Bjørn Eidsvåg is a singer/songwriter from Sauda, Norway, and he is one of t… Read Full Bio ↴Bjørn Eidsvåg is a singer/songwriter from Sauda, Norway, and he is one of the country's best selling artists. His formal eduction is as a theologian. He is an ordained Lutheran priest, although he has little work experience as such, he has worked as a priest in a mental hospital. His lyrics are often related to Christianity, although it usually depends upon how you interpret it. Many of his lyrics deal with life and its problems. He has listeners in all ages and all religious groups and is himself very including and has often been found criticising various sides of society, including how the church works. An example of this being shown in his lyrics can be found in the song "Ein får elska mens ein kan" where he sings that "You should love while you can. Man and woman, man and man". One of his best known songs is "Eg Ser".

Trøstesang
Bjørn Eidsvåg Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Her e ein bitte liten trøstesang
for de av oss som gang på gang
blir djupt fortvila
øve tankens feige faneflukt
kver gang den nesten bære frukt
og vil brått kvila
den e så svikefull- den e'kje sanne
den tar med svaret inn i tåkelandet

me halse itte som best me kan
men blir ståande igjen i måpeland
ståande igjen i måpeland

et lite ord, et navn, et tall, et sted
det sko vær' lett å huska det
men alt e vekke
me har det så og sei på tungespissen
men den sleipe tankenissen
den e så frekke
den e så svikefull- den e'kje sanne
den tar med svaret inn i tåkelandet
me halse itte som best me kan
men blir ståande igjen i måpeland
ståande igjen i måpeland

men sjøl Newton ødela mang en
vakker aften
på grubling og bruk av fyndord
- sikkert grove
for å finna det han visste han visste:
tyngdekraften
og det som sko te va å få et eple i hove

så det e håp for nåken og einkver
så lenge det fins epletrær

Overall Meaning

The first stanza of Bjørn Eidsvåg's "Trøstesang" presents a little comfort song for the ones who, time and time again, feel deeply desperate. It talks about how cowardice and the escape of thoughts hinder them from achieving their goals. The singer implies that sometimes, even when the answer is almost within reach, it remains elusive and unsolvable. It's a betrayal, because it takes the answer into the mist and ambiguity of uncertainty. Although they try their best to keep up, they remain standing in disbelief, "ståande igjen i måpeland."

In the second stanza, the song reflects on the powerlessness of the human mind to remember the most essential things. The little things that matter the most, like a name or a place, seem easy to remember, but they slip from the tongue like sand from the hand. It's frustrating because we hold them on the tip of our tongue, but our sly and mischievous thoughts make them vanish out of our memory's reach. The stanza echoes the sentiment of the first one by portraying the elusive nature of the answer.

The last stanza of the song gives hope to listeners by citing Newton's famous story and how he discovered the concept of gravity. It's a message that reminds us that even great minds like Newton had their struggles before discovering remarkable things that shape our world. The song concludes with the assurance that as long as there are apple trees, there is hope for someone, somewhere, struggling with life's questions.

Line by Line Meaning

Her e ein bitte liten trøstesang
This is a small song of comfort

for de av oss som gang på gang
for those of us who time and time again

blir djupt fortvila
become deeply despairing

øve tankens feige faneflukt
over the mind's cowardly flight

kver gang den nesten bære frukt
every time it nearly bears fruit

og vil brått kvila
and will suddenly rest

den e så svikefull- den e'kje sanne
it is so deceitful- it is not truthful

den tar med svaret inn i tåkelandet
it takes the answer into the foggy land

me halse itte som best me kan
we pursue it as best we can

men blir ståande igjen i måpeland
but end up standing in bewilderment

ståande igjen i måpeland
standing in bewilderment