Tanome to ya ina to ya ika ni inafune no shibashi to machishi hodo mo henikeri - Senzai Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

頼めとや否とやいかにいな舟の
しばしと待ちしほども経にけり

Roma-ji: Tanome to ya ina to ya ika ni inafune no shibashi to machishi hodo mo henikeri
English Translation: "Trust in me," or "No"?
Which is it, then? Like the "no"
of the rice-laden boat,
"wait a little while," you said,
and that while has come and gone
Meaning: Is it "trust me," or is it "no"? Which do you mean? Like the rice boat of the old song that says "not no," you told me to wait a little while, and now even that while has passed.
Commentary: Book Eleven Love Poems I 682

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Topic unknown"
Do you mean "trust me," or "no," he asks; which is it? Like the rice boat, you said "for a little while," and that time too has passed. Drawing on the Kokinshū Eastern Song "Mogamigawa noboreba kudaru inafune no ina ni wa arazu kono tsuki bakari" and repeating the sound "ina," he presses the one who keeps him waiting without a clear answer to say which it is.
The author, "Fujiwara no Nobunori," was the son of Fujiwara no Tametoki, Governor of Echizen, and a brother of Murasaki Shikibu. He served as Chamberlain and as Secretary of the Ministry of Ceremonial.
Following the preceding poem, 679, which waits for a cold heart to change, this poem too sings of a heart weary of waiting for an answer.

First line, "tanome to ya": "tanome" means "rely on me," and "ya" is interrogative, "do you mean 'trust me'?"
Second line, "ina to ya ika ni": "ina" means refusal, "or do you mean 'no'? Which is it?" The poem pauses here.
Third line, "inafune no": "inafune" is a boat laden with rice, repeating the sound of "ina," "no," in the second line. Drawing on the Kokinshū Eastern Song, it leads to "shibashi" in the fourth line.
Fourth line, "shibashi to machishi": "having waited when told 'a little while.'" Taking up "kono tsuki bakari," "only this month," of the old poem, it suggests the words "wait a while."
Fifth line, "hodo mo henikeri": "hodo" is a span of time, "ni" perfective, and "keri" expresses realization, "even that while has passed."
Author: Fujiwara no Nobunori
Source: Senzai Wakashu
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