Ise no umi ni asobu ama tomo narinishika nami kakiwakete mirume kazukamu - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

伊勢の海に遊ぶ海人ともなりにしか
浪かき分けてみるめかづかむ

Roma-ji: Ise no umi ni asobu ama tomo narinishika nami kakiwakete mirume kazukamu
English Translation: Would that I could be
one of the divers at play
on the sea of Ise—
parting the waves I would dive
for the mirume, a glimpse of you
Meaning: I wish I could become one of the divers who play on the sea of Ise. Then I would part the waves and dive for the mirume seaweed, and so win a chance to see you.
Commentary: Book Thirteen Love Poems V 891

Headnote: "Topic unknown."
The poet wishes he could become one of the divers who play on the sea of Ise, so that he might part the waves and dive for mirume seaweed. As a diver pushes through the waves to gather seaweed, he longs to thrust aside every obstacle and win a chance to meet the one he loves.
The next poem, 892, is a reply by Ise, so the two are arranged as an exchange. Since Narihira and Ise were active in different periods, the pairing seems to be the compilers' design, matching a poem on the sea of Ise with the poet who bore that name. This poem opens Love Poems V. Where the closing poem, 993, speaks of love through the shallows of a river, this one speaks through seaweed in the sea, so the beginning and end of the book answer each other through images of water.
The poet, Ariwara no Narihira, was a son of Prince Abo, himself a son of Emperor Heizei, and rose to Provisional Middle Captain of the Right Inner Palace Guards. One of the Six Poetic Immortals and the Thirty-Six Poetic Immortals, he was taken as the hero of The Tales of Ise, and his "chihayaburu kamiyo mo kikazu tatsutagawa" is included in the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu.

The first line, "Ise no umi ni," means "on the sea of Ise," naming the place where the divers live. 908, 916 and 927 in this book also bring in the sea of Ise or its divers.
The second line, "asobu ama tomo," means "even a diver who plays," the divers seeming to play as they fish.
The third line, "narinishika," means "how I wish I could become," with "nishika" a final particle of desire. The poem pauses here.
The fourth line, "nami kakiwakete," means "parting the waves," a figure for thrusting aside the obstacles to love.
The last line, "mirume kazukamu," means "I would dive for mirume," with "mirume" joining the seaweed and "mirume," a chance to see one's love. "Mu" expresses intention.
Author: Ariwara no Narihira
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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