Fragment
Temples Lyrics

The lyrics of Temples’ song Fragment are a testament to eastern culture’s influence on the western world. The opening line of the song, ‘East is where the western heart resides,’ implies that the western mentality has evolved to include eastern values and beliefs. The desert’s sunlight is likened to a deafening child, and this could be interpreted to mean that the desert is a powerful force that draws those around it into its embrace. This can be illustrated by the image of the parched group of travelers, who are presumably lost in the vast expanse of the desert. The ‘journey from [?]’ and ‘the dawning of a new [day]’ indicate that they have gone through an intense experience and are now undergoing a transformation.

‘Adrift and he will come into the morning’ could be interpreted as an allusion to the idea of enlightenment, which is often associated with eastern philosophy. The ‘god of distant white’ could be a reference to a deity from eastern religion who guides the travelers towards their awakening. ‘The teeming lips’ could signify a hive of activity or gathering of people who have gathered to witness this event. The astral shapes breaking into fragments suggest that there is a transcendence taking place, where the barriers between the travelers’ physical and spiritual states are breaking down. The phrase ‘breaking into fragments while, breaking into the night’ seems to imply that this transformation will persist into the future.

Overall, Fragment is a song about a defining moment of transcendence, where the boundaries between the physical, spiritual, and emotional states are broken down through the transformative experience of the desert.