Nara no ha no hamori no kami no mashikeru o shirade zo orishi tatari nasaru na - Gosen Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

楢の葉の葉守の神のましけるを
知らでぞ折りし祟りなさるな

Roma-ji: Nara no ha no hamori no kami no mashikeru o shirade zo orishi tatari nasaru na
English Translation: That on the oak leaves
dwelt a god to guard the leaves,
I did not know—
so I broke them; do not, please,
bring down your curse on me
Meaning: I never knew that a god dwelt there to guard the oak leaves, and so I broke them off—please, do not lay a curse on me.
Commentary: Book Sixteen Miscellaneous Poems II 1183

Headnote: "Reply."
The poet says that he broke off the oak leaves without knowing that a god dwelt there to guard them, and begs not to be cursed. In answer to her rebuke, he honors her by treating her as the god who guards the oak leaves, making a playful apology for his unknowing discourtesy.
It is Nakahira's reply to Toshiko's poem before it.
The poet, "the Biwa Minister of the Left," is Fujiwara no Nakahira. The second son of Fujiwara no Mototsune, he rose to Minister of the Left and was so called because he lived at the Biwa mansion.

The first line, "Nara no ha no," means "of the oak leaves," taking up the third line of the preceding poem.
The second line, "hamori no kami no," means "the god that guards the leaves," a deity thought to dwell in oaks and similar trees. He treats her as this god.
The third line, "mashikeru o," means "that he dwelt there," with "mashi" the continuative of "masu," honorific for "to be."
The fourth line, "shirade zo orishi," means "I broke them unknowing," with "zo" an emphatic binding particle closed by the attributive "shi." The poem pauses here.
The last line, "tatari nasaru na," means "do not lay a curse," with "na" a prohibition.
Author: Fujiwara no Nakahira
Source: Gosen Wakashu
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