Shirayuki no furishiku yama o koeyukamu kimi o zo motona iki no o ni omou

白雪の降り敷く山を越え行かむ
君をぞもとな息の緒に思ふ

Roma-ji: Shirayuki no furishiku yama o koeyukamu kimi o zo motona iki no o ni omou
English Translation: White snow lies deep
on the mountains you will cross,
going on your way—
helplessly I think of you
with all the breath of my life
Meaning: You will cross mountains deep in fallen white snow, and helplessly I think of you with all my life.
Commentary: Book Nineteen 4281

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Three poems from a farewell banquet at the residence of Prince Hayashi on the twenty-seventh day for Tachibana no Ason Naramaro, Inspector of Tajima"
The third poem at Tachibana no Naramaro's farewell banquet, it worries over his winter journey: I think of you, who will cross mountains where white snow lies, with all my life, helplessly.
The left note says, "The Minister of the Left changed the ending, saying 'iki no o ni suru'; yet he then advised, 'Recite it as before,'" meaning that Tachibana no Moroe, present at the banquet, tried altering the last line but then said it should be recited as originally written. The text gives both endings side by side; here, following Moroe's words, the original "iki no o ni omou" is taken as the text. The left note also says, "The above poem: Junior Counselor Ōtomo no Sukune Yakamochi." The last line is hypermetric.
The poet, Ōtomo no Yakamochi, was the son of the Grand Counselor Ōtomo no Tabito. Appointed Junior Counselor in 751, he returned from Etchū to the capital at Heijō-kyō, where he took part in court banquets as an official. He is thought to have played a central role in compiling the Man'yōshū.

First line, "shirayuki no" (of white snow), evokes the harshness of the journey.
Second line, "furishiku yama o" (the mountains where it lies), refers to the mountain crossings on the road to Tajima.
Third line, "koeyukamu" (you will cross): "mu" is conjectural.
Fourth line, "kimi o zo motona" (you, helplessly): "zo" binds with the last line, and "motona" means without reason, uncontrollably.
Fifth line, "iki no o ni omou" (I think of with my life), is hypermetric; "iki no o" means life, concluding "zo" in the attributive.
Author: Otomo no Yakamochi
Source: Manyoshu
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