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鼻

The Nose

by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa

A monk shortens his very long nose, and people laugh even more.

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Original language: JapaneseLevel: Intermediate3,526 characters · ≈ 14 minSource: 青空文库

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Sample: three-line reading

Each word has its meaning in this sentence underneath, and each sentence has a full translation. Read the original and glance down only when you need to.

禅智内供Zenchi Naigu (a name)の's (possessive particle)鼻noseと云えばspeaking of; when it comes to池の尾Ike no O (a place name)でin (locative particle)知らないnot know者personはないthere is no (emphatic negative)
When it comes to Zenchi Naigu's nose, there is no one in Ike no O who does not know it.
長さはlength / as for the length五六寸five or six sun (a traditional unit of length)あってthere is, and上唇の上above the upper lipからfrom顋の下below the chinまでdown to / as far as下っているis hanging down
It is five or six inches long, hanging from above the upper lip down to below the chin.
形はas for the shape元もthe base too先もthe tip too同じようにin the same way / equally太いthick
Its shape is equally thick from base to tip.
云わばso to speak細長いlong and thin腸詰めsausageのようなlike物thingがsubject markerぶらりとdangling顔faceのpossessive markerまん中middleからfromぶら下ってhanging downいるisのであるit is (that)
So to speak, a long thin thing like a sausage hangs dangling from the middle of his face.

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About the book

"The Nose" is an early short story by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, based on a tale from the Uji Shūi Monogatari. It follows Zenchi Naigu, a high priest tormented by his long nose; after finally shortening it, people only mock him more. The story captures how people envy others' happiness and laugh at their misfortune, and it marked the author's breakthrough.

Cultural notes (selection)

Background a translation can’t carry: social roles, history and allusions. While reading, tap “Note” at the end of a sentence to see them all.

禅智内供 Allusion

The story draws on "The Nose of the Priest Zenchi of Ikeo" in Book 28 of the Konjaku Monogatarishū, whose protagonist is the priest Zenchin. Akutagawa changed the name to Zenchi. Both the long nose and the mealtime details have their source in the original tale.

内道場供奉 Social role

The inner chapel was a Buddhist ordination hall set up within the imperial palace, and a kubu was a monk appointed to serve there, one of the palace's own retained clergy. Zenchi had served in this court Buddhist establishment ever since his days as a novice.

沙弥 Social role

A transliteration of a Sanskrit term for a young monk who has not yet received full ordination. "沙弥の昔" means his boyhood as a monk not yet formally ordained; it is not a person's or place's name.

About the author

Ryūnosuke Akutagawa (1 March 1892 – 24 July 1927), also known by his art name Chōkōdō Shujin, was a Japanese writer active in the Taishō period who is regarded as the "father of the Japanese short story". He died by suicide at the age of 35 through an overdose of barbital, and Japan's premier literary award, the Akutagawa Prize, is named after him.

Summary prepared with AI from Wikipedia: 鼻 (芥川龍之介) (CC BY-SA)

How the glosses are made

Word glosses and sentence translations are generated in context by AI models (DeepSeek and Zhipu GLM), and every word is checked to have a gloss. AI can make mistakes; you can report problems from the book page.

FAQ

Is this the original text?

Yes. The library holds the opening section of the public-domain original, taken from 青空文库.

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This one is marked “Intermediate”. Every word is glossed, so you can keep reading even with a small vocabulary.

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