I think OpinionHead was closer to the true meaning of this song than jchvoid. Although I see the despair, I think the drinking and debt are only a symptom and not the cause.
I know my interpretation cannot be correct, as it is contradictory of the religious perspective so many other Clutch songs take; however, I think this might be closer than anything presented so far:
The opening line references 1 Corinthians 13:12 ("For now we see through a glass, darkly"), which attests to the lack of introspective clarity.
Yggdrasil is the name of the Norse "world tree," which supports the Heavens and connects them to the Earth. Yggdrasil is directly linked to Odin, who can be seen as an analogue to the Christian God. There is even a story of Odin hanging from the tree, having been wounded by a spear, as a dedication to himself. I hope I don't have to draw the connection to Jesus and his cross for you.
While in the influence of Yggdrasil, insight is hindered, the world seems grim, and debt and despair grasps the narrator. Until finally the narrator loses faith and awakens to a beautiful new world where the tree does not exist.
I'm not entirely sure about the brown furred hound. In keeping with the Norse motif, it may be a reference to Fenrir, the legendary wolf involved with bringing about Ragnarok. The mandrake root is an interesting addition to the song. It's of course most widely known for its vaguely human shape and shamanistic fertility-inducing properties. Although it's not directly linked to Yggdrasil as far as I know, it does hold significance in modern Odinism. I see the mandrake root as a diminution of Yggdrasil.
The titular eggs, I think, are the deepest symbol in the song and provide a link between Yggdrasil and the mandrake root. The berries of the Mandragora officinarum are called "djinn's eggs" in Arabic culture, and being in the nightshade family, are poisonous. Each time Neil sings "Yggdrasil," it sounds to me as if he's pronouncing it "egg-drasil." In the first verse, the narrator seems unsatisfied with the eggs, as if dependent upon them. In the second verse, the eggs drop from the disappeared tree and lie smashed and unappealing on the ground. I would say the (djinn's) eggs are being used to drug the narrator into complacency under Yghdrasil.
I think the line about carving a face on the mandrake root refers to personifying God. In the above context and especially bearing in mind the mandrake's toxicity, the bit about it being "virtue food" is an ironic statement and may be saying "this is the poison that the 'virtuous' are swallowing."
So there's that. Thoughts? Questions? Emotional outbursts?
There's a myth that says the mandrake root emits a scream when it's uprooted that kills anything within earshot. In order to harvest the root without dying, people would dig around the root to loosen it up, then tie a dog to it. The person would run for safety and the dog would follow. When the dog got to the end of the rope, the mandrake would be uprooted and the dog would die, but not the person.
There's a myth that says the mandrake root emits a scream when it's uprooted that kills anything within earshot. In order to harvest the root without dying, people would dig around the root to loosen it up, then tie a dog to it. The person would run for safety and the dog would follow. When the dog got to the end of the rope, the mandrake would be uprooted and the dog would die, but not the person.
The brown furred hound that you are meant to mark is likely...
The brown furred hound that you are meant to mark is likely dead after having uprooted Yggdrasil and breaking its spell over the narrator.
I think OpinionHead was closer to the true meaning of this song than jchvoid. Although I see the despair, I think the drinking and debt are only a symptom and not the cause.
I know my interpretation cannot be correct, as it is contradictory of the religious perspective so many other Clutch songs take; however, I think this might be closer than anything presented so far:
The opening line references 1 Corinthians 13:12 ("For now we see through a glass, darkly"), which attests to the lack of introspective clarity.
Yggdrasil is the name of the Norse "world tree," which supports the Heavens and connects them to the Earth. Yggdrasil is directly linked to Odin, who can be seen as an analogue to the Christian God. There is even a story of Odin hanging from the tree, having been wounded by a spear, as a dedication to himself. I hope I don't have to draw the connection to Jesus and his cross for you.
While in the influence of Yggdrasil, insight is hindered, the world seems grim, and debt and despair grasps the narrator. Until finally the narrator loses faith and awakens to a beautiful new world where the tree does not exist.
I'm not entirely sure about the brown furred hound. In keeping with the Norse motif, it may be a reference to Fenrir, the legendary wolf involved with bringing about Ragnarok. The mandrake root is an interesting addition to the song. It's of course most widely known for its vaguely human shape and shamanistic fertility-inducing properties. Although it's not directly linked to Yggdrasil as far as I know, it does hold significance in modern Odinism. I see the mandrake root as a diminution of Yggdrasil.
The titular eggs, I think, are the deepest symbol in the song and provide a link between Yggdrasil and the mandrake root. The berries of the Mandragora officinarum are called "djinn's eggs" in Arabic culture, and being in the nightshade family, are poisonous. Each time Neil sings "Yggdrasil," it sounds to me as if he's pronouncing it "egg-drasil." In the first verse, the narrator seems unsatisfied with the eggs, as if dependent upon them. In the second verse, the eggs drop from the disappeared tree and lie smashed and unappealing on the ground. I would say the (djinn's) eggs are being used to drug the narrator into complacency under Yghdrasil.
I think the line about carving a face on the mandrake root refers to personifying God. In the above context and especially bearing in mind the mandrake's toxicity, the bit about it being "virtue food" is an ironic statement and may be saying "this is the poison that the 'virtuous' are swallowing."
So there's that. Thoughts? Questions? Emotional outbursts?
Oh! Some detail about the dog just dawned on me!
Oh! Some detail about the dog just dawned on me!
There's a myth that says the mandrake root emits a scream when it's uprooted that kills anything within earshot. In order to harvest the root without dying, people would dig around the root to loosen it up, then tie a dog to it. The person would run for safety and the dog would follow. When the dog got to the end of the rope, the mandrake would be uprooted and the dog would die, but not the person.
There's a myth that says the mandrake root emits a scream when it's uprooted that kills anything within earshot. In order to harvest the root without dying, people would dig around the root to loosen it up, then tie a dog to it. The person would run for safety and the dog would follow. When the dog got to the end of the rope, the mandrake would be uprooted and the dog would die, but not the person.
The brown furred hound that you are meant to mark is likely...
The brown furred hound that you are meant to mark is likely dead after having uprooted Yggdrasil and breaking its spell over the narrator.