すると夏の暑い盛りに明治天皇が崩御になりました。其時私は明治の精神が天皇に始まつて天皇に終つたやうな氣がしました。最も強く明治の影響を受けた私どもが、其後に生き殘つてゐるのは必竟時勢遲れだといふ感じが烈しく私の胸を打ちました。私は明白さまに妻にさう云ひました。妻は笑つて取り合ひませんでしたが、何を思つたものか、突然私に、では殉死でもしたら可からうと調戲ひました。
translation
Then, in the heat of summer, Emperor Meiji passed away. At that time, I felt that the Meiji spirit began and ended with the emperor. For those of us who were most strongly influenced by the Meiji period, I was deeply moved by the feeling that it was inevitable that the time would come when we would have survived. I plainly said to my wife, My wife laughed and dismissed me, but for some reason, she suddenly told me that I could die by martyrdom.
kanji (pronunciations & definitions)
| 夏: summer (なつ), Xia dynasty (of China; c. 2070-1600 BCE; possibly mythological) (か), Hsia dynasty, summer (on the lunisolar calendar: 16th day of the 4th month to the 15th day of the 7th month) (げ) | 暑: heat (しょ), midsummer | 盛: serving (of food) (もり), helping, chilled soba served on a dish (often on a wicker basket or in a shallow steaming basket) with dipping sauce | 明治天皇: Emperor Meiji (1852-1912, reigned 1867-1912) (めいじてんのう), Emperor Mutsuhito |
| 明治: Meiji era (1868.9.8-1912.7.30) (めいじ) | 精神: mind (せいしん), spirit, soul, heart, ethos | 天皇: Emperor of Japan (てんのう), Emperor of Japan (すべらみこと), Emperor of Japan (すめらみこと), Emperor of Japan (すべらぎ), Emperor of Japan (すめらき) | 終: end (おわり), ending, close, conclusion, end of (one’s) life |
| 最: the most (さい), the extreme, prime, conspicuous | 強: a little over (きょう), a little more than, strength, the strong, powerhouse | 影響: influence (えいきょう), effect, impact | 受: vedana (sensation) (じゅ) |
| 其後: after that (そのあと), after that (そのご), after that (そののち), afterwards, afterwards | 生: pure (き), undiluted, raw, crude, raw (なま) | 必竟: after all (ひっきょう), in the end, in short, atyanta (absoluteness) | 感: feeling (かん), sensation, emotion, admiration, impression |
| 打: dozen (ダース), hitting a ball (with a bat, golf club, etc.) (だ), batting, stroke | 明白: obvious (めいはく), clear, plain, evident, apparent | 妻: wife (つま), garnish (esp. one served with sashimi), trimmings, accompaniment, side (remark) | 笑: laugh (わらい), laughter, smile, sneer, sex aids (e.g. dildos, pornographic books, erotic woodblock prints, etc.) |
| 合: between-season wear (あい), spring and autumn clothing, spring and fall clothing, together, condition | 何: what (なに), what (ナニ), you-know-what, you-know-what, that thing | 突然: abrupt (とつぜん), sudden, unexpected | 私: I (わたし), me, I (あたくし), I (あたし), I (アタシ) |
| 可: acceptable (か), satisfactory, allowed, permitted, approval |