awamu to": "yuri" means "later." Playing on the name of the lily, it expresses the wish to meet again hereafter. The next poem, 4088, answers using the same "sayuribana yuri mo awamu to."
Last line, "omoi someteki": "somu" means "to begin to," and "ki" is the past auxiliary: "I have begun to think so," confirming a feeling newly born in the heart.
Author: Kura no Tadamaro
Source: Manyoshu
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