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A cat came drifting onto my porch from the outside cold
And with eyes closed, drinking warm milk from my bowl
Thought,
"Nobody hears me! Nobody hears me!
As I crept in so soft
And nobody sees me! Nobody sees me!"
As I watched six steps off
Like peacocks wandering the walkways of the zoo
Who have twice the autonomy the giraffes and the tigers do
Saying,
"No one can stop me! No one can stop me!
No one clips my claws.
Now everyone watch me! Everyone watch me
scale these outside walls!"
Oh you, pious and profane
Put away your praise and blame
Said, "A glass can only spill what it contains"
To the perpetually plain, the incurably inane
A glass can only spill what it contains
What new mystery is this?
What blessed backwardness?
The Immeasurable One is held and does not resist!
Struck by wicked words and foolish fists of senseless men
The Almighty One does not defend
I was halfway listening to what she thinks she knows
We're like children dressing in our parents' clothes
Saying,
"Nobody knows me. Nobody knows me.
No one knows my name.
Nobody knows me. Nobody knows me.
No, nobody knows me."
I half-heartedly explained
But gave up peacefully ashamed
A glass can only spill what it contains
We went to Portugal and Spain
And in her mind the entire time it rained
A glass can only spill what it contains
What new mystery is this?
In overflowing emptiness
The Invisible is seen among the shadows and the mist
Before my doubting eyes the Infinite appears in time
The Unquestionable is questioned but makes no reply
What new mystery is this?
What new mystery is this?
What new mystery is this?
What new mystery is this?
What new mystery is this?
"My Rabbi!"
My lips betray with a kiss
What new mystery is this?
And with eyes closed, drinking warm milk from my bowl
Thought,
"Nobody hears me! Nobody hears me!
As I crept in so soft
And nobody sees me! Nobody sees me!"
As I watched six steps off
Like peacocks wandering the walkways of the zoo
Who have twice the autonomy the giraffes and the tigers do
Saying,
"No one can stop me! No one can stop me!
No one clips my claws.
Now everyone watch me! Everyone watch me
scale these outside walls!"
Oh you, pious and profane
Put away your praise and blame
Said, "A glass can only spill what it contains"
To the perpetually plain, the incurably inane
A glass can only spill what it contains
What new mystery is this?
What blessed backwardness?
The Immeasurable One is held and does not resist!
Struck by wicked words and foolish fists of senseless men
The Almighty One does not defend
I was halfway listening to what she thinks she knows
We're like children dressing in our parents' clothes
Saying,
"Nobody knows me. Nobody knows me.
No one knows my name.
Nobody knows me. Nobody knows me.
No, nobody knows me."
I half-heartedly explained
But gave up peacefully ashamed
A glass can only spill what it contains
We went to Portugal and Spain
And in her mind the entire time it rained
A glass can only spill what it contains
What new mystery is this?
In overflowing emptiness
The Invisible is seen among the shadows and the mist
Before my doubting eyes the Infinite appears in time
The Unquestionable is questioned but makes no reply
What new mystery is this?
What new mystery is this?
What new mystery is this?
What new mystery is this?
What new mystery is this?
"My Rabbi!"
My lips betray with a kiss
What new mystery is this?
Lyrics submitted by Fat Kid With Asthma
Track duration: 03:46
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The rest of the song describes many different types of people. Cats, peacocks, giraffes, perpetually plain, incurably inane, pious and profane, and several others are all different types of people that you will only see and recognize if you are not among the "incurably inane"
The purpose of the phrase "a glass can only spill what it contains" is that each of these people can only show what they are, but since so many people today are simply dressing in their parents closed, they themselves do not realize what they are. So it is a call to attention for those people the "incurably inane" to shed their parents closed and look through the glass to see what they contain.
we can only be as good as what's on the inside of us.
if we have good wine in our cup, were going to spread goodness.
if we have bitter drink in our cup, were going to spill bitterness.
I think it's all about different types of people
(numbers corraspond with stanza)
1. the outcast.
cat = vulnerable, on there own, independent.
its coming in for help, but nobody hears him.
the saddest part is that someone's right there helping him, but the cat is unaware "its eyes closed"
2. the proud
peacocks = pride, argent, boastful, haughty
the walkway =which is THE place to show off,
there in a zoo =its a place for animals, in CAPTIVITY!
the peacock has SOME freedom, he can walk the walkways,
SO he thinks , he's better then giraffes and tigers.
but he's really still in a ZOO, stuck in captivity.
3.the religious
first part covers those who talk but don't act. The people who talk about whats right and wrong but never actually seek to end human suffering.
'a glass can only spill what it contains'
you can only spill over what's in your cup.
the second part is to the always empty, boring people.
you can only help them to the point that you yourself are filled.
how can you help those when you need help yourself. or if you have a little bit of goodness in your glass, how can you fill others to overflowing goodness?
4. Jesus
Its CRAZY Jesus being insulted. and beaten.
and Jesus's Father does not defend (protect) HIM!
it makes no sense (a mystery)
5. The Fake
somebody's yakking, about something,
but they really don't understand the topic at hand.
there just blabbering.
dressing up, = pretending, faking, deceiving.
its like a fool who is dressing up, going to a gathering of wise people.
the fool is celebrating that nobody really knows who he is, and since the fool 'thinks he knows' what's going on, the fool thinks she's wise, but in reality. we know she's a fool.
So the wise are only 'half way listening' and see for her for what she is.
6. The Wise speak...
He only half hartly trys to communicate to the fool, but he gives up. .
gives up calmly though! its a noble resgination,
They both, the wise man and foolish women, saw and did alot,
but she (the fool) not understanding the deeper meaning of it all. saw negativity
we can function on what is in us
she didnt grow up and know how to handle life,
the reason everything stunk was because she wasn't full enough to appreciate it.
7. The wise admit It doesn't make sense. look at these paradoxes!
God is seen in nature but very subtly.
("invisible is seen!" that's impossible, but it happens in the shadows and mist. mist and shadows are both natural occurrences but are very very subtle and flightly.)
God transcends time, but appears in Time (Infinite appears in time)
God is so great how can we even attempt to question him.
if we question him of course he makes no reply, who should he?
HES THERE!!! WE CAN SEE HIM!
seeing Him should be enough.
he's been there the whole time, why are you asking questions?
he doesn't need to respond.
8.
think about it
what's going on?
MY SPIRTUAL LEADER - Jesus,
my lips betray with a kiss. = Judas
The wise is saying.
he's just like Judas.
Betraying Jesus, even though he's seen God.
and it doesn't make sense.
---------------
: )
whatcha think?
that is everything, a glass can only spill what it contains, what comes out of your mouth is an overflow of the heart,
Before my doubting eyes the Infinite appears in time"
The Invisible is a metaphor for God, as many people claim he doesn't exist as he cannot be percieved my material senses.
The Infinite is also a metaphor for God.
"The Unquestionable is questioned but makes no reply"
This is when people question God, for instance "why is there famine", they feel this is God's fault, whereas it is actually our greedy, and exploitative nature that causes this.
So the people who lack faith in God, question Him, but He doesn't reply as it isn't as easy as that.
(This is just my meagre perception of the lyrics :S)
In the first verse the cat thinks it is so sneaky and self-sustaining by drinking the milk. But this is a deception as the milk has been provided by a person watching "six steps off."
In the second verse, the peacock thinks it is free and it does have more autonomy than the animals in the cages. But this freedom is also an illusion because at any moment the zookeepers could put it in a cage as well.
In the last verse, the woman thinks she knows so much more than she really does and has a higher opinion of herself than she should. They put on different roles that they which are not truly them, like "children dressing in our parents clothes." Through this they try to disguise who they really are. But again, these are all self-deceptions and ways to exalt themselves
In contrast to these images of people/animals trying to exalt themselves is the portrayal of Jesus as the ultimate example of humility. Jesus doesn't try to exalt himself or create an image for himself. He doesn't defend himself from the attacks of people who have such a high opinion of themselves. However, out of this humility comes true power and greatness. This relates strong to verses in the Bible such as Matthew 18: "whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven" and Matthew 23:12 - "All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted." This is the "new mystery" and "blessed backwardness"
This comes down to the chorus. "A glass can only spill what it contains" relates to the fact that we can only offer what we really are, not false self-conceptions. Those who exalt themselves don't really have much to offer because there isn't much behind this boasting. The "exalted" are then "humbled" by this. Jesus on the other hand, has humbled himself, and through this has become truly great. Therefore, his "spilled glass" has a lot to offer because it truly contains greatness and power. This can also be related to Jesus not defending himself when being taken to be crucified. Because of his humble willingness to empty himself, this event of "overflowing emptiness" has become so powerful for Christians.
Sorry this is so long, but I really like the words to this song!
this song is about how people tend to think they are invincible
but according to arron we arent without God.
he is always in control no matter how big we think we are.
the cat thought no one could see him
"but i watched six steps off"
also about a girl he knew that thought she knew everything about God and from what i got she was an athiest and took the "no one understands me" approachto life
and god does not reply because of our free will
"The Unquestionable is questioned but makes no reply"