Ride into Obsession demo

[Asha'man Shar'aman]

I'm sure a lot of you guys have heard Ride into Obsession by Blind Guardian. But there is a demo of it, with some very interesting lyrics. I have an idea of the meaning of the lyrics, and would like to see what other people think. In case you don't know the lyrics, I will put them up here. I will also put a link to the song.https://youtu.be/62AWdtGLjGc 

PLEASE NOTE: These lyrics are my interpretation only. I did not steal them off of someone else, I came up with them on my own. I believe this is Ishamael and Lews Therin speaking. I think the song is split into Age of Legends sections and Third Age sections. I'll say which I think is which.  I will indicate who I think is talking with their name in bold above their section of the song. My interpretation of the meaning is in bold. Lyrics are in normal font. I will put a bold star at the start and end of a set of lyrics that I think their meanings go together. 

And without further ado, here are the lyrics.

Lyrics and interpretation:

                  (Age of Legends)                                

                                       (Ishamael speaking)                                               

                                                                 Come, I'll show you the way (Ishamael talking to Lews Therin)

                                                                                                                         The land that no one else denied me (Talking about Ishamael's attempt to win the War of the Shadow and how Lews Therin stopped him)

                                                                                                                          Just watch these saddened creatures (Talking about how Ishamael believes that the Light cannot win, while others still have hope)

                                                                                                                         I don't believe our teacher (Either Ishamael and Lews Therin's teacher from when they were young, or someone who taught Ishamael about the Light winning.)

                                                                                                                           There's more to win, but I'm gonna fight this war alone (Talking about the War of the Shadow and working with the other Forsaken.)

 

                                                                                                       There comes the end of the world (The Last Battle, either in the Second Age or the Third)

                                                                                                                      And there's the dying creatures (All the people dying. Ishamael sees them as creatures, either due to his insanity, or because he is one of the Chosen and therefore has a sense of superiority.)

                                                                 Follow the road of our savior (Telling people to follow the Dark One)

                                                     Unholy grounds, this is my last stand (The Sealing of the Bore)

                                                                                                              I'll twist then turn, then I'm stumbling about (Ishamael's conflict over following the Dark One, or his struggle to escape the Sealing and being thrust into another Age where things are unfamiliar)

                                                                                                                     

                                                                                                                 Let Ages come and go, (Ishamael's belief that the Shadow would eventually be victorious)

The Wheel will turn now 

                                                                                                                      Ride into Obsession (Ishamael's obsession with Lews Therin and the turning of the Wheel) 

                                                           I will return (The Dark One bringing Ishamael back to life)

The Wheel will turn now

                                                                                                                        Ride into Obsession (Ishamael's obsession with Lews Therin and the turning of the Wheel)

 

Forty-thousand men

                                                                                                                             Needs to understand (The men need to understand that the Dark One will eventually triumph)

                                                                               Come to follow the Lord (The men have come to follow the Dark One)

(Lews Therin speaking)

   Fourteen days my friend *

                                                                                                                        By the law will you die (Talking about a potential law that says Darkfriends have fourteen days to prove their innocence before they are executed) *

                                                                                                                          I'm feeling so alone (Lews Therin is thinking about how he killed his family. This could be before he was Healed or after.)

                     Ilyena (Lews Therin is mourning Ilyena)

                                                                                                           Where will you go? (Lews Therin is wondering where Ilyena will go now that she is dead)

                                                                                                                  And where is the wind and will I die? (Lews Therin is wondering if he will kill himself with the amount of Power he has drawn. The mention of wind could be just Lews Therin rambling in his madness, or he perceives his madness as something that wind could clear away, such as fog or clouds over his mind, and he is wondering where his sanity is going.)

(Ishamael speaking)

                                                                                                                                Here on my own, (Ishamael was allowed to escape the Seal every thousand years, but was on his own)

                                                                                                                           A snake and a lion I pray (This is referring to the Great Serpent and Andor, possibly referencing Rand or Elayne)

                                                                                                                   Unholy grounds, this is my last stand (This is Ishamael's fight with Rand in the Stone of Tear.)

                                                                                                 I'll twist then turn, then I'm stumbling about (Ishamael's death in the Stone of Tear)

 

                                                                                                                   Let Ages come and go, (Ishamael's belief that the Shadow would eventually be victorious)

         The Wheel will turn now 

                                                                                                                                 Ride into Obsession (Ishamael's obsession with Lews Therin/Rand and the turning of the Wheel)

                                                                        I will return (The Dark One bringing Ishamael back to life)

The Wheel will turn now

                                                                                                                           Ride into Obsession (Ishamael's obsession with Lews Therin/Rand and the turning of the Wheel)

 

Oh, I cannot leave it (The Last Battle)

Now it's time for bleeding

                                                                                                                           It's the afterlife I run from (Ishamael's desire to die so completely that the Wheel will never spin him back out)

 

                                                                                                             And now all the witches were weeping (The Third Age Aes Sedai. This could be the breaking of the Tower)

                                                                                                                 Right now while the world is sleeping (This could be all the death at the Last Battle, or that the world was unaware that the Dark One was stirring and the Forsaken were loose. In effect they were "sleeping")

                                                                                                                 I'm here to conquer your damned (The damned are most likely Darkfriends, and Ishamael has come to ready them for the Last Battle)

                                                                                                  And now I'll be on my way (Ishamael has completed his task of readying the Darkfriends for Tarmon Gai'don)

                                                                                                                A snake and a lion I pray (This is referring to the Great Serpent and Andor, possibly referencing Rand or Elayne) 

                                                                      And over and over and over again (There is no end to the turning of the Wheel)

                                                                                                              And over the bridge we shall go (The bridge could be a way of saying "And into the next Age we shall go." This piece is intriguing because it seems to say that Ishamael is losing his faith in the Dark One)

 

                                                                                                                     Let Ages come and go, (Ishamael's belief that the Shadow would eventually be victorious)

The Wheel will turn now 

                                                                                                                        Ride into Obsession (Ishamael's obsession with Lews Therin/Rand and the turning of the Wheel)

                                                    I will return (The Dark One bringing Ishamael back to life)

The Wheel will turn now

                                                                                                                         Ride into Obsession (Ishamael's obsession with Lews Therin/Rand and the turning of the Wheel)

I'm falling down 

                                                                                      Beyond the doors I see (Ishamael's crumbling sanity as Moridin)

                                                                                                                                  Walk with me and you'll find obsession (Ishamael reflecting on his life, and his obsession with Lews Therin and Rand, as well as the turning of the Wheel)

                                                                                                                                      You will never be alone (Ishamael might view his insanity as something that will not leave him alone. He could also see the Wheel as never leaving him alone by spinning him out time and time again. The "you" in this statement is most likely Ishamael's madness talking, or him thinking of his life as if describing it to someone else.)

                                                                                                                                  Walk with me and you'll find obsession  (Ishamael reflecting on his life, and his obsession with Lews Therin and Rand, as well as the turning of the Wheel)

You will never be alone (Ishamael might view his insanity as something that will not leave him alone. He could also see the Wheel as never leaving him alone by spinning him out time and time again. The "you" in this statement is most likely Ishamael's madness talking, or him thinking of his life as if describing it to someone else.)

 

End lyrics and interpretation ?

Okay, I know that was a lot, so congratulations if you made it here! This took a lot of time and effort, so I would really appreciate if you told me your thoughts. I am totally open to new ideas, so let me know if you think something doesn't quite fit, or you have a better idea. Thanks!

 

 

Edited November 26, 2020 by Asha'man Shar'aman