Chōsamu no kimi ga sugata o mizu hisa ni hina ni shi sumeba are koinikeri

朝参の君が姿を見ず久に
鄙にし住めば我れ恋ひにけり

Roma-ji: Chōsamu no kimi ga sugata o mizu hisa ni hina ni shi sumeba are koinikeri
English Translation: Your form as you go
to the court in the morning
I have not seen for long,
living here in the far countryside,
how I have yearned for you.
Meaning: For so long I have not seen you on your way to court each morning, living out here in the countryside—how I have missed you.
Commentary: Book Eighteen 4121

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Two poems expressing my feelings, composed in advance for the day when, going to the capital, I shall see noble persons and meet beautiful women at a banquet."
The poet says that, living in the countryside and long unable to see his lord going to court, he has missed him. Where the preceding poem imagined meeting a beautiful woman of the capital, this one imagines the day of meeting a noble person there, expressing the longing for the capital of one who lives in the provinces.
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, "Composed by Ōtomo no Sukune Yakamochi on the same twenty-eighth of the intercalary fifth month." The text notes a variant for the first two lines, "hashiki yoshi imo ga sugata o," but as this is not part of the poem itself it has been omitted, and the main text is followed. According to the variant, it would read "the form of my beloved," and like the preceding poem it would be about meeting a lovely woman.

First line, "chōsamu no": "chōsamu" means attending court in the morning, describing a noble person who serves at the palace.
Second line, "kimi ga sugata o": the noble person of the capital. The variant reads "imo ga sugata o."
Third line, "mizu hisa ni": "for a long time without seeing," showing a long separation.
Fourth line, "hina ni shi sumeba": "hina" is the countryside far from the capital, and "shi" is emphatic, "because I live in the countryside," that is, his life in Etchū.
Last line, "are koinikeri": "ni" is perfective and "keri" exclamatory. Where "aimitsuru kamo" in the preceding poem was the joy of meeting, this sings of the longing of the time apart, and the two poems form a pair.
Author: Otomo no Yakamochi
Source: Manyoshu
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