Lyrics
before the beginning of years
Reflects a time before the start of recorded history or existence.
there came to the making of man
Describes the creation or emergence of humanity.
time, with a gift of tears
Time is personified as bearing sorrow.
grief, with a glass that ran
Grief is personified as a container that pours continuously, signifying enduring pain.
pleasure, with pain for leaven
Pleasure is accompanied by pain, hinting at the dual nature of joy and suffering.
summer, with flowers that fell
Summer, a time of vibrancy, is contrasted with the inevitable decay of flowers.
rememberance fallen from heaven
Memories originating from a celestial realm, now lost or forgotten.
and madness risen from hell
Madness emerging from a place of torment or suffering.
strength without hands to smite
Power or capability without physical force.
love that endures for a breath
Love that lasts only momentarily.
night the shadow of light
Darkness as the companion or contrast to light.
and life the shadow of death
Life as a mere reflection or imitation of death.
and the high gods took in hand
Deities engaging in the creation of fire and sorrow.
fire and the falling of tears
Symbolizes the existence of tears, expressing deep emotions.
and a measure of sliding sand
A representation of time slipping away, evoking the transience of existence.
from under the feet of the years
The fleeting nature of time beneath the passage of years.
and froth and drift of the sea
Sea foam and movement, symbolizing instability and change.
and dust of the laboring earth
Dust, a product of earthly toil and effort.
and bodies of things to be
Physical forms of future existence in both birth and death.
in the houses of death and of birth
Representing the cycle of life and death within structures of mortality.
and wrought with weeping and laughter
Creation marked by both tears and joyous laughter.
and fashioned with loathing and love
Objects shaped with both intense dislike and profound affection.
with life before and after
Signifying existence before and after, encompassing the notion of continuity.
and death beneath and above
Death's omnipresence both below and above life, suggesting its inevitability.
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