Waga seko ga arika mo shirade netaru yo wa akatsukigata no makura sabishi mo - Shui Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

我が背子がありかも知らで寝たる夜は
暁方の枕さびしも

Roma-ji: Waga seko ga arika mo shirade netaru yo wa akatsukigata no makura sabishi mo
English Translation: On nights that I sleep
not knowing even where now
my dear husband is,
as the dawn approaches, how
lonely is my pillow then.
Meaning: On nights when I fall asleep not even knowing where my husband is, how lonely my pillow feels toward dawn.
Commentary: Book Thirteen Love Poems III 803

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Topic unknown"
The poem says that on a night one sleeps alone, not even knowing where one's husband is, the pillow at dawn is lonely. Sleeping alone while thinking of a husband whose whereabouts are unknown, it sings quietly of the loneliness on waking at dawn.

First line, "waga seko ga," means "my husband," with "seko" a woman's fond word for her husband or lover. Where the preceding poem, 802, thinks of "imo" from the man's side, this poem thinks of "seko" from the woman's side, forming a pair.
Second line, "arika mo shirade," means "not even knowing where he is," with "de" a negative conjunctive particle.
Third line, "netaru yo wa," means "on the night I slept."
Fourth line, "akatsukigata no," means "toward daybreak."
Final line, "makura sabishi mo," means "how lonely the pillow," with "mo" exclamatory. It shares the bed of solitary sleep with "waga naki toko" in the preceding poem.
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Shui Wakashu
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