春の空に霞がたなびき始め、遠くの山々もふんわりと霞んで見える季節となりました。
This is the season when haze begins to trail in the spring sky and distant mountains appear to be softly hazy.
霞（かすみ）とは、霧やもやの影響を受け、遠くの景色が霞んで見える状態を表しますが、春にたなびくこの霞を、 古の人々は何に例えたと思いますか？
Haze is a condition in which distant scenery appears hazy due to the influence of fog .
What do you think the ancient people compared this haze of spring to?
感性豊かな古の人々は、うっすらと春色に山を霞める霞を見て、佐保姫（さほひめ）という春の女神が纏う着物の裾が、ふわりと野山を撫で、次々と春色に彩っていく様子に見立てました。
The ancient people, with their rich sensibilities, saw the haze of spring color on the mountains and compared it to the hem of a kimono worn by the goddess of spring, Sahohime, softly caressing the fields and mountains, painting them with the colors of spring one after another.
自然の息吹を心で感じて、美しい世界を表現した先人の豊かな感性は、暖かな春が待ち遠しい私達の心を、いっそう浮き立たせてくれますね。
The rich sensibility of our ancestors, who felt the breath of nature with their hearts and expressed a beautiful world, makes us feel even more excited as we look forward to the warmth of spring.
そして、日が暮れると、月が靄の中、淡い光を放ち始めますが、夜は霞（ かすみ）の呼び名が変わり、朧（おぼろ）となります。
When the sun sets, the moon begins to shine faintly through the haze, but at night, the name of the haze"Kasumi" changes to "Oboro".
朧の漢字を見てもらうと判るように、朧（おぼろ）は「月」に「龍」と書きます。夜の闇にたなびく「霞（かすみ）」は、天を舞う龍に見立てられたので、「朧（おぼろ）」と呼び方が変わるのですね。
As you can see from the Chinese character for "朧（Oboro）," the word "朧（Oboro）" is written as "龍（dragon）" on the "月（moon）. The "haze" that flutters in the darkness of the night has been likened to a dragon soaring through the heavens, hence the name changes to "Oboro".
古の感性が彩る言葉に、また心の豊かさを頂きました。
I was again enriched by the words colored by the ancient sensibility.
春の女神が彩る春霞の風景、そして夜の帷が降りた頃は、朧月夜（おぼろつきよ）を楽しんで頂きながら、春の息吹をお楽しみ下さい。
I hope you will enjoy the breath of spring as you enjoy the scenery of spring haze colored by the goddess of spring, and 朧月夜（Oboro Tsukiyo ）, a hazy spring moon when the night has fallen.
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