母親に憑る霊The Spirit Possessing the Mother

About this story

After a soldier's death, his spirit possesses his grieving mother to tell the family about his final battle.

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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): 「伝奇ノ匣6　田中貢太郎日本怪談事典」学研Ｍ文庫、学習研究社
2003（平成15）年10月22日初版発行

Typed in by Hiroshi_O. Proofread by noriko saito.

Yomimaru has not changed the spelling or the wording.

The furigana are Yomimaru's.

What you'll learn

The text describes the ghost of Sergeant Kojima Yujiro, who died in the Siberian Intervention, appearing to his family through his mother to console her and recount the battle that led to his death.

Key vocabulary

出征しゅつせい	going to war
全滅ぜんめつ	complete annihilation
軍曹ぐんそう	sergeant
霊れい	spirit; ghost
戦況せんきょう	war situation

Grammar points you'll meet

• ～てから N4After doing something

  小島こじま勇次郎ゆうじろうが戦死せんししてから半はんヶ月かげつばかり経たって

• ～ために N3For the sake of; in order to; because of

  泣ないてもらわないために、戦争せんそうの容子ようすを話はなして聞きかせる

• ～と云う N4Called; said that

  小島こじま勇次郎ゆうじろうと云いう軍曹ぐんそう

• ～てみる N4To try doing something

  父親ちちおやは、次男じなんと三男さんなんに訊きいてみると

• ～かもしれない N4May; might; perhaps

  発狂はっきょうしたかも判わからない

Cultural notes

• The Spirit of the Dead (Yūrei)In Japanese folklore, spirits of the dead (yūrei) can return to the world of the living to deliver messages or resolve attachments. This story depicts a soldier's spirit appearing to his family, a common trope in Japanese ghost stories.
• Siberian Intervention (1918-1922)Japan sent troops to Siberia as part of the Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War. This mission, known as the Siberian Expedition, resulted in significant casualties and is a historical backdrop for this story.

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