A poem composed on the occasion of an Imperial Visit to the hot springs of Kii province.
莫囂圓隣之大相七兄爪謁氣 吾瀬子之 射立為兼 五可新何本
莫囂円隣之大相七兄爪謁気我が背子がい立たせりけむ厳橿が本
| sidumarisi uranami sawaku wa ga seko ga itataserikemu itu kasi ga moto | Quietened Have the rowdy breakers in the bay; My dear one Stood, no doubt, At the foot of the sacred oak! |
Princess Nukata
額田王
http://manyousyuu.blogspot.com/2009/01/blog-post.html
There’s actually more theoretical speculations about the first two lines of the poem!
“Shizumarishi uranami sawaku” is theorized by Hisataka Omodaka.
Maybe, the first two lines are not meant to be translated. It is possible this can be translated with them left out. You can try if you like.
Yes – as I mention in the note to the translation, there are a number of different interpretations of the initial lines, of which this is only one.
Dr. McAuley, do you want a mention on the Wikipedia page https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Nukata for your interpretation? Already had the 静まりし浦波さわく line added. Thanks!
By all means, if you like!
Article updated, though your translation contradicts Alexander Vovin’s personal translation of Omodaka’s interpretation (2017: 46, “The waves in the bay that were calm are raging”) by adjective – subject noun – verb order of the first two lines; so my personal translation was used in Vovin’s favor. Thanks once again!