Mentioned early in the song, the black chasm likely represents a mortal wound, a blood stain creeping ever larger. It leaks blood “forever”, or at least for the rest of this person’s life – their forever.
It could also symbolize death as it always creeps up on us and leaks into our lives when loved ones pass away.
The “universal mind” is a concept discussed by Norman Mailer in his novel “Why Are We in Vietnam?” Abbreviated, it becomes “um.” Mailer explains how people say “um” to call out to a higher consciousness when their thoughts become disorganized.
This could also be a reference to the Spiritus Mundi or “world spirit” that poet W.B. Yeats refers to in his poem The Second Coming. Both this piece and that one have dark, intense, hopeless tones.
Some say love is the thing that is in the centre of all humans, which is pretty much in other words, the act of caring about something/someone.
- via annotations on Genius
A Little God In My Hands
Swans Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Black chasm creeping, forever leaking
Oh universe, sing in reverse
Oh sucking lung, we'll never come
Forever loving! Forever waiting!
Oh yeah!
Oh yeah!
The universal mind!
Eye full of sun, hand full of mud
Oh universe: you stink of love!
Forever lazy, forever crazy
Forever holy, forever hungry
Forever hateful, forever beautiful
Forever needing, forever reaching
Forever stinking, forever breathing
Forever growing, forever leaving
Oh shit and blood! Forever love!
No ebb or flood, will ever come!
Oh shit and blood! Forever love, love, love!
Forever draining, forever leaving
What's my name?
What's my name?
Oh yeah!
Oh yeah!
The universal mind!
The lyrics to Swans's song "A Little God In My Hands" is a complex layering of images and ideas, exploring the vastness of the universe and the endless, cyclical nature of existence. The first stanza describes a "pink little lamb" resting on a "granite slab", juxtaposed against a "black chasm creeping" that is "forever leaking". These images conjure up a sense of the opposing forces that make up our reality - the light and the dark, the solid and the fluid. The singer then sings of the universe singing in reverse, as if to symbolize the erasure of time and entropy. The "sucking lung" is never filled, indicating a longing or yearning that can never be satisfied. Nevertheless, the singer affirms their "forever loving" and "forever waiting" attitude towards the universe, which is both an acknowledgement of the all-encompassing nature of existence and an acceptance of the unknown.
The next stanza features further duality, as the singer describes their "eye full of sun" and "hand full of mud". The universe "stinks of love", which is not necessarily a negative thing, but rather a reflection of the intricate and contradictory realities we live in. The singer then lists several descriptors that encapsulate the eternal qualities of humanity and existence - "lazy", "crazy", "holy", "hungry", "hateful", "beautiful", "needing", "reaching", "stinking", "breathing", "growing", and "leaving". All of these words speak to the essential nature of being alive, despite their oppositional attributes.
The final stanza of the song is the most reflective, as the singer declares "Oh shit and blood! Forever love!" and claims that "no ebb or flood will ever come". The singer seems to have accepted the raw reality of existence, with all of its messiness and mystery, and embraced the endless flow of life. There is a sense of wonder and awe in the way the singer describes the universe as "draining" and "leaving", and this awe is echoed in the repeated affirmations of "oh yeah!" and "the universal mind!" These phrases suggest a kind of cosmic consciousness, where humanity is at one with the universe and its eternal movement.
Line by Line Meaning
Pink little lamb, on a granite slab
Vivid imagery of a peaceful but helpless creature on a cold, hard surface
Black chasm creeping, forever leaking
Darkness slowly spreading and persisting endlessly
Oh universe, sing in reverse
Yearning for a reversal of fate or events beyond human control
Oh sucking lung, we'll never come
Living beings constantly gasping for air, but never finding complete relief
Forever loving! Forever waiting!
Unconditional love and loyal patience
Oh yeah!
Exclamation of excitement or agreement
Oh yeah!
Repeat of the above exclamation
The universal mind!
Reference to the collective consciousness of all things
Eye full of sun, hand full of mud
One part radiance, one part filth
Oh universe: you stink of love!
Affection and connection permeating throughout existence
Forever lazy, forever crazy
Living things sometimes apathetic or even irrational
Forever holy, forever hungry
A search for divine purity and fulfillment
Forever hateful, forever beautiful
Life contains both ugliness and splendor
Forever needing, forever reaching
Perpetual desires and aspirations
Forever stinking, forever breathing
Life always involves both unpleasantness and vitality
Forever growing, forever leaving
The inevitable cycles of life and death
Oh shit and blood! Forever love!
Love that endures despite the harsh realities of existence
No ebb or flood, will ever come!
A sense of constancy or permanence
Oh shit and blood! Forever love, love, love!
Reassertion of the enduring power of love
Forever draining, forever leaving
Life is constantly draining away and moving on
What's my name?
An existential question about identity
What's my name?
Repeat of the question about identity
Oh yeah!
Exclamation of excitement or agreement
Oh yeah!
Repeat of the above exclamation
The universal mind!
Final reference to the collective consciousness of all things
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ishlocke3084
Pink little lamb, on a granite slab
Black chasm creeping, forever leaking
Oh universe
Sing in reverse
Oh sucking lung
We'll never come
Forever loving!
Forever waiting!
[Refrain]
Oh yeah! Oh yeah!
The universal mind!
[Verse 2]
Eye full of sun, hand full of mud
Oh universe: you stink of love!
Forever lazy
Forever crazy
Forever holy
Forever hungry
Forever hateful
Forever beautiful
Forever needing
Forever reaching
Forever stinking
Forever breathing
Forever growing
Forever leaving
@mathdebaterclub
Anyone else get a sort of incel vibe from this song? Not in a cringy way, but rather an actual exploration of feelings of inescapable sexual frustration, loneliness, rejection, and above all bitterness and hatred towards the rest of society and its love-filled bliss that you will never be a part of. It fits with the way the whole song sort of seems to descend gradually into ever-greater madness and insanity. Here's some of my reasoning:
"Pink little lamb, a granite slab" -Feelings of vulnerability in harsh circumstances
"Black chasm creeping, forever leaking" -Unending depression eating up your life
"Oh universe, sing in reverse" -Everything feels backwards
"Oh sucking lung, will never come. Forever loving, forever waiting!" Feelings of unconsummated need, unattainable sexual gratification, and unrequited love.
"Oh yeah, the universal MIYIYIAAAAAGAGGGHHHHe82308ry3rghaieregv22.. "
How everyone else seems to be exactly the same in the way they think and act towards you (dismissive and uncaring).
Then there's the vast list inescapable feelings that ultimately ends with "forever leaving" because love and fulfillment are ultimately fleeting and ephemeral.
I think the chanting towards the ending is "so far, so many miles to go" indicating that no matter how far you've come, your wants are always out of reach.
tl;dr this song is my life. rip
@billypeas9516
I like spinning in circles and taking steps in sync with the beat and stopping at the end when the song gets all distorted so I’m laying there all dizzy and hearing the weird noise at the same time
@Sighbot
I just tried this and when I stopped exactly when the first explosion of noise came, it was the most disorienting 2 seconds of my life.
@sock8718
i like tyou
@LDVenus-kz2lc
FOREVER DIZZAAAAY
@shrekjunior6144
thats adorable
@buried4430
Ok I gotta try that now
@anomaly2758
When the chanting around the four min mark comes in, it feels as if I'm about to be spread across a wooden table to have my lungs ripped out by a cult. Good stuff
@sex6cult9revolution
Check out Beautiful Child from the Children of God album. Sounds even more like an actual ritual sacrifice than this.
@amtrakfan9125
I could play this in a Home Depot and no one would notice
@naelevoli7185
underrated comment