Morotomo ni okiiru tsuyu no nakariseba tare to ka aki no yo o akasamashi - Shika Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

もろともにおきゐる露のなかりせば
誰とか秋の夜を明かさまし

Roma-ji: Morotomo ni okiiru tsuyu no nakariseba tare to ka aki no yo o akasamashi
English Translation: Were it not for dew
that lies awake together
with me through the night,
with whom then could I pass
this long autumn night till dawn
Meaning: If it were not for the dew that lies awake with me, with whom could I pass this autumn night until dawn?
Commentary: Book Eight Love Poems II 246

A woman who cannot sleep through an autumn night, waiting for a lover who does not come, takes only the dew on the grass as her companion until dawn. Playing on "okiiru" as both dew settling and lying awake, the poem conveys the loneliness of having only dew, which also suggests tears on her sleeves, for company.

The first line, "morotomo ni" (together), casts the dew as her companion.
The second line, "okiiru tsuyu no," is a pivot word joining dew that has settled and a person who stays awake. Poem 261 of this book uses the same pivot word in "okiireba."
The third line, "nakariseba," sets a counterfactual condition with "se," the irrealis of the past "ki," and "ba."
The fourth line, "tare to ka aki no," poses a question with "ka."
The final line, "yo o akasamashi," uses the counterfactual "mashi," answering "seba" in the third line and closing "ka" in the attributive, lamenting with whom she could pass the night.
Author: Akazome Emon
Source: Shika Wakashu
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