Kyō yori wa ama no kawara wa asenanan sokoi to mo naku tada watarinan - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

今日よりは天の河原はあせななん
そこひともなくただ渡りなん

Roma-ji: Kyō yori wa ama no kawara wa asenanan sokoi to mo naku tada watarinan
English Translation: From this day onward,
O riverbed of Heaven,
grow shallow, I pray—
with no depth there left at all,
I would simply wade across
Meaning: From today, let the riverbed of Heaven grow shallow—so that, with no depth left at all, I may simply wade across.
Commentary: Book Five Autumn Poems I 241

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Composed on Tanabata."
The poet wishes that from today the riverbed of Heaven would grow shallow, so that with no depth left he could simply wade across. It expresses the Herdsman's wish to go to his love whenever he likes, without waiting for the once-yearly crossing by boat.
From 239 to 247, nine Tanabata poems stand under the headnote "Composed on Tanabata," taking up from many angles the meeting of the Weaver Maid and the Herdsman across the River of Heaven.
The poet, Ki no Tomonori, was a son of Ki no Aritomo and a cousin of Ki no Tsurayuki. He was one of the compilers of the Kokin Wakashū but died before its completion. He is counted among the Thirty-Six Immortal Poets, and his "hisakata no hikari nodokeki haru no hi ni" is included in the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu.

The first line, "Kyō yori wa," means "from today," wishing for what is to come from the day of Tanabata on.
The second line, "ama no kawara wa," means "the riverbed of Heaven."
In the third line, "ase" is the continuative form of "asu," to grow shallow; "na" is the irrealis form of the completive "nu"; and "nan" is a particle of wish directed at another: "may it grow shallow." The poem pauses here.
The fourth line, "sokoi to mo naku," means "with no bottom at all," showing that there is no depth whatever.
In the last line, "nan" is the irrealis "na" of the completive "nu" with "mu" of intent: "I will simply wade across." The sound "nan" in the third line is echoed in the last. 243 of this book, with "tada watarikinu," sings of the crossing already made.
Author: Ki no Tomonori
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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