JSLL #65 - The Spider's Thread, part 13

Sentence:

その上あたりは墓の中のようにしんと静まり返って、たまに聞こえるものと云っては、ただ罪人がつく微な嘆息ばかりでございます。

そのうえあたりははかのなかのようにしんとしずまりかえって、たまにきこえるものといっては、ただざいにんがつくかすかなたんそくばかりでございます。

Vocabulary

• 墓 means "grave, tomb"
• しんと means "silent (as the grave), deadly silent, deathly quiet"
• 静まり返る means "to fall completely silent, to become silent as death"
• ただ means "ordinary, common, usual" but also "only, merely, just, simply"
• つく can be many verbs meaning many things
• 微, often written 微か, is a na-adjective that means "faint, dim, weak etc" or "poor, wretched, meager etc"
• 嘆息 means "sigh (of grief, disappointment), grieving, lamenting, deploring"
• ばかりmeans "only, merely, nothing more than"

Kanji

Kanji	N-level	Occurs in how many common words?
墓	N1	5
静	N3	15
微	N1	16
嘆	N1	3

Translation

The place above fell deathly silent as if inside a grave, and there was only the faint sighs of grief, sighed by common criminals, if you could even call that something that can be heard.

Book review: "American Metropolis: A History of New York City" by George J. Lankevich

Link: https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/3655614b-c678-4a59-a8e2-de82989faad4

If you're looking for a book about the Harlem Renaissance, the Algonquin Round Table or about the famous heroes and villains who made the Big Apple their own --this ain't it. Rather, Lankevich presents a fairly dry political and economic history of the city, from its modest New Amsterdam beginnings all the way to... 1998. Yes, this book came out before 9/11, quite possibly the most important event in the city's history, which is why the Twin Towers still feature so prominently on the cover.

When I say "fairly dry," bear in mind that this is still New York. There's plenty of juicy stuff, like the city's initial hesitance to take sides in the Civil War, or the rise and fall of a number of "bosses," as the mobsters slash politicians ruling the city for a good century or so are called, working out of Tammany Hall. Another fascinating factoid is that around 1900, the Lower East Side was the most densely populated place on earth, with more than a quarter of a million people per square mile. And then there's Fiorello La Guardia, arguably New York's most famous mayor, who I never realized ran as a Republican. 

When we arrive in the post-WW2 era, the tone of the book turns grim, with the author depicting the 1970s and 1980s as the low point in the city's history. As Lankevich argues, the bosses of the 19th century may have been corrupt on a massive scale, but at the same time, they also delivered actual improvements to the city, especially when it came to health, sanitation and other practical problems that needed urgent solutions. By contrast, the year 1975 brought the city to the brink of bankruptcy and turned it into a lawless, dangerous and miserable metropolis, marked by white flight and urban decay.

No wonder that the author speaks relatively positively about the brusque but effective mayor at the end of his book, one Rudolph Giuliani. It's especially quaint to read a quote by Giuliani from his address to the U.N. General Assembly (as only the second NYC mayor to do so):

You can't be a New Yorker -- you can't be part of this city -- and deny the contributions of immigrants. Our nation owes its existence to the hard work, determination and vision of immigrants, and in the end I am confident that support for immigration will prevail over this latest advent of suspicion.

Oh, Rudy. You clearly didn't realize back then who you'd need to hitch your wagon to. 

JSLL #64 - The Spider's Thread, part 12

We're entering part II of the Spider's Thread.

Sentence 1:

こちらは地獄の底の血の池で、ほかの罪人と一しょに、浮いたり沈んだりしていた犍陀多でございます。

こちらはじごくのそこのちのいけで、ほかのざいにんといっしょに、ういたりしずんだりしていたかんだたでございます。

Vocabulary

• こちら means "over here"
• 血 means "blood"
• 浮く means "to float"
• 沈む means "to sink"

Kanji

浮 is an N3 kanji that occurs in 17 common words.

沈 is an N2 kanji found in 8 common words.

Translation

Over here, in the lake of blood at the bottom of hell, together with other criminals, was Kandata, floating and sinking.

Sentence 2:

何しろどちらを見ても、まっ暗で、たまにそのくら暗からぼんやり浮き上がっているものがあると思いますと、それは恐ろしい針の山の針が光るのでございますから、その心細さと云ったらございません。

なにしろどちらをみても、まっくらで、たまにそのくらやみからぼんやりうきあがっているものがあるとおもいますと、それはおそろしいはりのやみのはりがひかるのでございますから、そのこころぼそさといったらございません。

Vocabulary

• 何しろ means either "anyhow, anyway" or "because, since, for, after all"
• どちら means "which way, which direction, where"
• まっ暗 means "pitch-dark, completely dark." This uses the same まっ prefix found in all-white, pitch-black and so on.
• たまに means "occasionally, once in a while, now and then"
• くら暗 mean "the dark, darkness," but the way it's written seems to be a spelling error. The book says it's pronounced くらやみ, but the kanji 暗 is never pronounced やみ and has its most common pronunciation as くら. If you look up くらやみ in the dictionary, it's written as 暗闇, with the kanji 暗 as the first kanji. 
• ぼんやり means "dimly, faintly, vaguely"
• 浮き上がる means "to float, to rise to the surface"
• 光る means "to shine, to glitter, to be bright"
• 心細い means "helpless, forlorn, hopeless, discouraging, disheartening"

Kanji

• 光 is an N3 kanji found in 22 common words
• 細 is an N2 kanji found in 27 common words

Grammar

This is a long and difficult sentence. First of all, the で after まっくら is a te-form of です。Second, the ending 云ったらございません is translated by Google as "cannot describe."

Translation

何しろどちらを見ても、まっ暗で、たまにそのくら暗からぼんやり浮き上がっているものがあると思いますと、それは恐ろしい針の山の針が光るのでございますから、その心細さと云ったらございません。

Anyway, no matter where you looked, it was pitch-dark, and when you thought that there was something that  was occasionally rising to the surface from that darkness, that was a terrible needle from the mountain of needles that glimmered, so it was indescribably hopeless.

JSLL #63 - The Spider's Thread, part 11

 This sentence concludes part 1 of the story. (There are four parts in total.)

御釈迦様はその蜘蛛の糸をそっと御手に御取りになって、白蓮の間から、遥か下にある地獄の底へ、まっすぐにそれを卸下なさいました。

ごしゃかさまはそのくものいとをそっとおてにおとりになって、しらはすのあいだから、はるかしたにあるじごくのそこへ、まっすぐにそれをごおりしなさいました。

Vocabulary

• 白蓮 means "white lotus," although the dictionary doesn't give the reading しらはす but びゃくれん. It also lists "purity, pure heart" as a meaning.
• 遥か means "far, far away, distant"
• まっすぐ means "straight (ahead), direct, upright, erect"
• 下す means "to let down, to bring down, to lower"

Kanji

The only new kanji, 遥, is an N1 kanji with 遥か as the only common word in which it occurs. Also note that this word is usually written はるか (probably because the kanji is so rarely used).

Translation

The Buddha gently took that spider's thread in his hand, and lowered it straight down into the hell that was far below, from between the white lotuses.

JSLL #62 - The Spider's Thread, part 10

Sentence 1:

 そうしてそれだけの善い事をした報いには、出来るなら、この男を地獄から救い出してやろうと御考えになりました。

そうしてそれだけのよいことをしたむくいにはできるなら、このおとこをじごくからすくいだしてやろうとおかんがえになりました。

Vocabulary

• そうして means "and, like that." (Not to be confused with そして, meaning "and, and then.")
• 報い means "reward, recompense, return"
• 出来る means "can, to be able to"
• なら is a particle that can be placed after a clause to mean "if." There are multiple ways to say "if" in Japanese; previously, we learned that both the -ば ending and the -たら ending of a verb can also mean "if." Again, this is a bit too tricky to go into the differences at this point. Suffice to say, なら also means "if."
• 救い出す means "to rescue, to save."

Kanji

Kanji	N-level	Occurs in how many common words?
報	N3	41
救	N1	14

Translation

And he thought that, in return for having done only that good deed, if he could, he should rescue this man from hell.

Sentence 2:

幸い、側を見ますと、翡翠のような色をした蓮の葉の上に、極楽の蜘蛛が一匹、美しい銀色の糸をかけて居ります。

さいわい、そばをみますと、ひすいのようないろをしたはすのはのうえに、ごくらくのくもがいっぴき、うつくしいぎんいろのいとをかけております。

Vocabulary

• 幸い means "luckly, fortunately"
• 側 means "near, close, vicinity"
• 翡翠 means "jade" (it also means "kingfisher" but in that case, the kanji is typically pronounced differently).
• 銀色 means "silver" (the color, not the material)
• 糸 means "thread, yarn, string"
• かける is a verb with an impressive 25 (!) different meanings. The first one is "to hang." It's unclear which meaning fits best in this sentence; the book translates it as "to spin."

Kanji

Kanji	N-level	Occurs in how many common words?
幸	N3	7
側	N3	21
翡	None, not even a jouyou kanji	0
翠	N1	2
銀	N4	18
糸	N2	5

Translation

Fortunately, when he looked around him, on top of a lotus leaf that gave off a jade-like color, one spider of paradise was spinning a beautiful silver thread.

JSLL #61 - The Spider's Thread, part 9

Believe it or not, but today's sentence contains no new words at all, and therefore also no new kanji, and also no new grammar constructions.

御釈迦様は地獄の容子をご覧になりながら、この犍陀多には蜘蛛を助けた事があるのを御思い出しになりました。

ごしゃかさまはじごくをようすをごらんになりながら、このかんだたにはくもをたすけたことがあるのをおおもいだしになりました。

Translation

The Buddha, while looking at the state of affairs of hell, remembered the time when this Kandata had saved a spider.

JSLL #60 - The Spider's Thread, part 8

We're sticking with the one-sentence-per-post rule, but in this case, even that is challenging.

Sentence

そこで犍陀多は早速足を挙げて、踏み殺そうと致しましたが、「いや、いや、これも小さいながら、命のあるものに違いない。その命を無暗にとると云う事は、いくら何でも可哀そうだ。」と、急に思い返して、とうとうその蜘蛛を殺さずに助けてやったからでございます。

そこでかんだたはさっそくあしをあげて、ふみころそうといたしましたが、「いや、いや、これもちいさいながら、いのちのあるものにちがいない。そのいのちをむやみにとるということは、いくりなんでもかわいそうだ。」と、きゅうにおもいかえして、とうとうそもくもをころさずにたすけてやったからでございます。

Vocabulary

• 早速 means "at once, immediately"
• 足 means "leg, foot"
• 挙げる (more commonly written as 上げる) means "to raise, to elevate"
• 踏み殺す means "to trample to death, to kill underfoot." It has its own dictionary entry but is a combination of 踏む "to step on" and 殺す "to kill."
• ながら means "while, during"
• に違いない means "surely, .., without a doubt, ..., no mistaking that, it's certain that..."
• 無暗に (more commonly written as 無闇に) means "thoughtlessly, recklessly"
• いくら何でも means "no matter how you put it, whatever the circumstances may be, say what you like, no matter how you look at it."
• We've come across 可哀そう before, in the Urashima Tarou story, but then it was written in all kana: かわいそう. Either way, it (still) means "poor, pitiful."
• 思い返す means "to rethink, to think back upon, to change one's mind." It's a combination of 思う, "to think," and 返す, "to change."
• とうとう means "finally, at last, in the end, ultimately"

Kanji

Kanji	N-level	Occurs in how many common words?
速	N3	33
挙	N1	20
踏	N1	9
違	N3	23
無	None, but a jouyou kanji	168. This kanji very often means “not” or “un-”
暗	N3	16
哀	N1	9
返	N3	32

Translation

そこで犍陀多は早速足を挙げて、踏み殺そうと致しましたが、「いや、いや、これも小さいながら、命のあるものに違いない。その命を無暗にとると云う事は、いくら何でも可哀そうだ。」と、急に思い返して、とうとうその蜘蛛を殺さずに助けてやったからでございます。

There, Kandata immediately raised his foot and was about to trample it to death, but thought, "No, no, while this one is small, there's no mistaking that it's a thing that has life. To recklessly take that life would be sad, no matter how you look at it." That is ultimately why he didn't kill that spider and took it upon himself to help it.

JSLL #59 - The Spider's Thread, part 7

 と申しますのは、ある時この男が深い林の中を通りますと、小さな蜘蛛が一匹、路ばたを這って行くのが見えました。

ともうしますのは、あるときこのおとこがふかいはやしのなかをとおりますと、ちいさなくもがいっぴき、みちばたをはっていくのがみえました。

Vocabulary

• 申す is a polite form of 言う, "to say." The construction name + と申します is a polite way of saying, "I'm called/my name is name."
• 深い means "deep" but also "dense, thick"
• 林 means "(small) forest" --we've talked previously about the fact that 木 means "tree" and 森 means "big forest."
• 通る means "to go by, to go past, to go along, to travel along, to pass through"
• I had trouble figuring out what 路ばた means. 路 means "road" but I couldn't figure out the ばた part. Turns out that the word "near, close," which is usually pronounced そば can be written 傍, which is pronounced はた, which become ばた in this context. The whole thing 路傍 means "side of the road, roadside," and is normally not pronounced みちばた but rather ろぼう.
• 這って行く (usually written with only kana) means "to creep, to crawl"

Kanji

Kanji	N-level	Occurs in how many common words?
申	N3	22
深	N3	20
林	N2	13
通	N4	84
路	N3	32
這	None, it’s not even a jouyou kanji but a jinmeyou kanji	6, but in 5 of these, this kanji is not first choice.

Grammar

This is the first time I see a sentence start with a particle (the と at the start). The whole thing before the topic marker は, that is, と申しますの, is a nomalized verb phrase "saying that": the entire thing means is something like "What I mean to say by that is..." or simply "I mean." The と particle takes the entire previous sentence as its "particle object" so to speak.

Translation

と申しますのは、ある時この男が深い林の中を通りますと、小さな蜘蛛が一匹、路ばたを這って行くのが見えました。

What I mean by that is that when this man, at some point in time, passed through the middle of a thick forest, he could see one small spider crawling on the side of the road.

JSLL #58 - The Spider's Thread, part 6

 One day I'll resume translating multiple sentences per blog post. But today is not that day.

この犍陀多と云う男は、人を殺したり家に火をつけたり、いろいろ悪事を働いた大泥坊でございますが、それでもたった一つ、善い事を致した覚えがございます。

このかんだたというおとこは、ひとをころしたりいえにひをつけたり、いりろおくじをはたらいたおおどろぼうでございますが、それでもたったひとつ、よいことをいたしたおぼえがございます。

Vocabulary

• 火をつける means "to set fire to"
• 悪事を働く is "to commit a crime, to do evil"
• 大 is a prefix meaning "major, serious, big"
• 泥坊 means "thief, burglar, robber"
• たった一つ means "single, solo, solitary, just one, only one"
• 善い事 means "good thing, nice thing"
• 致す is the humble version of する "to do"
• 覚え means "memory, sense, experience"
• ございます is the polite version of ある "to be (for things without a heart)" --not to be confused with でございます, which is the polite version of です, the coupling verb "to be."

Kanji

Kanji	N-level	Occurs in how many common words?
悪	N4	42
働	N3	19
泥	N2	4
坊	None, but it is a jouyou kanji	9
善	N1	15
致	N1	16
覚	N3	25

 Grammar

This sentence contains a somewhat unusual use of the たり verb ending, which normally occurs in an enumeration of the form たり...たり...たりする. Also, the sentence is written in the present tense.

Translation

この犍陀多と云う男は、人を殺したり家に火をつけたり、いろいろ悪事を働いた大泥坊でございますが、それでもたった一つ、善い事を致した覚えがございます。

This man called Kandata had was a hardened criminal who had killed people, set houses on fire and done all sorts of evil things, but there was a memory nonetheless that he had done one single good thing.

JSLL #57 - The Spider's Thread, part 5

 Sentence:

するとその地獄の底に、犍陀多と云う男が一人、ほかの罪人といっしょに蠢いている姿が、御眼に止まりました。

するとそのじゅごくのそこに、かんだたとゆうおとこがひとり、ほかのざいにんといっしょにうごめいているすがたが、おめにとまりました。

Vocabulary

• 犍陀多 is a name, Kandata
• 云う (pronounced ゆう) is an alternate spelling (and alternate pronunciation!) of 言う (いう), "to say"
• 男 means "male" or "man"
• 罪人 can be read as ざいにん (the reading given here, meaning "criminal") or as つみびと ("sinner"). 
• 蠢くmeans "to wriggle, to squirm"
• 御眼に止まる means "to catch one's attention," although it's usually written as 目に留まる. 御眼 is just the prefix お in kanji form followed by 眼, an alternate kanji for 目, "eye."

Kanji

Kanji	N-level	Occurs in how many common words?
犍	None, not even joyou kanji	0
陀	None, a jinmeyou kanji	3, two of which are kanji spellings of カナダ (Canada) and オランダ (Holland, the Nehterlands)
多	N4	36
男	N5	19
罪	N3	6
蠢	None, not even jouyou kanji	0

Translation

Then, at the bottom of that hell, the figure of one man called Kandata, squirming with other criminals, caught this attention.