spiral?

[Mr.]

what do you think he means at the end of lateralus when he says "swing on the spiral" and "spiral out, keep goin"

[awwww shoot]

I think he means "throw those turds at your mom's face. full speed."

[Smokin joe]

it means whatever you want it to mean. I think the whole swinging on the spiral and spiral symbolize progress. Whether studying hard in math discovering a new planet, you are swinging on that spiral, pushing the envelope, etc...

For me, I love to think of it as 'swinging on the spiral' of our galaxy. Actually, any galaxy for that matter. I'd love to be able to swing on the spiral [arm] and still be a human. But it's so inconceivable for us to view shit like that. Compared to galaxies, we are so insignificant, just a speck of energy that can't even watch light travel.

Ever think about that? I mean, I don't think galaxies can process thought or whatever, but they can span 100,000s of lightyears across. So they could actually watch light travel along their diameter... It's kinda of weird.

Space is cool

joe

[a_divine_martyr]

I agree with Joe on the progress.

Hell if I know though =\

[T00L_scripture]

thats my favorite part of the song or one of my favorite parts. I think its so cool how he sings that part "swing on the spiral". its the only time i really notice maynard singing in rythm with the band. He usally doent, he has his own rythm as the band plays thiers and it gos together.

[tanner]

"swing on the spiral" is maynard singing about traveling to the impossible or otherside. However, spiral in "spiral out" is used as a verb meaning ascend and out is for elsewhere. Ascend elsewhere or go to another place. The whole song lateralus is about ascending into the unknown. if you need more proof just ask...

[jpmanson]

check this out:

http://aleph0.clarku.edu/~djoyce/julia/explorer.html

click somewhere on the main picture, its best if you click right on the border between blue and black, in where its red and yellow. you will get another picture, which is just a magnification of the one before it. in certain places, there are interesting paters of spirals and colors.

[proletarian]

ive always thought that swing on the spiral meeant to let yourself follow your heart, go where you want to go in life and beyond life. dont be contained by anything

[drum_dood]

i think it means to go off and be your own individual. the part that's like "we may just go where no one's been, etc." backs up my statement kind of. feel inspired, fathom the power, witness the beauty, bathe in a fountain, swing on the spiral...be your own person. spiral out (keep going...)

[wholeagain]

Perhapse the spiral simbolizes chaos, it would make sense. Perhapse evolution. The chaotic evolution of the universe. It is never good to try and quantisize reality, it is never good to truely beleive that you truely KNOW anything about reality. Maybe Maynard wants to let go in this ocean of chaos, partially guiding himself, partially being guided by the currents. Maybe he thinks he will come to a realization that has never been made before if he moves with the flow instead of against it. But who knows (except Maynard himself that is).

[random_spiral]

Originally posted by drum_dood
i think it means to go off and be your own individual. the part that's like "we may just go where no one's been, etc." backs up my statement kind of. feel inspired, fathom the power, witness the beauty, bathe in a fountain, swing on the spiral...be your own person. spiral out (keep going...)

this is my opinion as well. swing on the spiral, and spiral out

[Convoy_X]

to me the "spiral" is that place we all draw from to is the spinning of the pool of words that i cant seem to find now. it a place a mental place that one person dras from and shears with wad what they got and we all go and draw our own things from what the firs person got out of it..... i dont think i explaned it evrey well...

[Xero_xerox]

Originally posted by Mr.
what do you think he means at the end of lateralus when he says "swing on the spiral" and "spiral out, keep goin"

I do know for a fact that maynerd studies along with Tori Amos about kaballah and sacred geomotry. In sacred geomotry the sprial represents the basic form of life because it can be found anywere so i belive if you reserch sacred geomoty as well as kaballah you can find alot of answers to The album i hope this helps.

[paraflux]

You can find the golden spiral anywhere, even in the way the great pyramids are constructed and connected. research it.

[cornerstone]

I think if you consider the shape of a spiral and how we see it move, it creates a dizzying effect. Also, in the part during the stuff about the spiral, the guitars, mainly bass sound like they are creating a dizzying effect playing over and over<7:19 mainly>. I'm not sure what this means, not enough time for me to think about it anyway, but maybe we should consider it.

[Ceam]

hello,

I would assume that the "spiral" is refering to the double helix, 2 spiraling complementary strands of dna that make up chromosomes, which make up the human genome and if you take the verb 'Swing' to mean, move LATERALLY or in a curve.. "swing on the spiral" would mean to move in relation to our DNA pattern or constitute a small change. Lateralus along with DRT all are basically about the same idea. Sacrificing your ego in order to reach the next/third level, hence the name triad, of consciousness, where it turn you would gain 2 chromosomes, 46x2..


pete

[Jip]

To me the spiral is like life. When he says "We'll ride the spiral to the end, and may just go where no ones been" i think of existence. The way I interpret it is that if we just let life go then we will end up in the new situations that we all desire. Thats "where no ones been". It really works well when you think of how disorganized life can be if you dont watch over it. Life can just get more and more complicated as time goes on. "Spiral Out, Keep Going" seems like hes saying to just live it up. Live fast...

[ry.]

Originally posted by Ceam
hello,

I would assume that the "spiral" is refering to the double helix, 2 spiraling complementary strands of dna that make up chromosomes, which make up the human genome and if you take the verb 'Swing' to mean, move LATERALLY or in a curve.. "swing on the spiral" would mean to move in relation to our DNA pattern or constitute a small change. Lateralus along with DRT all are basically about the same idea. Sacrificing your ego in order to reach the next/third level, hence the name triad, of consciousness, where it turn you would gain 2 chromosomes, 46x2..


pete

i think he is refering to dna, and i think these lines ("spiral out, keep going") deal with the "holyness" of intuition. I think he says that if we can use and understand intuition instead of questioning the logic of it, that we may evolve.

[eyemaware]

Originally posted by Convoy_X
to me the "spiral" is that place we all draw from to is the spinning of the pool of words that i cant seem to find now. it a place a mental place that one person dras from and shears with wad what they got and we all go and draw our own things from what the firs person got out of it..... i dont think i explaned it evrey well...

the unconscious/spirit/inner voice/intuition etc.?

Spiral in, spiral out... straight up and down... the "waves" of existence, alikened to the "waves" of a trip... tide in, mind out... flashes of perception that the mind releases...
Sorry, just one of my many trains of thought at the moment.

[4th Eye]

The spiral = life thing makes somewhat sense to me and that's what it means to me currently (I'm not killing myself though).

"lets me see there is so much more"
This part says much, even if other parts disprove the whole life thing. Why should someone end one's gift called life because of something bad happened. There might be something precious, something important, something worth living, even if it's far away. There might be something where no one's been.

"Feed my will to feel this moment urging me to cross the line."
The moment might be the moment when something bad happened and the person is about to commit a suicide. Maybe it's crossing the line behind, come back, continue living and embrace what ever may come.

Overthinking, overanalyzing might be the moment of deciding suicide. If one analyzes and thinks the bad things too much, it could end up to suicide. When of a result of suicide a person dies, the body and the mind separates, which is death, and leaves the opportunities behind.

Actually, I think, the song isn't about suicide but seeing the happy and bright side of life. "Enough to step aside and weep like a widow" meaning that it's been enough crying and it's time to think positive things, "to feel inspired, to fathom the power, to witness the beauty, to bathe in the fountain".

Black and white means sadness and weeping but then came red and yellow, which are kinda positive and warm colors, and show the bright side of life.

[Tantobourne]

After reading the lyrics to the song, some the closest I could relate this concept to is in meditation. No, I'm not big meditator but in those times where I wanted to quiet all the fricking noise in my head, I found that meditation and breathing brought me to a nice still point.

Some of this was brought on by 'new-age' readings and eastern concepts of kundalini and raising prana through relaxed breathing. I'm rusty on the whole chakra thing so shoot me down if you're some bona-fide card toting yogi or something (or just into the flame for general sh1ts and giggles) ... but kundalini is the process of raising your energy from your nether chakras up to your third eye and then outwards and upwards....with the goal of transcendence. Some reference of the raising of kundalini in mediation refers to a coiled snake rising...or spiralling. I think the concept bears parallels to "The Grudge" as far as 'ascending' and 'transmutation' but that's another thread.

Through the meditation and breathing you nurse this energy (think of the tingling of the spine moving up from the tailbone) and work it till your feeling warm. This pushes up the chakras at which point, this energy of yours spirals upwards and outwards past the third eye and into ... the unknown...

In meditation it's possible to reach a still point where one's breathing brings about a sense of calm and a (perhaps imagined or fancied) ultra-awareness. It's a great feeling where you are almost a third-person in the moment looking upon yourself. At this point, I think it's only a plateau...a flat point in the mediation where your coiled energy rests. The next step in the mediation is to push this energy, you, upwards and outwards into the spiral ("and still be human")....past this point of reflection....

References of the spinning galaxy are apt in my mind. This form of spiralling is a "release' an outward motion, an expenditure of energy driving us ever outwards...ride it out, see where it goes until eventually, in my imagination, we reach the outer darkness..the fringe of the spirals...like the upper most peak of a thrill ride, our stomachs in our throats... and everything is pulled back...plummeting madly towards the center. At that point I say grab your board and rive the wave back in = )

[dawn]

Originally posted by awwww shoot
I think he means "throw those turds at your mom's face. full speed."

Please do not litter my air waves with ignorance!!!

[dawn]

Originally posted by mstajduh
Consider real numbers are our consciousness and imaginary numbers are our subconsious, our minds are like fractuals (schsims) which are reflections of nature (fibornacci sequence).


That is the best representation I have come across since I saw PI...

...Anyway...


...I think our friend Cean nailed it with his/her interpretation...I also feel that it goes beyond DNA...as it is a mere reflection of the fibbonacci sequence...

...what I want to know is how it relates with the flower of life...how do the patterns associate with each other?...as they both represent a general energy pattern...call it what you will...

[dawn]

Originally posted by Tantobourne
At that point I say grab your board and rive the wave back in = )



Just like Sonny in the Cocoa Puffs commercials...he's my hero

[LuisCarruthers]

I have a few ideas regarding the good old spiral.

Here are some links...draw your own conclusions...


http://www.moonstar.com/~nedmay/chromat/fibonaci.htm

spiral in....http://www.dec10.net/experiments/gs5.html

http://www.lactamme.polytechnique.fr/Mosaic/images/ARCH.11.D/display.html

http://math.truman.edu/~thammond/history/Archimedes.html

http://members.fortunecity.com/kokhuitan/archimedes.html


I could go on and on.....Fibonaci and Archimedes standout.

Ooops...Forgot one....http://www.xahlee.org/SpecialPlaneCurves_dir/Spiral_dir/spiral.html

[Tantobourne]

Ya know, I finally watched the Parabola video and the whole spiral concept is displayed in the final scene where the energies are spiralling up the being's spinal column, through the chakras up and out over the head...spiralling out and ever expanding.

A nice visualization but everyone in the thread seems to have caught a brief bit of what it is.

I'll take a look at the links you provided, LuisCarruthers, thanks.

Alright....moving along ; )

-Tant

[reign3]

I think the spiral represents something spiritual. Look at the context it's being used in: "Swing on the spiral of our divinity and still be a human."

I think it's about achieving things that people think are not possible but really are. It's about uncovering powers we have within ourselves. Here's are some defintions of the word "divine":

1. Superhuman; godlike

2. Proceeding from God; as, divine judgments. ``Divine protection.'' --Bacon.

3. Appropriated to God, or celebrating his praise; religious; pious; holy; as, divine service; divine songs; divine worship.

4. Pertaining to, or proceeding from, a deity; partaking of the nature of a god or the gods. ``The divine Apollo said.'' --Shak.

5. Godlike; heavenly; excellent in the highest degree; supremely admirable; apparently above what is human

Notice the reocurring theme of God. But Maynard says, "still be a human." I think that supports the idea that the song is about accessing your full potential. I hope that helped.