Waga kokoda matedo kinakanu hototogisu hitori kikitsutsu tsugenu kimi kamo

我がここだ待てど来鳴かぬ霍公鳥
ひとり聞きつつ告げぬ君かも

Roma-ji: Waga kokoda matedo kinakanu hototogisu hitori kikitsutsu tsugenu kimi kamo
English Translation: So very long
I wait, yet it does not come,
the little cuckoo—
and you, hearing it alone,
you never tell me, do you?
Meaning: The cuckoo never comes to sing for me, however long I wait—and you, hearing it all by yourself, never think to tell me.
Commentary: Book Nineteen 4208

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "A poem of resentment about the cuckoo, sent to the Secretary Kume no Ason Hironawa on the twenty-second day, with a short poem"; envoy, one poem
An envoy to the long poem of resentment about the cuckoo sent to Kume no Hironawa on the twenty-second day of the fourth month, it pretends to reproach Hironawa: though the poet waits so long and the cuckoo never comes to sing for him, Hironawa hears it on his own and does not tell him. It takes up the long poem's complaint that Hironawa's house, being near the valley, must hear the cuckoo, yet he does not report it.
It is not real resentment but a playful poem expressing devotion to the cuckoo as a light grievance against a friend, revealing the close relations among provincial officials. In the next long poem and envoy, Hironawa responds.
The poet, Ōtomo no Yakamochi, was the son of the Grand Counselor Ōtomo no Tabito. From 746 he served as Governor of Etchū, living at the provincial headquarters in what is now Fushiki, Takaoka, Toyama Prefecture. He is regarded as the leading poet of the Nara period and is thought to have played a central role in compiling the Man'yōshū.

First line, "waga kokoda" (so very much, I): "kokoda" means this much, showing the depth of his waiting. It is the same opening as 4195 in this book.
Second line, "matedo kinakanu" (though I wait, it does not come to sing), uses a concessive to express dissatisfaction.
Third line, "hototogisu" (the cuckoo), places the longed-for bird in the center.
Fourth line, "hitori kikitsutsu" (hearing it all by yourself), shows Hironawa listening alone, in contrast to the poet.
Fifth line, "tsugenu kimi kamo" (you who do not tell me): "kamo" is exclamatory, closing with an affectionate reproach.
Author: Otomo no Yakamochi
Source: Manyoshu
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