A poem sent in return by the Daughter of Saeki sukune Akamaro.
ちはやぶる神の社しなかりせば春日の野辺に粟蒔かましを
| tipayaburu kami no yasiro si nakariseba kasuga no nope ni apa makamasi wo | If the mighty Gods’ shrines Did not exist, then On the plains at Kasuga Would I sow foxtail millet. |
There’s a typo in the fourth line of the English translation.
Thanks for noticing this – I have corrected it.
MYS III: 404, 405 and 406 that are related with each other as an interesting type of poems exchanged between man and woman.
“mighty Gods’ shrines” may be a mighty Goddess’s shrine, which is probably a metaphor for Akamaro’s wife. If so, there must have been some agonizing entanglement among the girl, Akamaro and his wifein prior to those poems, I guess.
On the other hand, we can also imagine another situation that “mighty God’s shrines” is a metaphor for the girl’s partner.
I have heard that such poems exchanged were sometimes made in drinking parties under the assumption between an imaginary man and an imaginary woman!
Foxtail millet (粟) is called “awa” in modern Japanese. It probably have been changed as “apa” => “aɸa” =>”awa”.
At the same time, “apu” (会ふ・逢ふ) meant “to meet somebody”, “to go on date” and/or ”to marry”. It corresponds with “au” (会う・逢う) in modern Japanese.
Since apa and apu sound similar, foxtail millet was often used to imply lovely dating.
Kasuga-no-Nobe (i.e. Kasuga-No) is an area in Nara City, where the famous shrine, ”Kasuga-Taisha” has been located from the 8th century. The slopes of Kasuga-No were sometimes used for slash-and-burn cultivation (shifting cultivation) of foxtail millet and other crops by farmers in ancient times. Temporary huts were build in a slash-and-burn cultivation fields to store farm equipment and tools. People can stay there to drive away animals and birds, too. Such a hut could serve as an perfect place for a young couple.
Thank you for reading. I am not good at poetry but studying foxtail millet.
Thank you for this detailed explanation and contribution.