Maishitsutsu kimi ga ohoseru nadeshiko ga hana nomi towamu kimi naranaku ni

賄しつつ君が生ほせるなでしこが
花のみ問はむ君ならなくに

Roma-ji: Maishitsutsu kimi ga ohoseru nadeshiko ga hana nomi towamu kimi naranaku ni
English Translation: Tending them with gifts
you have raised these garden pinks,
yet it's not just them,
not the flowers alone, I'd seek:
that is not the kind of friend I am
Meaning: You raised these pinks with offerings, but I am not one who would come only to see the flowers; it is you I come for.
Commentary: Book Twenty Miscellaneous Poems 4447

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "On the eleventh day of the same month, the Minister of the Left, Lord Tachibana, held a banquet at the residence of the Grand Controller of the Right, Tajihi no Kunihito; three poems."
I am not one who would come only for the pinks you raised with offerings: the minister's reply to the preceding poem. The left note says it is the Minister of the Left Tachibana no Moroe's reply. Where the host likened the pinks to him in blessing, he answers that he came not for the flowers but to see his host, showing his warmth.
The author, Tachibana no Moroe, a descendant of Emperor Bidatsu, was formerly called Prince Katsuragi and received the surname Tachibana, the clan name of his mother, Agata no Inukai no Michiyo. At this time he was Minister of the Left.

The first line, "maishitsutsu," "while giving offerings," takes up "mai wa semu" in the third line of the preceding poem.
The second line, "kimi ga ohoseru," "that you raise," refers to the host, Kunihito.
The third line, "nadeshiko ga," takes up the pinks of the preceding poem.
The fourth line, "hana nomi towamu," means "would visit only the flowers."
The closing line, "kimi naranaku ni," with naku ni, negation with a sigh: I am not such a one.
Author: Tachibana no Moroe
Source: Manyoshu
Prev Poem: Waga yado ni sakeru nadeshiko mai wa semu yume hana chiru na iya ochi ni sake
Next Poem: Ajisai no yae saku gotoku yatsuyo ni o imase waga seko mitsutsu shinowamu