Great Yamato, of all lands most supreme! Enclosed by ranks of verdant banks on surrounding hills, Great Yamato unmatched for beauty!
Yamato Takeru, the son of Emperor Keikō, the twelfth emperor of Japan, was a skilled warrior who conquered the Kumaso and Izumo regions in the west in a blink of an eye. He was then ordered to lead an expedition to the east, where he achieved victory after victory, ultimately bringing peace to the region. Finally, on his way back to his beloved homeland of Wa, he fell ill and passed away at Mt. Ibuki. His parting poem was this waka, as he transformed into a white swan and flew towards Yamato. “Mahoroba” is a beautiful word in the Yamato language, representing the graceful and elegant land of Japan.

倭は国のまほろばたたなづく青垣山ごもれる倭しうるはし
第十二代天皇である景行天皇の皇子、ヤマトタケルは武に優れ、西征して熊曾建と出雲建をあれよあれよという間に討伐、続けて東征を命じられます。そこでも連戦連勝を重ねついに東国を平定します。ようやく愛する故郷である倭へと家路につくのですが、なんとその途中、伊吹山で病を得てその地で亡くなってしまいます。その時残した辞世の歌がこの和歌です。ヤマトタケルは白鳥になって大和の方へ飛んでいったそうです。「まほろば」は音も美しい大和言葉です。秀麗の国、日本を表すのにふさわしい言葉です。