What JLPT level is 悪魔祈祷書?

悪魔祈祷書 is suitable for JLPT N1 level readers (estimated JLPT N1).

How long does 悪魔祈祷書 take to read?

悪魔祈祷書 takes about 86 minutes (around 6906 words) to read at a learner's pace.

作品さくひんFree Graded Reading

悪魔祈祷書The Devil's Prayer Book

Akuma Kitōsho

by 夢野久作 · Yumeno Kyūsaku

JLPT N1Short StoryClassical / archaicQuiz ready

A mysterious prayer book that might be a gateway to the devil.

About this story

A professor seeks shelter from a sudden storm in a used bookstore, where the owner's curious conversation hints at a mysterious prayer book.

Read a sample in Japanese

いらっしゃいまし。お珍らしい雨で御座いますナアどうも……こうダシヌケに降り出されちゃ敵いません。いつも御贔屓になりまして……ま……おかけ下さいまし。一服お付けなすって……ハハア。傘をお持ちにならなかった。ヘヘ、どうぞ御ゆっくり……そのうち明るくなりましょう。どうもコンナにお涼しくなりましてから雷鳴入りの夕立なんて可笑しな時候で御座いますなあ。まったく……まだ五時だってえのに電燈を灯けなくちゃ物が見えねえなんて……店ん中に妖怪でも出そうで……もっとも古本屋なんて商売は、あんまり明るくちゃ工合が悪う御座いますナ。西日が一パイに這入るような店だと背皮がミンナ離れちゃいますからね。ヘヘヘ……。失礼ですが旦那は東京のお方で……ハハア。東京の大学からコチラへ御転任になった。○○科にお勤めになっていらっしゃる……成る程。コンナ時候のいい時は大してお忙がしく御座んせんで……ヘヘ。恐れ入りやす。

Read the full text with furigana + instant lookups in Yomimaru →

Source

This text comes from Aozora Bunko (青空文庫), the volunteer-run library of Japanese writing that is out of copyright. See this work on Aozora Bunko

Base edition (底本): 「夢野久作怪奇幻想傑作選　あやかしの鼓」角川ホラー文庫、角川書店
1998（平成10）年4月10日初版発行

Typed in by 林裕司. Proofread by 浜野智.

Yomimaru has not changed the spelling or the wording.

The furigana are Yomimaru's. In the app it is split into 2 parts.

What you'll learn

A used bookstore owner in Kyoto engages a professor in conversation, sharing stories about his life, rare book finds, and shoplifting incidents, culminating in a chilling account of a purported 'Devil's Bible' manuscript.

Language difficultyAdvanced · 85/100

Key vocabulary

珍らしい (めずらしい)	rare, unusual
ダシヌケ (だしぬけ)	suddenly, abruptly
御贔屓 (ごひいき)	patronage, favor
月琴 (げっきん)	moon-shaped Chinese lute
万引 (まんびき)	shoplifting
外道祈祷書 (げどうきとうしょ)	heretical prayer book

Grammar points you'll meet

～てちゃ敵わない N1Cannot stand/endure (casual, dialectal form of ～てはかなわない)
こうダシヌケに降り出されちゃ敵いません。
～ものだ N3It is the nature of things; used to express general truths or reminiscence.
古本屋なんて商売は、あんまり明るくちゃ工合が悪う御座いますナ。
～てしまう N4Expresses completion or regret for an action done unintentionally.
とうとう古本屋になっちまいましてね。
～でしかない N2Is nothing but; emphasizes that something is only that.
一切の医術の初まりは堕胎術と毒薬の研究でしかなかったのである。

Cultural notes

Kansai-ben DialectThe bookseller uses Kansai dialect (e.g., や, げす, ヘエヘエ), which is characteristic of the Kyoto/Osaka region and carries a friendly, informal tone.
Used Bookstore Culture in JapanThe monologue reveals intricacies of running a second-hand bookstore, including using fake customers (sakura) to attract real customers, common in smaller shops.
Christianity and Rare Books in JapanThe 'Devil's Bible' story references the historical arrival of Christianity in Japan, the Shimabara Rebellion (Amakusa Shiro), and the rarity of Western manuscripts in Japan.