[Translation] 読谷あかね - あみだくじ (Yomitan Akane - Amidakuji)
This is an amateur translation of the song Amidakuji, by the Vocaloid producer Yomitan Akane. To some degree I'm doing this to study, so don't treat it as an authoritative source on the song's meaning.
Amidakuji is a kind of lottery method that I think is Asian in origin (it's at least popular across all of East Asia) that generates permutations of some sequence. It's actually fairly convenient to use if you need some method of randomly assigning N people to N things in something like Secret Santa. You can generate the permutation with pen and paper, and it's not super clear what adding a leg will do to the result so you don't feel like you're able to bias it or anything.
Moving on, the video for the song uses the amidakuji visual pretty strikingly to convey all of the paths that the singer's life or relationship could have taken. I like how a lot of the threads end in some implied tragedy, so that by the end of the song there's just one future. It's really visual novel coded
Amidakuji
Opening
書き出す瞬間から入り混じる偶然に
From the moment we begin to write,
導かれて進みましょう
let us be guided by the tangled threads of coincidence.
その線がどこまで続くのか
Not knowing where this line will lead,
分からないまま二人は交差した
still, our paths crossed.
Verse 1
涼みに入った食堂
The diner whose cool air we enjoyed,
川辺にあるベンチ
the riverside bench,
あなたに手を振った改札
the ticket gate where I waved you off,
花火を見たベランダ
the firework-lit veranda.
Pre-Chorus 1
さりげない日々に幻を落としてく
Letting go of illusions in these ordinary days,
こびりついた色で先を描けるように
so that we can paint a future with the colors stained upon us.
透明な糸に手繰り寄せられた
Pulled by an invisible thread.
Chorus 1
私が遠くに行ってしまって
Even if I drift far away,
体温が泡になって
and my warmth turns to bubbles,
そんな終いが仕方ないとしても
even if that ending is inevitable,
せめて間違ってなかったよって
"At least I wasn't wrong."
何回も思い出せるように
So that I can remember it over and over,
褪せないように指を絡めた
so that it doesn't fade, we entwine our fingers.
夢の中で二人語らえるような
I'm searching for a sunny spot where
陽だまりを探してる
we can talk like we're in a dream.
不条理な悪戯で途切れてしまうけど
Even if it might be cut off by the caprices of fate.
それがいくら脆く頼りなくても
No matter how fragile and vague it is,
美しい未来を謳いましょう
let's sing of a beautiful future.
Verse 2
眩い石橋 靴擦れ
The beautiful stone bridge, foot blisters,
熱のこもった部屋
the heat of a stuffy room,
あなたの涙で湿った白いシャツの右肩
the right shoulder of your white shirt, dampened with tears.
いつの間にか奥の方に
Before I knew it, deep inside,
植わっていた電気信号が
an electrical signal had taken root.
前触れもなく顔を出して
Without warning, it surfaced
あなたの手を引いてくれる
and led you by the hand.
Bridge
点と点を繋ぎ合って
Connecting the dots,
もう当たり前になって
it became a matter of course,
芯を切らした先が見えなかった
once the wick ran out, we couldn't see the way ahead.
だからページの下に写った
That's why I traced the marks
跡をなぞれるように
left beneath the pages,
歩けるように
so I could keep walking.
Chorus 2
遠くに行ってしまって
Drifting far away,
表情も朧になって
with my expression fading,
そんな終いが訪れないといいな
I hope that such an ending never comes.
あのね こうで良かったんだったよって
"You know, I'm glad it turned out like this."
ずっと忘れないように
So I wouldn't forget that,
落ちないように肩に凭れた
so it doesn't fade, I lean on your shoulder.
いやに高いビルの上
On top of this impossibly tall building,
微睡むような温もりの中にいた
we're swallowed by this sleepy warmth.
ありがとう いつも笑っていて
Thank you, for always smiling,
途切れてしまっても
even if it all fades away.
それがいくら遠く難しくても
No matter how far or difficult it is,
素敵な終わりを願いましょう
let's wish for a lovely ending.