Hisakata no ama tobu kumo no kaze o itami ware wa shika omou imo ni shi awaneba

久方の天飛ぶ雲の風をいたみ
我はしか思ふ妹にし逢はねば

Roma-ji: Hisakata no ama tobu kumo no kaze o itami ware wa shika omou imo ni shi awaneba
English Translation: As the clouds that fly
across the far-reaching heavens
torn by the fierce wind,
so too am I distraught,
for I cannot meet my love.
Meaning: As the clouds flying across the heavens are torn by the fierce wind, so too am I in turmoil, for I cannot meet my beloved.
Commentary: Love Poems 432

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Among poems on love"
As clouds flying across the sky are torn apart by fierce winds, so the poet is distraught because he cannot meet his beloved. With Man'yōshū words such as imo and shika, the poem has a plain, archaic tone.

Line 1, hisakata no, is a pillow word for "heaven."
Line 2 means "the clouds flying in the sky," continuing the clouds of the preceding poem.
Line 3 means "since the wind is fierce," o ... mi expressing cause.
Line 4 means "so do I brood," shika pointing back to the clouds.
Line 5 means "since I do not meet my love," shi being intensive; the reason is placed last by inversion.
Author: Minamoto no Sanetomo
Source: Kinkaishu
Prev Poem: Ama no hara kaze ni ukitaru ukigumo no yukue sadamenu koi mo suru kana
Next Poem: Hisakata no ama no kawara ni sumu tazu mo kokoro ni aranu ne o ya nakuramu