あなたは未だ覺えてゐるでせう、私がいつか貴方に、造り付けの惡人が世の中にゐるものではないと云つた事を。多くの善人がいざといふ場合に突然惡人になるのだから油斷しては不可ないと云つた事を。あの時あなたは私に昂奮してゐると注意して呉れました。さうして何んな場合に、善人が惡人に變化するのかと尋ねました。私がたゞ一口金と答へた時、あなたは不滿な顏をしました。私はあなたの不滿な顏をよく記憶してゐます。私は今あなたの前に打ち明けるが、私はあの時此伯父の事を考へてゐたのです。普通のものが金を見て急に惡人になる例として、世の中に信用するに足るものが存在し得ない例として、憎惡と共に私は此伯父を考へてゐたのです。私の答は、思想界の奧へ突き進んで行かうとするあなたに取つて物足りなかつたかも知れません、陳腐だつたかも知れません。けれども私にはあれが生きた答でした。現に私は昂奮してゐたではありませんか。私は冷かな頭で新らしい事を口にするよりも、熱した舌で平凡な説を述べる方が生きてゐると信じてゐます。血の力で體が動くからです。言葉が空氣に波動を傳へる許でなく、もつと強い物にもつと強く働き掛ける事が出來るからです。
translation
"You still remember that I once told you that there are no built-in villains in the world." Many good people suddenly turn into bad people in an emergency, so I said that it was impossible to get rid of them. At that time, you warned me that I was agitated. I asked him in what circumstances a good man would turn into a bad man. You gave me a disappointing look when I answered that it was just a lump sum. I remember your disgruntled face very well. I confess before you now that I was thinking of this uncle at the time. As an example of how an ordinary person suddenly turns into a villain after seeing money, an example of how there can be no trustworthy people in the world, I thought of my uncle with a sense of hatred. My answer may have been unsatisfactory or trivial for you who are trying to push your way into the depths of the world of thought. But that was the answer that worked for me. I was excited, wasn't I? I believe that it is better to live with a hot tongue and stating mediocre theories than to say new things with a cold head. Because the power of blood moves the body. This is because words can not only transmit vibrations in the air, but also have a stronger effect on stronger things.
kanji (pronunciations & definitions)
| 未: the Sheep (eighth sign of the Chinese zodiac) (ひつじ), the Ram, the Goat, hour of the Sheep (around 2pm, 1-3pm, or 2-4pm), south-southwest | 私: I (わたし), me, I (あたくし), I (あたし), I (アタシ) | 貴方: your home (きほう), your residence, you (referring to one’s equal; epistolary style), you (あなた), dear | 付: furnished with (つき), furnished with (づき), furnished with (ツキ), including, including |
| 中: inside (なか), interior, among, within, middle | 事: thing (こと), thing (こん), matter, matter, incident | 多: multi- (た) | 善人: good person (ぜんにん), virtuous person, good-natured person, gullible person |
| 突然: abrupt (とつぜん), sudden, unexpected | 不可: wrong (ふか), bad, improper, unjustifiable, inadvisable | 時: time (とき), hour, moment, occasion, case | 昂奮: excitement (こうふん), stimulation, agitation, arousal |
| 呉: go (ご), soy beans soaked and mashed to a creamy paste (ingredient of tofu and soy milk), Wu (region in China, south of the lower Yangtze), Wu (kingdom in China during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms era; 902-937 CE), Southern Wu | 何: what (なに), what (ナニ), you-know-what, you-know-what, that thing | 尋: fathom (じん), fathom (ひろ) | 一口: mouthful (ひとくち), morsel, bite, gulp, sip |
| 口金: (metal) cap (くちがね), clasp, mouthpiece, socket (for light, etc.) | 答: answer (こたえ), reply, response, answer, solution | 顏: face (かお), face (がん), visage, visage, look | 記憶: memory (きおく), recollection, remembrance, memory, storage |
| 前: point (さき), tip, end, nozzle, head (of a line) | 打: dozen (ダース), hitting a ball (with a bat, golf club, etc.) (だ), batting, stroke | 明: vidya (wisdom) (みょう), mantra, the coming (July 4, etc.), brightness (めい), discernment | 伯父: uncle (おじ), uncle (しゅくふ), uncle (はくふ), uncle (one’s father’s older brother) (えおじ) |
| 普通: normal (ふつう), ordinary, regular, usual, common | 金: money (かな), money (かね), metal, metal, gold (metal) (きん) | 見: looking (み), viewing, (please) try (to), view (of life, etc.) (けん), outlook | 急: sudden (きゅう), abrupt, unexpected, urgent, pressing |
| 信用: confidence (しんよう), trust, faith, reputation, credit (finance) | 足: foot (あし), paw, arm (of an octopus, squid, etc.), leg, gait | 存在: existence (そんざい), being, presence | 得: profit (とく), advantage, benefit, gain, rebirth in paradise, entering nirvana |
| 伯父: uncle (おじ), uncle (しゅくふ), uncle (はくふ), uncle (one’s father’s older brother) (えおじ) | 思想界: world of ideas (しそうかい) | 奧: inner part (おく), interior, back (of a drawer, one’s throat, etc.), depths (e.g. of a forest), recesses (e.g. of a cave) | 突: very (とっ), much |
| 取: taking (とり), taker, collecting, collector, remover | 知: wisdom (ち), jnana (higher knowledge) | 陳腐: stale (ちんぷ), hackneyed, cliched | 生: pure (き), undiluted, raw, crude, raw (なま) |
| 冷: refrigerator (れい), cold, cool, cold sake, cold water (ひや) | 頭: counter for large animals (e.g. head of cattle) (とう), counter for insects in a collection, counter for helmets, masks, etc., head (あたま), head (かしら) | 新: new (しん), neo-, newness, novelty, Gregorian calendar | 口: mouth (くち), opening, hole, gap, orifice |
| 舌: tongue (した), tongue-like object, clapper (of a bell), talon (of a lock), reed (of a musical instrument) | 平凡: ordinary (へいぼん), common, commonplace, mediocre, unremarkable | 説: theory (せつ), doctrine, opinion, view, rumour | 述: dictation (じゅつ), verbal statement |
| 信: honesty (しん), sincerity, fidelity, trust, reliance | 血: blood (ち), blood, ancestry, lineage, stock | 力: force (ちから), strength, might, vigour, vigor | 動: motion (どう) |
| 波動: wave motion (はどう), undulation, surge, wave | 許: only (ばかり), only (ばっかり), merely, merely, nothing but | 強: a little over (きょう), a little more than, strength, the strong, powerhouse | 物: thing (もの), thing (もん), thing (モノ), object, object |