An Exegesis of the Lyrics of "Believer"
April 20, 2018
Apprentice Levi
1
Potential Apprentice Levi is desirous of studying under a Master of the Occult Arts and Sciences and until that fortuitous time arrives, he may or not be content to study under Yours Truly.
Potential Apprentice Levi’s initial work in the Wonderful World of Occult Research will analyze the lyrics of a modern song. The Gentle Reader may wonder why an unorthodox subject would be allowed for serious inquiry. Our response is that all avenues of Occult Research are permitted, for we cannot foresee what facts we may learn from our efforts; we are Occultists, not psychics. Previously, various songs and music videos by the group R.E.M. were studied to determine if there are a sufficient number of hints, both audio and visual, regarding the Flat Earth Theory. Therefore, strictly speaking, no subject is expressly forbidden, or “off limits”. However, caution should be exercised anytime when non Occultists, or those who have fixed opinions, are involved. In conclusion to this part, we may say that the natural curiosity of the Occult Researcher cannot be limited by certain unfounded opinions that are esteemed by the majority of people.
Potential Apprentice Levi’s initial work in the Wonderful World of Occult Research will analyze the lyrics of a modern song. The Gentle Reader may wonder why an unorthodox subject would be allowed for serious inquiry. Our response is that all avenues of Occult Research are permitted, for we cannot foresee what facts we may learn from our efforts; we are Occultists, not psychics. Previously, various songs and music videos by the group R.E.M. were studied to determine if there are a sufficient number of hints, both audio and visual, regarding the Flat Earth Theory. Therefore, strictly speaking, no subject is expressly forbidden, or “off limits”. However, caution should be exercised anytime when non Occultists, or those who have fixed opinions, are involved. In conclusion to this part, we may say that the natural curiosity of the Occult Researcher cannot be limited by certain unfounded opinions that are esteemed by the majority of people.
History shows again and again, how nature points out the folly of man.
Blue Oyster Cult
Blue Oyster Cult
The text for the song was located on the internet. In conclusion to this part, we may say that finding the text of popular or compelling songs on the internet is easier than using the arduous, but always entertaining, Magic 8 Ball.
2
I'm fired up and tired of the way that things have been…
The author is angry and exhausted. We cannot determine from the text if the condition is current, or if it is in the past. Regretfully, neither details nor explanations are provided and, as a result, we cannot know why the author is “fired up” and tired”.
“Don't you tell me what you think that I can be.”
Someone, perhaps the author’s associates, or possibly only one, has expressed an opinion concerning the author’s unmet potential, what the author “can be”. As the English word “you” can be either singular or plural, we cannot determine the number of individuals offering opinions that “you” references. Of course, we recognize that the author has utilized a common esoteric writing technique: an ambiguous sentence construction.
“I'm the one at the sail, I'm the master of my sea…”
The author expressly states that he is control not only of his life, as he is “at the sail”, but he is also a “skilled practitioner of a particular art or activity” of his naturally chaotic and seemingly unlimited environment, the great expanse of the “sea”.
“Taking my sulking to the masses…”
The majority easily identifies with, and relates to, the author’s suffering : his silence and bad-tempered behaviors caused by “annoyance or disappointment”. It is likely that the author’s largest audience are angst ridden teenagers.
“Write down my poems for the few…”
However, the author expressly creates and manifests his highest values for the like minded minority, no doubt serious minded individuals, for only the few can appreciate well written words and the various implications of his “poems”. The author is not a theoretical poet, he is a practical poet, as he creates a permanent physical record of his accomplishments by writing “down” his poems. We infer that the diffusion of the author’s work is an important aspect of his work, otherwise he would not “write down” his work for the “few”, his work would remain private and unknown.
The few “looked to” and “took to” the author, the few, perhaps, recognizing a kindred “free spirit”. The wording “feeling me” should not be understood as meaning uncaused feelings, rather these feelings result from a mature mind, where appropriate emotions are the rational products of a hierarchy values. While the author’s largest audience is undoubtedly teenagers, it is possible that an often overlooked group, young men who like to think, may also be a viable audience.
The few “looked to” and “took to” the author, the few, perhaps, recognizing a kindred “free spirit”. The wording “feeling me” should not be understood as meaning uncaused feelings, rather these feelings result from a mature mind, where appropriate emotions are the rational products of a hierarchy values. While the author’s largest audience is undoubtedly teenagers, it is possible that an often overlooked group, young men who like to think, may also be a viable audience.
Singing from heartache from the pain…
We do not understand “heartache”, or “emotional anguish or grief,” as applying only to the author’s unrequited romantic interests, whether Cancer-Geminis or not, but to the entirety of the author’s conclusions regarding his existence, the existence of the majority, and the interaction between himself and the vulgar.
Taking my message from the veins…
The author interprets his existence from reality itself, from nature, or the natural world, “the veins”. The author has not added unreasonable, fantastic, bizarre, or supernatural interpretations from the singular statement of Nature.
Speaking my lesson from the brain…
The author has not only learned from his experience, “my lesson”, he also is commutating his learning, specifically by “speaking”. As the Master says, “Those with ears, let them hear.” These insights from personal experiences are not the result of mindless feelings that are deemed by the majority to be causeless, as the author’s feelings are the product from a rational mind, “the brain”. The Gentle Reader should recall that “the few”, not the many, “took to” the author.
Seeing the beauty through the [pain].
The author displays the virtue of fortitude.
You [pain] break me down, you build me up…
The author expressly writes that pain indiscriminately creates and destroys, and we conclude that it has no intention or intelligence, similar to the depiction of “Fate” as a fickle woman. The author’s pain can be understood to be both beneficial, “build me up”, and detrimental, “break me down”. Pain, it seems, has no inherit purpose, no ultimate goal.
Pain only has the meaning assigned by observer, in our example, either the author or the masses, as filtered through a hierarchy of values. The author’s description of pain is ambiguous, it can be either good or bad. Of course, the masses will quickly qualify “pain” as bad, where the absence of “pain” is to be understood by them as a “good”, and, of course, the presence of “pleasure” is better. Human, all too human.
Pain only has the meaning assigned by observer, in our example, either the author or the masses, as filtered through a hierarchy of values. The author’s description of pain is ambiguous, it can be either good or bad. Of course, the masses will quickly qualify “pain” as bad, where the absence of “pain” is to be understood by them as a “good”, and, of course, the presence of “pleasure” is better. Human, all too human.
My life, my love, my drive, it came from (Pain).
The author’s “life” and his singular “love”, have their origin in pain. The author correctly understands that both his existence, which, from the meager evidence, can be considered as “bad”, and his recognition of his highest virtues, which we presume to be “good”, have one seemingly paradoxical source: pain.
Send a prayer to the ones up above …
The author appeals to the two widespread opinions of the masses. Firstly, that prayer is an effective means of communicating with the dead, or “the ones up above”. It is also possible that “the ones up above” are not the deceased, but various gods. Once again, we discover ambiguous wording in the text. Secondly, that there is an existence beyond our world, which cannot be confirmed by natural means, through human observation and human reasoning, but is suggested by speculation, or “forming of conjecture without firm evidence“, and supernatural revelation.
I was choking in the crowd…
From the use of the past tense, “was choking”, we conclude that the masses made “movement difficult or impossible” for the author. We suggest that the author’s limited movement was not physical, but either mental or intellectual, and we prefer the later more than the former. Furthermore, we strongly suggest that the vulgar and their suffocating opinions are not longer an obstacle to the author’s unstated goal. We presume the author has at least one goal, writing to the “few, and the possibility exists that there are unstated goals. We suggest that the opinions of others is a hindrance to one’s growth if one believes that “a view or judgment formed about something, not necessarily based on fact or knowledge” has a value or merit. As Master says, “All opinions are worthless.”
Hoping my feelings, they would drown…
The author wanted his feelings to die, by being submerged in water. We presume that the reason for the desire to drown his feelings was to be “comfortably numb”. Astrologically, emotions are depicted by the element water. The emotional water signs, in no particular order, are Pisces, Cancer, and Scorpio.
But they [“my feelings”] never did [“drown”], ever lived, ebbing and flowing…
The author acknowledges that his hope or desire, without any action, was not, nor would it ever be, sufficient to “drown” his “feelings”. Not surprisingly, the author’s feelings continued beyond the time when he initially began hoping they would disappear, as they, “my feelings“, “ever lived” and persist in their “ebbing and flowing”. Lakes and rivers do not ebb, only ocean water ebbs, that is, the movement of the tide out to sea. Previously, the author said he is the “master of my sea”. The author uses a metaphor, and we would reasonably conclude that the author is the master, not of his “sea”, but of his emotions.
[Pain], You're the face of the future, the blood in my veins…
Pain will continue to be an important, possibly the most important, aspect of the author’s future existence. Pain is integral to the author’s current existence, just as vital as his “blood”. We suggest that the author’s creative “drive”, to write “poems”, is the productive result of “mental anguish”, not physical discomfort. Of course, there are non productive results of pain that, in the long term are determental, but these results are deemed to be unimportant when compared to the accomplishments of writing of “poems”. Mental anguish can accurately describe the image on the five of cups in the A.E. Waite Tarot deck. [We acknowledge this insightful contribution by Apprentice Joe.]
You [pain] made me a …believer…
We have reserved the often repeated lyric, the refrain in musical technical jargon, for our final analysis. “Pain” made the author “a person who believes that a specified thing is effective, proper, or desirable.” It is possible that the author believes that pain is the natural, or “proper”, condition of man, that is, of man in the city, not of natural man. Alternately, from the hints in the text, it is possible that pain is either proper or desirable for certain highly creative men. The masses avoid pain as it is thought to be bad, but the author possibly actively seeks out pain, or “mental anguish”, to facilitate his writing of “poems”.
“Belief” is defined as “an acceptance that a statement is true or that something exists.”
The author does not state, or suggest, that pain leads him, either directly or indirectly, to any knowledge, or any revelation concerning facts. Thus, we assume that the author has at least one belief, and possible multiple beliefs, regarding certain things, despite either little, or no evidence, for these beliefs.
“Belief” is defined as “an acceptance that a statement is true or that something exists.”
The author does not state, or suggest, that pain leads him, either directly or indirectly, to any knowledge, or any revelation concerning facts. Thus, we assume that the author has at least one belief, and possible multiple beliefs, regarding certain things, despite either little, or no evidence, for these beliefs.
3
Although we are confident that our textual commentary is reasonably accurate, or if not accurate, then plausible, however, we are uncertain of the veracity of our intermediate conclusions. Since our intermediate speculations are uncertain, we cannot reach any certain conclusions upon the possible Occult meaning, if any, of the lyrics. We note that our efforts at understanding the text were unexpectedly hindered by various ambiguous words, and at least one strange expression, “the one up above”, that are expected in esoteric writing. Perhaps one of the least recognized, or rarely commented upon, esoteric writing style is to misquote a text and, thereby, giving the context a different meaning and possibly indicating the commentator’s honest thoughts on the given topic. Of course, to recognize a misquote requires careful and thoughtful readers who are the “few” and, frequently, young men who like to think. The misquote is not synonymous with inexact repetition. An example of inexact repetition is found in “Plato’s Seventh Letter”, which is considered by scholars to be written by Plato, unlike the first six letters, where Plato, towards the beginning, lists “friends and associates” and, at the end, mentions his “associates and friends”. As we wrote, the audience both for careful and thoughtful readers and for youths who like to think is not substantial. Leo Strauss noted that “all exoteric poems are "written speeches caused by love."“
The author lists “first things”, “second things”, “third things”, and “last things”. In total, there are four items, just as there are four elements, the fourth being the element earth. The song is in the key of B flat minor, where five of the notes are played a half step lower. There are four elements, and one spirit, for a total of five. For technical reasons, the key of A sharp minor is not used as seven pitches of the key are altered (two of these are double sharps) in the key signature. The number of sharps in the unused key of A sharp minor is the same number of the planets. The composition could write in an easier key (a minor, no altered keys; d minor, one flat; e minor, one sharp), so we infer that the key of B flat minor is intentional. We are uncertain of the significance, if any, of these facts.
Therefore, our conclusion concerning the correct meaning of the lyrics of the Imagine Dragons song “Believer” is inconclusive, although we suggest various viable interpretations.
As always, the Gentle Researcher will reach his own conclusions regarding the existence of “theoretical poets”, “practical poets”, and the suitability of exegeses of lyrics, generally, and songs from the group Imagine Dragons, specifically, for Occult research.
The author lists “first things”, “second things”, “third things”, and “last things”. In total, there are four items, just as there are four elements, the fourth being the element earth. The song is in the key of B flat minor, where five of the notes are played a half step lower. There are four elements, and one spirit, for a total of five. For technical reasons, the key of A sharp minor is not used as seven pitches of the key are altered (two of these are double sharps) in the key signature. The number of sharps in the unused key of A sharp minor is the same number of the planets. The composition could write in an easier key (a minor, no altered keys; d minor, one flat; e minor, one sharp), so we infer that the key of B flat minor is intentional. We are uncertain of the significance, if any, of these facts.
Therefore, our conclusion concerning the correct meaning of the lyrics of the Imagine Dragons song “Believer” is inconclusive, although we suggest various viable interpretations.
As always, the Gentle Researcher will reach his own conclusions regarding the existence of “theoretical poets”, “practical poets”, and the suitability of exegeses of lyrics, generally, and songs from the group Imagine Dragons, specifically, for Occult research.
The Gentle Reader may wonder as to the reason, or reasons, potential Apprentice Levi was not designated as an Apprentice earlier, that is, along with the majority of his cohort, the graduating classes of 2016, 2017, and 2018. We assign our lack of interactions with potential Apprentice Levi as the primary reason for our reluctance to elevate him to an Apprentice.
However, an unbiased analysis of potential Apprentice Levi will reveal that his virtues and qualities are found among the Apprentices. Therefore, upon sufficient reflection, there is no valid reason to prevent potential Apprentice from being elevated to an Apprentice. Therefore,
However, an unbiased analysis of potential Apprentice Levi will reveal that his virtues and qualities are found among the Apprentices. Therefore, upon sufficient reflection, there is no valid reason to prevent potential Apprentice from being elevated to an Apprentice. Therefore,
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By the plenitude of power authorized and granted by the Ancient and Esteemed Order of Hierophants, it is duly proclaimed, declared, and exclaimed that potential Apprentice Levi is hereby elevated to the exalted and sublime position of Apprentice and shall henceforth be recognized as Apprentice Levi to a Master of the Occult Arts and Sciences. All rights, privileges, and benefits associated with said position, current and future, are hereby solemnly bestowed and conferred upon Apprentice Levi this twentieth day of April in the year of our Lord and Master two thousand eighteen. So mote it be. G.D.O’Bradovich III |
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