As the welcome rain from heaven,
All the nation did await thee.
Thou hast chosen—why we know not—
By the hill of lone Mayumi
There to raise the massy pillars,
There to build a lofty palace,
But at morn thy voice is heard not;
Months and days have passed in silence,
Till thy servants, sad and weary,
Have departed, none knows whither."
The next specimen is also by Hitomaro. It is an elegy on a lady of the court.
"In her face were the tints of the autumn woods,
Buxom was her form as the graceful bamboo.
Unknown to us are her thoughts of the future;
We hoped for her a cable-long life,
Not transitory like the dew which falls at morn
And vanishes before evening,
Or the mist which rises at even
And is dispersed in the morning.
Even we, who knew her by report—
We, who had seen her but by glimpses,
Are filled with deep regret.
What then must be the sorrow
Of her youthful spouse
Who shared her couch—
Their white arms interlaced for pillows?
Desolate indeed must be his thoughts as he lies down,
Despairing must be his longings for her.
Ah me! she who has passed away from us
By so untimely a fate,
Did indeed resemble the morning dews
Or the mists of evening."
The following illustrates the Japanese poet's use of parallelism. It is dated A.D. 744.
"By the Palace of Futagi,
Where our great king
And divine lord
Holds high rule,
