Ashihiki no yatsuo no tsubaki tsuratsura ni mitomo akame ya uetekeru kimi

あしひきの八つ峰の椿つらつらに
見とも飽かめや植ゑてける君

Roma-ji: Ashihiki no yatsuo no tsubaki tsuratsura ni mitomo akame ya uetekeru kimi
English Translation: On the foot-weary
hills, the eightfold peaks, camellias;
gazing on and on
could I ever tire of you,
you who planted these right here?
Meaning: Camellias of the many-peaked hills: however long I gaze, could I tire of you who planted them here?
Commentary: Book Twenty Miscellaneous Poems 4481

Headnote: "On the fourth day of the third month, a banquet at the residence of Ōhara no Imaki, senior secretary of the Ministry of Military Affairs; one poem."
However long I gaze at the camellias of the many-peaked hills, could I tire of you who planted them? A poem praising the host, Imaki. According to the headnote, it comes from a banquet at Imaki's residence on the fourth of the third month of Tenpyō Shōhō 9. The left note says Ōtomo no Yakamochi composed it on the camellias planted in the garden. Letting the tsuba of tsubaki echo in tsuratsura, it expresses affection for his host.
The author, Ōtomo no Yakamochi, son of Ōtomo no Tabito, was at this time Junior Assistant Minister of Military Affairs.

The first line, "ashihiki no," is a pillow word for "mountain," here applied to yatsuo.
The second line, "yatsuo no tsubaki," "camellias of the many peaks," refers to mountain camellias transplanted to the garden. The first two lines form a preface leading to tsuratsura ni.
The third line, "tsuratsura ni," means "intently, carefully."
The fourth line, "mitomo akame ya," uses meya as a rhetorical question: could I ever tire of them? No. The poem pauses here.
The closing line, "uetekeru kimi," ends on a noun, "you who planted them," praising the host.
Author: Otomo no Yakamochi
Source: Manyoshu
Prev Poem: Kashikoki ya ame no mikado o kaketsureba ne nomi shi nakayu asayoi ni shite
Next Poem: Horie koe tōki sato made okurikeru kimi ga kokoro wa wasurayumashiji