貴方は定めて變に思ふでせう。其私が其所の御孃さんを何うして好く餘裕を有つてゐるか。其御孃さんの下手な活花を、何うして嬉しがつて眺める餘裕があるか。同じく下手な其人の琴を何うして喜こんで聞く餘裕があるか。さう質問された時、私はたゞ兩方とも事實であつたのだから、事實として貴方に教へて上げるといふより外に仕方がないのです。解釋は頭のある貴方に任せるとして、私はたゞ一言付け足して置きませう。私は金に對して人類を疑ぐつたけれども、愛に對しては、まだ人類を疑はなかつたのです。だから他から見ると變なものでも、また自分で考へて見て、矛盾したものでも、私の胸のなかでは平氣で兩立してゐたのです。
translation
"You should definitely think differently." Why do I have so much leeway with my daughter over there? How can I have the luxury of looking at the poorly arranged flowers of that daughter with pleasure? How can I have the leeway to enjoy listening to someone who is equally unskillful playing the koto? When I was asked this question, both of us were truthful, so I have no choice but to tell you the truth. I'll leave the explanation to you, who has a good head, but I'll just add a few words. I doubted humanity against money, but I did not yet doubt humanity against love. That's why, even if it looked strange to others, or if I thought about it myself and found it to be contradictory, in my heart I was calm and harmonious.
kanji (pronunciations & definitions)
| 貴方: your home (きほう), your residence, you (referring to one’s equal; epistolary style), you (あなた), dear | 定: certainly (さだ), truly, certainty (じょう), reality, actuality | 變: strange (へん), odd, peculiar, weird, curious | 其所: there (place relatively near listener) (そこ), there (place just mentioned), that place, then (of some incident just spoken of), that (of point just raised) |
| 好: friendship (ぎ), friendship (よしび), friendship (よしみ), friendly relations, friendly relations | 有: existence (ゆう), possession, having, limited company, bhava (becoming, existence) (う) | 下手: humble position (したて), humble position (したで), inferior, inferior, underarm grip on opponent’s belt | 活花: ikebana (いけばな), ikebana (せいか), Japanese art of flower arrangement, Japanese art of flower arrangement, fresh flower |
| 琴: koto (13-stringed Japanese zither) (こと), koto (13-stringed Japanese zither) (そう), stringed instrument, stringed instrument, zheng (Chinese zither) | 質問: question (しつもん), inquiry, enquiry | 上: above (うえ), over, up, top, summit | 外: outside (そと), outside (と), exterior, exterior, the open (air) |
| 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) | 任: obligation (にん), duty, charge, responsibility | 私: I (わたし), me, I (あたくし), I (あたし), I (アタシ) | 一言: single word (いちげん), single word (いちごん), single word (ひとこと), a few words, a few words |
| 足: foot (あし), paw, arm (of an octopus, squid, etc.), leg, gait | 金: money (かな), money (かね), metal, metal, gold (metal) (きん) | 對: versus (たい), against, vs., v., to (e.g. score of 4 to 2, ratio of 3 to 1, vote of 320 to 180) | 人類: mankind (じんるい), humanity |
| 愛: love (あい), affection, care, attachment, craving | 他: another place (ほか), some other place, somewhere else, outside, another (person or thing) | 見: looking (み), viewing, (please) try (to), view (of life, etc.) (けん), outlook | 自分: myself (じぶん), yourself, oneself, himself, herself |
| 矛盾: contradiction (むじゅん), inconsistency | 胸: chest (むな), chest (むね), breast, breast, breasts |