Inishie o omohosu rashi mo wago ōkimi yoshino no miya o arigayoi mesu

いにしへを思ほすらしも我ご大君
吉野の宮をあり通ひ見す

Roma-ji: Inishie o omohosu rashi mo wago ōkimi yoshino no miya o arigayoi mesu
English Translation: Remembering days
of long ago, it seems, is
our great Sovereign,
coming to the Yoshino palace
again and yet again to see.
Meaning: Our Sovereign seems to be recalling the days of old, coming again and again to see the palace at Yoshino.
Commentary: Book Eighteen 4099

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "A poem composed in advance for an imperial visit to the detached palace at Yoshino [with short poems]." "Envoy."
The poet says that his Sovereign seems to be recalling times of old, coming again and again to see the palace at Yoshino. It is an envoy to a long poem prepared in advance for an imperial excursion to Yoshino, praising the Emperor who visits the place frequented by sovereigns of the past.
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 headnote and left note do not name the author, but from the arrangement the poem is attributed to Yakamochi.
While in Etchū, he prepared this poem thinking of the day he would attend an imperial excursion in the capital. Yoshino was deeply loved by Emperor Tenmu and Empress Jitō and is known from Kakinomoto no Hitomaro's poems in praise of Yoshino.

First line, "inishie o": "the days of old," especially the times when past sovereigns visited Yoshino.
Second line, "omohosu rashi mo": "omohosu" is an honorific of "omou," "rashi" a grounded inference, and "mo" exclamatory. The poem pauses after the second line.
Third line, "wago ōkimi": calling the Sovereign with affection and reverence.
Fourth line, "Yoshino no miya o": the detached palace at Yoshino, thought to have stood near Miyataki in present-day Yoshino, Nara.
Last line, "arigayoi mesu": "arigayou" means to keep coming continually, and "mesu" is an honorific of "miru." In inverted order, it gives the grounds for the inference of the upper half.
Author: Otomo no Yakamochi
Source: Manyoshu
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