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Plates 16-17
Ulver Lyrics


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The Giants who formed this world into its sensual existence and now seem to live in it in chains, are in truth, the causes of its life & the sources of all activity; but the chains are, the cunning of weak and tame minds, which have power to resist energy, according to the proverb, the weak in courage is strong in cunning.

Thus one portion of being, is the Prolific, the other, the Devouring: to the devourer it seems as if the producer was in his chains, but it is not so; he only takes portions of existence and fancies that the whole.

But the Prolific would cease to be Prolific unless the Devourer as a sea recieved the excess of his delights.

Some will say, Is not God alone the Prolific? I answer, God only Acts & Is, in existing beings or Men.

These two classes of men are always upon earth, & they should be enemies; whoever tries to reconcile them seeks to destroy existence.

Religion is an endeavour to reconcile the two.

Note. Jesus Christ did not wish to unit but to seperate them, as in the Parable of sheep and goats! & he says I came not to send Peace but a Sword.

Messiah or Satan or Tempter was formerly thought to be one of the Antediluvians who are our Energies.

Overall Meaning

The above lyrics to Ulver's song Plates 16-17 are based on the philosophy and cosmology of William Blake. Blake's works were not just mere writings, but they were pieces of art in themselves. He believed that the universe was created by the imagination of God, and that the forces of energy that move through creation can be divided into two classifications, the Prolific and the Devouring. One classification gives while the other takes away. Blake compares the two to the chains by which some people seem to live in, and he believes that the energy from the Prolific must be able to flow through life, or else the world would stop being Prolific.


The lyrics express the idea that everything is intricately connected, and one must take to give. They also describe that every energy, the Prolific and the Devouring, plays an essential role in the continuous process of creation. The message here is that life can be both wonderful and destructive, gracious and harsh, that we all have a role to play, and we must embrace it. Thus, the lyrics express the idea that balance is needed between the Prolific and Devouring due to their essential roles in creation.


Line by Line Meaning

The Giants who formed this world into its sensual existence and now seem to live in it in chains, are in truth, the causes of its life & the sources of all activity; but the chains are, the cunning of weak and tame minds, which have power to resist energy, according to the proverb, the weak in courage is strong in cunning.
The powerful beings that created and sustain the world are trapped by their own creations, specifically by the cleverness of those with weak minds who can resist their power. Weakness in bravery can be made up for with ingenuity.


Thus one portion of being, is the Prolific, the other, the Devouring: to the devourer it seems as if the producer was in his chains, but it is not so; he only takes portions of existence and fancies that the whole.
The world has two opposing forces: creation and destruction. To the destructive force, it appears that the creator is trapped, but that is not the case. The destroyer only takes parts of existence and believes it is the whole.


But the Prolific would cease to be Prolific unless the Devourer as a sea received the excess of his delights.
The force of creation would no longer be able to create unless the force of destruction, like an ocean, received the excess products of creation.


Some will say, Is not God alone the Prolific? I answer, God only Acts & Is, in existing beings or Men.
Some may argue that only God is the creator, but I say that he only acts and exists within humanity and other living beings.


These two classes of men are always upon earth, & they should be enemies; whoever tries to reconcile them seeks to destroy existence.
There are always people who embody the forces of creation and destruction on Earth, and they should be enemies. Anyone who tries to bring them together is attempting to destroy existence itself.


Religion is an endeavour to reconcile the two.
Religion is an attempt to unite the two opposing forces, the creator and the destroyer.


Note. Jesus Christ did not wish to unite but to separate them, as in the Parable of sheep and goats! & he says I came not to send Peace but a Sword.
It is noted that Jesus did not want to bring the opposing forces together but to separate them, which is demonstrated in his parable of sheep and goats. He also said he came not to bring peace, but conflict.


Messiah or Satan or Tempter was formerly thought to be one of the Antediluvians who are our Energies.
It was once believed that the Messiah, Satan, or Tempter was one of the ancient beings who are the embodiment of our creative and destructive energies.




Contributed by Jasmine O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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Comments from YouTube:

@VitalisEirich

rly great. love it!

@aegrimonis

great stuff. aegrimonis likes.

@Hvorgandr

When you reach Ulver, you reach both Shakespear and William Blake. And when you reach Blake, you'll stop at Emanuel Swedenborg the master spiritualist

@mineralturbo

Garm!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!