Furu yuki o koshi ni nazumite maite koshi shirushi mo aru ka toshi no hajime ni

降る雪を腰になづみて参ゐて来し
験もあるか年の初めに

Roma-ji: Furu yuki o koshi ni nazumite maite koshi shirushi mo aru ka toshi no hajime ni
English Translation: Through the falling snow,
struggling waist-deep as I came,
I made my way here—
how well worth it it has been,
at the beginning of the year
Meaning: I struggled here waist-deep through the snow, and it has been well worth it—here at the start of the new year.
Commentary: Book Nineteen 4230

Headnote: none; the left note reads, "The above poem was composed by Ōtomo no Sukune Yakamochi on the third, when we gathered and feasted at the residence of the Assistant Governor, Kura no Imiki Nawamaro"
At a banquet at the residence of the assistant governor, Kura no Nawamaro, on the third day of the first month, Yakamochi praises the host's hospitality: it was well worth struggling there through snow up to his waist. A greeting from Yakamochi as guest, it conveys the joy of a New Year's banquet following the one at his own house the day before.
By stressing the depth of the snow, it flatters the host, implying the banquet was worth braving it—a device typical of greeting poems.
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, "furu yuki o" (through the falling snow), recalls the four feet of snow of the day before.
Second line, "koshi ni nazumite" (struggling waist-deep): "nazumu" means to labor along, depicting wading through snow up to the waist.
Third line, "maite koshi" (having come to call), expresses respect to the host.
Fourth line, "shirushi mo aru ka" (it was well worth it): "shirushi" means reward or effect, and "ka" is exclamatory; the poem pauses here.
Fifth line, "toshi no hajime ni" (at the start of the year), places the time last by inversion, stressing the New Year's banquet.
Author: Otomo no Yakamochi
Source: Manyoshu
Prev Poem: Aratashiki toshi no hajime wa iyatoshi ni yuki fuminarashi tsune kaku ni mo ga
Next Poem: Nadeshiko wa aki saku mono o kimi ga ie no yuki no iwao ni sakerikeru kamo