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思い出す事など

by Natsume Sōseki

After a near-fatal illness, the author recalls what he saw and felt.

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Original language: JapaneseLevel: Intermediate3,524 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.

一one
One
ようやくの事でat long last; finallyまたagain病院hospitalまでas far as; to帰って来たcame back; returned
At last, I came back to the hospital.
思い出すとwhen I recall itここでhere暑い朝夕を送ったのもthat I spent hot days and nights tooもう三カ月の昔になるis already three months ago
When I think of it, the hot days and nights I spent here are already three months past.
その頃はin those days二階の廂からfrom the second-floor eaves六尺に余るほどのof over six feet長い葭簀をa long reed screen日除にas a sunshade差し出してputting out熱りの強い縁側をthe hot veranda幾分か暗くしてあったhad made somewhat dark
In those days, I would hang a long reed screen over six feet out from the second-floor eaves to block the sun, making the hot veranda somewhat dark.

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About the book

The text recounts the writer's return to the hospital after a serious illness, recalling his days recovering in Shuzenji and the journey back, during which he lay barely able to see through the rain. The narration is calm and detailed, quietly observing both the vanished past and his own weakened state.

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.

釣台 Customs

In Japanese, 「釣台」here refers to a soft stretcher made of cloth hung from a bamboo pole and carried on the shoulders of two bearers, not a fishing platform as in Chinese. Patients unable to walk were often carried on one; in the text the author is carried off the train and straight up to the second-floor ward on one, showing how weak he was. This is a case of same characters, different meaning.

是公 Social role

This is Nakamurazekō (Nakamura Korekata, 1867–1927), the author's close friend from their days at the First Higher School and the Imperial University, who later became president of the South Manchuria Railway—hence the later reference to 「満洲にいる中村是公」. The 「是公から貰った楓の盆栽」in the text also refers to him.

信玄袋 Allusion

A cloth bag with a drawstring mouth and a relatively firm base, commonly used in the Meiji and Taishō periods for carrying small personal items when travelling. Here it is such a bag placed at the bedside, into which Morinari tucked a wild chrysanthemum at the opening.

About the author

Natsume Sōseki (9 February 1867 – 9 December 1916), born Natsume Kinnosuke, was a Japanese novelist, poet, and scholar regarded as one of the greatest writers in modern Japanese history. His major works include I Am a Cat, Botchan, Sanshirō, Kokoro, and his unfinished final novel Light and Dark.

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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What level is it?

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

Can I use another gloss language?

English and Chinese glosses are prepared in advance; signed-in readers can generate other languages.

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