Composed when he was in China, gazing up at the moon.
あまの原ふりさけ見ればかすがなるみかさの山にいでし月かも
ama no Fara
Furisakemireba
kasuga naru
mikasa no yama ni
idesi tuki kamo
To the fields of heaven,
I lift my gaze;
In Kasuga
Above Mount Mikasa
Appeared the selfsame moon.
Abe no Nakamaro (ca 700-770)
It is told that, a long time ago, Nakamaro had been sent to China to study and, after many years without being able to return home, he had the chance to take passage with a Japanese embassy; on saying he was departing , some Chinese gave him a farewell banquet at a place called Meishū (Mingzhou) on the coast. When it grew dark, he saw that a particularly beautiful moon was shining, and composed this poem.