Aritsutsu mo meshitamawamu zo ōtono no kono motōri no yuki na fumisone

ありつつも見したまはむぞ大殿の
この廻りの雪な踏みそね

Roma-ji: Aritsutsu mo meshitamawamu zo ōtono no kono motōri no yuki na fumisone
English Translation: Remaining just so,
he will gaze upon it long—
round the great hall,
here, all around this place,
please do not tread the snow
Meaning: He will go on gazing at it just as it is—so please do not tread on the snow around this great hall.
Commentary: Book Nineteen 4228

Headnote: "Envoy, one poem"
The poem asks people not to tread on the snow around the palace, since the master will go on gazing at it like this. The preceding poem, 4227, is in an irregular long-poem form; this is its envoy, using the preceding poem's "do not tread on the snow around this great hall" as its lower verse.
The left note says, "The above two poems were composed and recited by Mikata no Sami upon the words of the late Minister of the Left Fujiwara of the Northern House. The one who heard and transmitted them was Kasa no Ason Kogimi, and the one who later recited them was Kume no Ason Hironawa, Secretary of Etchū." It shows that an old poem composed by Mikata no Sami upon words of Fujiwara no Fusasaki of the Northern House reached Etchū through Kasa no Kogimi and Hironawa.
The poet, Mikata no Sami, was a monk of whom little is known; he is thought to have been close in service to Fujiwara no Fusasaki.

First line, "aritsutsu mo" (remaining just so), expresses the wish that the snowy scene endure.
Second line, "meshitamawamu zo" (he will surely gaze upon it): "mesu" is honorific for "see" and "zo" emphatic; the poem pauses here.
Third line, "ōtono no" (of the great hall), names the master's palace, the same word as the first line of the preceding poem.
Fourth line, "kono motōri no" (around this place): "motōri" means the surroundings, the same phrase as the preceding poem's second line.
Fifth line, "yuki na fumisone" (please do not tread the snow): "na ... sone" is a softened prohibition, repeating the preceding poem's third line.
Author: Mikata no Sami
Source: Manyoshu
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