防人(ｻｷﾓﾘ)に 行くは誰(ﾀ)が背(ｾ)と 問ふ人を 見るがともしさ 物思(ﾓﾉﾓﾋ)もせず
I am envious of the person who asks ‘Whose husband is he?’, unconcerned,
Looking at the soldier to the north border dispatched.
防人(ｻｷﾓﾘ)に 行くは誰(ﾀ)が背(ｾ)と 問ふ人を 見るがともしさ 物思(ﾓﾉﾓﾋ)もせず
作者未詳
(現代語訳)
防人に行くのは誰の夫かと、ことばをかけている人を、見るとうらやましい、何の物思いもなく。
I am envious of the person who asks ‘Whose husband is he?’, unconcerned,
Looking at the soldier to the north border dispatched.
Author Unknown
(Vol.20 – 4425)
作者不詳、防人の妻の歌だろう。夫を思いやる気持ちが表われている。
The author is unknown, but it is likely a poem by the wife of a defender. It expresses her feelings of longing for her husband.
防人(ｻｷﾓﾘ)は、奈良・平安時代に北九州(筑紫、壱岐、対馬など)の防衛にあたった兵士のことで、白村江の戦いでの敗北(663年)をきっかけに設置された。当初は諸国から選ばれたが、後に東国の農民が徴用された。3年交代で、毎年三分の一が交代した。兵士、家族の負担は重く、数度かの改廃を経て、10世紀初頭頃には実質的に消滅した。
Sakimori were soldiers who defended northern Kyushu (including Tsukushi, Iki, and Tsushima) during the Nara and Heian periods, and were established following the defeat at the Battle of Baekgang (663). Initially, they were selected from various provinces, but later peasants from the eastern provinces were conscripted. They were rotated every three years, with one-third replaced each year. The burden on soldiers and their families was heavy, and after several changes and abolitions, they essentially disappeared around the beginning of the 10th century.
