Asayoi ni ne nomi shi nakeba yakitachi no togokoro mo are wa omoikanetsu mo

朝夕に音のみし泣けば焼き太刀の
利心も我れは思ひかねつも

Roma-ji: Asayoi ni ne nomi shi nakeba yakitachi no togokoro mo are wa omoikanetsu mo
English Translation: Morning and evening
since I do nothing but weep,
a mind keen and sharp
as a forged and tempered blade
I can no longer keep hold
Meaning: Weeping aloud from morning to night, I can no longer keep a mind as sharp and steady as a tempered sword.
Commentary: Book Twenty Miscellaneous Poems 4479

Headnote: "A poem by Lady Fujiwara," with a note: "She was a consort of the sovereign who ruled the realm from the Kiyomihara palace; her familiar name was Hikami no Ōtoji."
Weeping aloud morning and night, I can no longer keep a mind sharp and steady: a poem of deep grief. The note in the headnote says the author was a consort of Emperor Tenmu called Hikami no Ōtoji. The left note says it is one of four poems recited by Ōhara no Imaki. The reason for the weeping is not stated; it is read both as a lament for the dead and as a sigh of love.
The author, Fujiwara no Hikami no Iratsume, was a daughter of Fujiwara no Kamatari who became a consort of Emperor Tenmu; the headnote calls her Lady Fujiwara.

The first line, "asayoi ni," "morning and evening," shows unceasing grief.
The second line, "ne nomi shi nakeba," "because I only weep aloud," with the intensifier shi.
The third line, "yakitachi no," "like a forged blade," is a pillow word for togokoro, from its sharpness.
The fourth line, "togokoro mo are wa," uses togokoro, "a steady, keen mind."
The closing line, "omoikanetsu mo," "I cannot keep it," ends in the exclamatory mo. The next poem has the same phrase "ne nomi shi naka-," so the laments stand side by side.
Author: Fujiwara no Hikami no Iratsume
Source: Manyoshu
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