Today, we start with another poet's work on the theme of seeing a dead body. Unlike Hitomaro, however, Sakimaro remains more of a dispassionate observer and his poem lacks the grandeur of Hitomaro's work.

A poem composed upon passing the hill of Ashigara and seeing the body of a man who had died.

wokakitu nö asa wo pikiposi imo nane ga tukurikisekemu sirotapë no pimo wo mo tokazu pitö pe yupu obi wo mi pe yupi kurusiki ni tukapematurite ima dani mo kuni ni makarite titi papa mo tuma wo mo mimu tö omopitutu yukikemu kimi pa töri ga naku aduma nö kuni nö kasikoki ya kamï nö misaka ni nikipada no körömo samurani nubatama no kami pa midarete kuni topedö kuni wo mo norazu ipe topedö ipe wo mo ipazu masurawo nö yuki nö manimani kökö ni koyaseru

Within your small-fenced home Was drawn and dried the hemp By your wife, or mayhap sister, dear Perhaps, she made for and clothed you In a white barken Belt-you never would undo- A single strand of belt Wrapped three times round you; And though you suffered, In your service to the Court At long last, Were you ordered to the provinces Your mother and father, And your wife too, to see; With such thoughts, You, no doubt, made your way To the bird-calling Eastern lands: An awesome God dwells on this hill- A soft skin, Your clothes seem cold- Lily-seed black Hair in tangles; And though I ask your land, You will not say; And though ask your home, You will not say; A sturdy man Proceeding on your way, Lying in this place.

Tanabe no Sakimaro (active 740s)

MYS IX: 1800