胡こ蝶ちょうの夢ゆめ

expression, noun

butterfly's dream; half-awake state

Idiomatic expression from a Taoist parable by Zhuang Zhou, used to describe a dreamy, half-awake state where reality and illusion blur. Often used in literary or philosophical contexts.

• 彼かれは胡こ蝶ちょうの夢ゆめのような心地ここちで、現げん実じつと幻げん想そうの区く別べつがつかなかった。

  He felt as if in a butterfly's dream, unable to distinguish reality from illusion.