Matsu naraba hiku hito kyō wa arinamashi sode no midori zo kai nakarikeru - Shui Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

松ならば引く人今日は有りなまし
袖の緑ぞかひなかりける

Roma-ji: Matsu naraba hiku hito kyō wa arinamashi sode no midori zo kai nakarikeru
English Translation: Were I but a pine,
there would surely be someone
to pull me up today;
the green upon my sleeves, though,
is green of no use at all.
Meaning: Were I a pine, someone would surely pull me up today; but the green of my sleeves, though green too, is of no avail.
Commentary: Book Sixteen Miscellaneous Spring Poems 1027

Headnote: "At the time of the New Year conferral of ranks, when people gathered at a certain place and proposed composing poems on the Day of the Rat, while he was still of the sixth rank"
The poet laments that if he were a pine, someone would pull him up today, but the green of his sixth-rank sleeves is to no avail. The headnote shows it was composed when people gathered at the time of the New Year conferral of ranks to compose Day of the Rat poems, while the poet was still of the sixth rank. Laying the green of the pine pulled on the Day of the Rat over the green robe worn by the sixth rank, he laments, through the custom of pulling young pines, that no one raises him up.
The author, written as "Yoshinobu," is Ōnakatomi no Yoshinobu. He served as chief priest of the Ise Shrine and, as one of the Five Men of the Pear Chamber, took part in compiling the Gosenshū. He is counted among the Thirty-Six Immortal Poets.

First line, "matsu naraba," means "were I a pine," with "ba" after the irrealis form expressing supposition.
Second line, "hiku hito kyō wa," means "someone to pull me today," with "hiku" layering the pulling of young pines on the Day of the Rat and raising a person to office. It shares "hiku hito" with the first lines of the next poems, 1028 and 1029, "hiku hito mo."
Third line, "arinamashi," means "there would surely be," with "na" intensive and "mashi" a counterfactual auxiliary. The poem breaks after this third line.
Fourth line, "sode no midori zo," means "the green of my sleeves," speaking of the green robe worn by officials of the sixth rank. The binding particle "zo" is resolved by "keru" in the final line.
Final line, "kai nakarikeru," means "is to no avail," with "keru" exclamatory. It contrasts the green of the "matsu," pine, in the first line with the green of the sleeves in the fourth.
Author: Onakatomi no Yoshinobu
Source: Shui Wakashu
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