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夢の卵

by Yoshio Toyoshima

In a small kingdom deep in India, a castle holds a dream egg.

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Original language: JapaneseLevel: Beginner3,515 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
遠い昔のことa matter of the distant pastですがbut; though it isインドの奥にdeep in India小さな王国がa small kingdom (subject)ありましたthere was
Long ago, deep in India, there was a small kingdom.
そのthat国countryの's (possessive)王様kingの's (possessive)城castleはtopic marker高いhigh山mountainの's (possessive)ふもとfoot (of a mountain)にat堅いhard岩rockでof (material)造られていましたwas built
The king's castle was built of hard rock at the foot of a high mountain.
前にはin front / at the frontきれいなclear / beautiful谷川mountain streamが(subject marker)流れておりwas flowing (and)後ろにはbehind / at the back広いwide / broad森forestが(subject marker)茂っていましたwas growing thickly / was lush
In front, a clear stream flowed, and behind, a wide forest grew.

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About the book

The text tells of a young prince in a small mountain kingdom deep in India who loves his dreams so much that, unwilling to accept that they vanish upon waking, he resolves to capture them, first asking his scholars and then trying on his own. It reads like a quiet fairy tale, unhurried in pace and full of a childlike fascination with dreams.

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.

夢の精 Allusion

In Japanese, 「精」 refers to a supernatural being such as a spirit or fairy, so 「夢の精」 means a spirit that governs dreams, similar to the figure of the "dream god" or "sandman" in European fairy tales.

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 “Beginner”. 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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