疑心暗鬼

ぎしん　あんき
gishin anki

Ya SUSPECT! One of the things that I love about studying Yo-ji-juku-go is the fun of decoding them. I thought I was onto a Tell-tale Heart with this one, but it wasn't what I expected it to be.

Definition:
疑いの気持ちで見ると、なんでもないことまで怪しく思えること。
Translation:
1. Suspicion breeds suspicion.
2. A state of paranoia
3. When you go looking for demons, you'll find them, even if you have to conjure them up yourself

I could've used this one just a week ago, when I got back from India and was convinced that I had malaria after looking up all the symptoms online... or I could use it to describe how I feel about airplanes. Why does every single noise that an airplane makes sound like some kind of mechanical failure?

You could also use it to describe the Japanese mentality towards crime in their country, as this video, and this article at Japan Probe will illustrate. Enjoy.

Crime-fiction
by newsprb

The important point in using this yo-ji is that it's not a matter of a guilty conscience that creates the paranoia, as I first suspected. It's more like the idea of finding a loose pebble on a mountainside and moving cross-country for fear of an avalanche.

例文：
A-san:　最近、彼女が嘘ついていると思う。
I think my girlfriend's been lying to me lately.
B-san: マジで？何の嘘？
Really? Lying?
A-san: 昨日、7-11で寄って来たと言ったけど、Family Martのレシートだった。何か怪しく思わない？で、車のオドメーターを見て、彼女が言ったより遠くまで行っていた。もしかして、昨日は仕事ではなくて、浮気してたかな？そして、違う道を通って帰って、7じゃなくて、Family Martで夕食を買ってきたのかな。
Yesterday, she said she went to 7-11, but the receipt was from Family Mart. Isn't that suspect? Then, I checked her odometer, and she drove farther than she said she did. What if she didn't go to work yesterday? If she was cheating on me, then she would've taken a different road home, and that would explain why she bought dinner at Family Mart and not a 7-11, wouldn't it?
B-san: わー。お前、本当に疑心暗鬼になっているなー！今、Family Martのバイトに遅れているから、後で話そう。
Wow, you're getting really paranoid, huh? We can talk about this more later. Now, I'm running late for my shift at Family Mart.
A-san: お前だ！！！！
IT WAS YOU!!!!!