I said on another post that Maynard sings about these people...
his mother,his son,his girlfriend,the record label,God and the government.I believe that 46 and two are his mother's and son's age.
The FAQ really put a great quote out there about 46&2. Since it's a quote, it's okay if I reproduce it.
"There are three totally different kinds of humans on the Earth, meaning that they perceive the One reality in three different ways, interpreted differently. The first kind of human has a chromosome composition of 42+2. They comprise a unity consciousness that does not see anything outside themselves as being separate from themselves. To them, there is only one energy - one life, one beingness that moves everywhere. Anything happening anywhere is within them, as well. They are like cells in the body. They are all connected to a single consciousness that moves through all of them. These are the aboriginals in Australia. There might be a few African tribes left like this. Then, there is our level, comprising 44+2 chromosomes. We are a disharmonic level of consciousness that is used as a steppingstone from the 42+2 level to the next level, 46+2...These two additional chromosomes change everything." Drunvalo Melchizadek.
The FAQ really put a great quote out there about 46&2. Since it's a quote, it's okay if I reproduce it.
"There are three totally different kinds of humans on the Earth, meaning that they perceive the One reality in three different ways, interpreted differently. The first kind of human has a chromosome composition of 42+2. They comprise a unity consciousness that does not see anything outside themselves as being separate from themselves. To them, there is only one energy - one life, one beingness that moves everywhere. Anything happening anywhere is within them, as well. They are like cells in the body. They are all connected to a single consciousness that moves through all of them. These are the aboriginals in Australia. There might be a few African tribes left like this. Then, there is our level, comprising 44+2 chromosomes. We are a disharmonic level of consciousness that is used as a steppingstone from the 42+2 level to the next level, 46+2...These two additional chromosomes change everything." Drunvalo Melchizadek.
I have great respect for Melchizadek.
Nothing in this post is true, but it's exactly the way things are...
the song seems to me to be talking about a change maynard wants to make in himself or mankind as a whole, he's talking about breaking out of his shadow and evolving into something else, 46 and 2 is the next step in human evolution because we are now at 44 and 2, so what he's saying to me is that 46 and 2 is ahead of us and its time for us to change
The FAQ really put a great quote out there about 46&2. Since it's a quote, it's okay if I reproduce it.
"There are three totally different kinds of humans on the Earth, meaning that they perceive the One reality in three different ways, interpreted differently. The first kind of human has a chromosome composition of 42+2. They comprise a unity consciousness that does not see anything outside themselves as being separate from themselves. To them, there is only one energy - one life, one beingness that moves everywhere. Anything happening anywhere is within them, as well. They are like cells in the body. They are all connected to a single consciousness that moves through all of them. These are the aboriginals in Australia. There might be a few African tribes left like this. Then, there is our level, comprising 44+2 chromosomes. We are a disharmonic level of consciousness that is used as a steppingstone from the 42+2 level to the next level, 46+2...These two additional chromosomes change everything." Drunvalo Melchizadek.
I have great respect for Melchizadek.
i dont.. that isnt true at all.. all primates have a 46+2 chromosome structure.. except humans, does that mean this song is about a gorilla?
This kind of goes along with all the stuff I said in the 3rd eye post.
I think when Maynard talks about 46+2, he is considering himself at the 44+2 state ("46+2 just ahead of me"). He also says "I've been crawling on my belly, feeling out what should've been). Things like "I feel the change consume me" point to this evolution/de-evolution idea. If 44+2 tribal people only see within themselves so to speak and they are thier own universe, then that totally jives with the spirt of tool. Centralize, focus, turn inward and use it for something posititve. The message of introspection only truthfully leads us to confusion because (possibly) we have the extra two chromosomes. I think this song is just another was for Maynard to say, "look what I found out - here's some more mysterious stuff to chew on and convince you to think on a different plane." And if you're into it, good for you. But I'm done with all that hocus pocus mystical garbage.
I haven't made a connection with the "shadow" part of the song yet. Any thoughts?
This kind of goes along with all the stuff I said in the 3rd eye post.
I think when Maynard talks about 46+2, he is considering himself at the 44+2 state ("46+2 just ahead of me"). He also says "I've been crawling on my belly, feeling out what should've been). Things like "I feel the change consume me" point to this evolution/de-evolution idea. If 44+2 tribal people only see within themselves so to speak and they are thier own universe, then that totally jives with the spirt of tool. Centralize, focus, turn inward and use it for something posititve. The message of introspection only truthfully leads us to confusion because (possibly) we have the extra two chromosomes. I think this song is just another was for Maynard to say, "look what I found out - here's some more mysterious stuff to chew on and convince you to think on a different plane." And if you're into it, good for you. But I'm done with all that hocus pocus mystical garbage.
I haven't made a connection with the "shadow" part of the song yet. Any thoughts?
The shadow part...Hmm. I have been thinking about that for awhile... but i see your shadow as the outer part of you... it always there... so when your shadows shedding skin that means that you are shedding the exterior
The revelations I had over '46 plus 2' was what hooked me onto Tool...I mean they were cool before...but that brought my level of appreciation for their music to awesome hieghts...
In the faq on this page, it mentions the 'shadow' as being our alter-ego, the part of us that we refuse to accept. But we can only grow into what we are supposed to be if we start taking responsibility for all the aspects of ourselves, including the things that we don't like. You must, as Maynard puts it, step through the shadow, and come out the other side. In this way, you become a whole person, an individual that knows who they are. It makes us complete. It is based on Carl Jung. So if you want to research it, there you go.
Luna Galapogos has the right idea. The shadow is a Carl Jung theory about the things that we hate in ourselves lurking in the shadows of our mind. We let these tribulations slip out subconsciously in the form of projection onto others. In other words, "I hate when YOU do this" actually equates to "I hate when I do this". It's pretty simple and basic psychology.
I watched an interview with Maynard a while back, and he suggested this very thing when asked about a habit he has. He said he likes to write down on a piece of paper every possible thing that he can think of that hates about "you", that he can't STAND about you. Then he takes the list and turns the "you" into "me", and says he finds some "pretty interesting things". I've caught myself doing this several times when I get really angry at someone. I stop and think about it, and realize that "Holy shnikes! I could basically be held guilty of the same thing!!!" Hypocrisy, or double standards, if you will.
It's a form of self reflection or evaluation. Once you target some of these things, you can purge the shadow of them. But you can never truly shed the shadow itself. That is your constant subconscious. All you can do is try to discover the dilemmas it is presenting, and work to rectify them.
I said on another post that Maynard sings about these people...
his mother,his son,his girlfriend,the record label,God and the government.I believe that 46 and two are his mother's and son's age.
considering the fact that Maynard's over 39, I highly doubt that his mother was 46
One thing I thought that the shadow could be, is the fear(s). That the song could be about facing your fears and to overcome them, stepping through the shadow to the other side without fears.
"Jung used to talk about staring into that shadow in the corner. Just stepping into that shadow and going, 'OK, what is it that I fear the most? What is it here that freezes me up like a doe in the headlights?' And then go and do that and see what happens. The worst thing that'll happen is you'll die."
--Maynard James Keenan
Though this is what MJK said about APC's "Rose" I immediately thought about "46 & 2". The shadow as something he's afraid of, and that thing makes him to shed his skin and to pick scabs again. In other words he's afraid and can't get rid of his fears. In the lyrics, there are words like "paranoid" and "insecure delusions", meaning the fears are only in his mind. So just to step into the shadows and to face the fears makes him to come out from the other side and to overcome the fears.
I have struggled to find an appropriate answer, but the best possible solution I have search for is the same as some on this topic. I can't find the sheet that explained what the numbers and shadow meant, but I can remember most of it.
The Shadow: I remember that Carl Jung refered to a certain place in the mind as the Shadow that is similar to the id in a way, I think. Everyone has it, but either don't realise it or they deny it. Can't remember anything else righ tnow, I still have to find the sheet. But at the end of the song, Maynard mentions "Stepping through my shadow". Maynard might be refering to the shadow as a doorway in this context, although I'm still unsure about it.
46 and 2: Yes, this has to refer to the number of chromosomes. As mentioned earlier, with 42+2 and 44+2, 46+2 is the evolutionary change of chromosome in humans. And to my understanding, it's happening at this moment, as the last "grid" was completed in 1984-88 (can't remember exactly). It most likely has to do with the harmony of the body and mind as one.
Add these up with the rest of the lyrics, and you'll understand what Maynard is talking about. I'll try to sum up the whole song into one short paragraph, but it would be impossible. I'll try to give a line-by-line explanation on another thread if anyone wishes me to do so.
46 chromosomes.
having 2 extra means you have down syndrome
i never really liked the idea of needing to know external information about obscure occurrences or obscure stories, or occult, or ancient mythology in order to interpret a song. I don't like looking at a painting that "beautifully" describes a scene or story that i've never heard of. I think that some of the best lyrics are the kind where you don't need a phd in esoteric shibbang to get the idea of a song. and i know that you don't necessarily need to "get the idea" of a song if its purposefully abstract, but Maynard's use of the numbers 46 and 2 are definite and specific, yet not common knowledge. I don't like the fact that i don't understand this song because i just don't have enough knowledge under my belt to interpret it. this isn't the case for other songs, but this song just gets in the way to the point where i ignore the lyrics because it don't make no damn sense and it won't make no damn sense until i learn about more things in the quantity of 46 and 2. this post makes me look like an ignorant ass, but its not like i'm trying not to know, its just that i don't think the key to good lyrics is referring to some offbeat esoterica
l think this has been discussed, look at previous threads.
__________________ l don't want to be alone again today...
Hold me close and together we'll pray
That this moment never fades away...
Fade away, fade away, like any other day.
ps this was my first favorite tool song. i was recovering from schizophrenia at the time. my animus had died from drug use. my shadow was controlling my body. but now its me, the animus again! yay!
hopefully that will make you guys take another look at this song :)
New to the whole debacle of philosophical debate on these BB's... quite entertaining to say the least. I am sure if the time was actually wasted viewing this post by Maynard or any other of the band members a wholehearted laugh would ensue after simply viewing the mass hysteria. With the varying viewpoints found throughout Tool's material a simple conclusion could be that this song (as well as many others) is a way to provoke abstruse thought... that is: there is no one answer, but that as individuals we must search and continue searching throughout our lives for the truth of the moment. Settling down with a belief and realizing it and only it to be true is no different than accepting the principles that society expects us to abide by.
Definition of Dogma in Webster's dictionary:
dog·ma: An authoritative principle, belief, or statement of ideas or opinion, especially one considered to be absolutely true.
The only idea that really should be considered THAT true is one of Mr. Timothy Leary's most famous quotes, "Think for yourself, question authority...".
Obviously there are many tenets incorporated in Maynard's writing , focusing solely upon one, in my opinion is too confining/conforming and will not lead to true enlightenment... which is the main goal overall right?
Humans currently have 46 chromosomes. In the year 2012, we gain 2 more, making 48 chromosomes. When this happens, everyone becomes a god, time seizes to exist, everyone is everywhere at everytime. We step into the 4th demension. We keep gaining 2 more chromosome every certain amount of years. This is why humans used to be so fucking stupid and didn't understand the obvious. The Roman Calander predicts this and everything they've predicted has happened. 2012 is the last prediction.
useful idiot sounds like a worm or a snake crawling on its underside, just inching along.
it finally reaches something...
-christ-consciousness (46&2)-
23 chromosomes per each half, or sex (male and female=2); 23+23=46 by two aspects (2). most, if not all of our parents contributed 22 chromosones each, by way of one male half and one female half (44+2; where we collectively are now). research drunvalo melchizadek, the christ-consciousness grid, and the sacred merkaba techniques if you want something to help you understand what this concept really means to humanity. utilize the abundant information waiting to be learned.
i know these posts are for people's opinions, but tool gives reccomended reading material for research on pertainent topics, not just fun time with books. i can appreciate people's different ideas, even to the point where some stimulate me into thinking something i couldn't have initalized on my own, but if someone says "read this or do this because i'm specifically talking about it" what's the point of totally ignoring it? if you're reading a book, and come across a word you don't know the meaning of, do you look it up or make up your own definition?
if you listen closely, you can hear in the bridge, the word "you" overlapped with the word "to" which makes the words say
"I choose to live and you/to
Grow, take and give and you/to
Move, learn and love and you/to
Cry, kill and die and you/to
Be paranoid and you/to
Lie, hate and fear and you/to
Do what it takes to move through."
it's kind of like instructions, or even a prediction to push the idea further,
which fits my theme of the whole album being a guide to and reflection of giving yourself an "ænima."
so, in a way, this song is about the 'problems' encountered, or to be encountered when you confront/enter the/your shadow and try, not defeat it (because it is not to be destroyed), but to accept it and move or step through that blockage of evolution. assimilate it.
c.g. jung's theory of the shadow, it is his concept you know, is defined as the rejected part of your personality; everything you don't like and don't want to or can't admit about yourself. as hidden as it is, it still influences and controls you.
read more of jung to understand and UTILIZE THIS CONCEPT...
this overlapping of words appears in many songs, like eulogy for example.
"you had a lot to say... we'll miss you." it's hearing your Own eulogy. ketamine causes an out-of-body phenomenon; a near-death experience.
proper ketamine administration is listed in the liner notes for a reason...
__________________ "A humanist is anyone who rejects the attempt to describe or account for man wholly on the basis of physics, chemistry or animal behaviour." ~Joseph R. Krutch
That 23 pair chromosome stuff has been discussed so many times...we really don't know if that's what it means. Only Maynard knows.
__________________ l don't want to be alone again today...
Hold me close and together we'll pray
That this moment never fades away...
Fade away, fade away, like any other day.
you can either look up the definition of an unknown word, or make up your own.
one has weight and the other doesn't...
__________________ "A humanist is anyone who rejects the attempt to describe or account for man wholly on the basis of physics, chemistry or animal behaviour." ~Joseph R. Krutch
The shadow is referring to the theories of a brilliant man,Carl Jung. There are many references to Jungian theory in Tool songs, such as the Ego, "So crucify the ego, before it's far too late", the Shadow, and also possibly the Anima, which he pictured as a little girl, and was his main way of communication with the deeper aspects of his unconscious. The shadow is an archetype in which we can "store" parts of ourselves which we can't admit to. It "guards" the entrance to the collective unconscious. Hope that was some help.
i dont.. that isnt true at all.. all primates have a 46+2 chromosome structure.. except humans, does that mean this song is about a gorilla?
you forget that there is only one difference in our dna and a certain type of frog (the name escapes me at the moment i want to say tree frog) so your logic is flawed... sorry. Just because might end up having the same number of chromosomes as a primate dosn't mean we are gonna all be eating banannas rather than weaving the fabric of space and time itself. But just the same, we could...
Hello my fellow human beings! Here's something for you.
If you stood in the middle of a room that was lit in such a way that you no longer had a shadow. Where would it be?
I thought i would give you an easy one to start with.
As you may notice I use my real name as my username because i have nothing to hide.
I must say that to view this as a whole you have to be a total outsider.
Now about this 46+2 business. It could just be a reflection on the original primeval source of human conciousness. Acknowledging the fact, even though we have evolved to this state of being, we still have an inner rawness, energy and instinct. To deny it is to deny a vast part of ourselves. Our intellect is nothing but a tool for heightened primeval existence.
Thank You for taking your tim to read this.
In relationships we learn.
Martin Shanks
Hello again my fellow humans!
If you want the answers to a question. Go to the source. Speak to the members of tool. If you really want to know something you wouldn't just debate and theorise. You would search it out with all your heart. I believe that Tool are a exploritive, intelligent, insightful, probing, questioning quartet of musically talented individuals. They don't have all the answers. They seem to me to like different perspectives, and not to become mindless, or mindful (i.e.the so-called authorities of the world,) sheep. Baa Baa. Shit there I go again.
In the end we are trying to realize our true selves, after that you have to liberate youself from self.
Thw word 'I' does not exist.
Thanks again for taking your time to read this.
Good luck and fortune in all of your existences.
Yours Sincerely
Martin Shanks
you forget that there is only one difference in our dna and a certain type of frog (the name escapes me at the moment i want to say tree frog) so your logic is flawed... sorry. Just because might end up having the same number of chromosomes as a primate dosn't mean we are gonna all be eating banannas rather than weaving the fabric of space and time itself. But just the same, we could...
the statement about the frog dna is stupid. i am noticing that the people that are arguing dna and chromosomes here dont have any idea about it.
dna is a molecule, its tightly wrapped up around itself to the point where we can actually see it in a microscope, we call it a chromosome. if we took one human chromosome and unravelled it, it would be a molecule that is about a meter long. if we did the same with a frog chromosome, it would be closer to 10 meters long.
does this mean that frogs are more evolved than us? no. all dna does is contain the instructions for building protiens. frogs need more because their bodies go through changes that ours dont go through, they need the extra instructions.
__________________ “I got drunk on whiskey when I was ten and I got so sick I hated even the smell of the stuff. I couldn’t even touch it until I was thirteen.”
The shadow is referring to the theories of a brilliant man,Carl Jung. There are many references to Jungian theory in Tool songs, such as the Ego, "So crucify the ego, before it's far too late", the Shadow, and also possibly the Anima, which he pictured as a little girl, and was his main way of communication with the deeper aspects of his unconscious. The shadow is an archetype in which we can "store" parts of ourselves which we can't admit to. It "guards" the entrance to the collective unconscious. Hope that was some help.
Sigmund Freud developed the concepts of the id, ego, and superego. Jung was a colleague of Freud's who broke away from Freudian psychoanalysis to follow his own concepts of the unconscious mind; the shadow, the anima/animus, archetypes, dreams, synchronicity, and the collective unconscious.
__________________ "A humanist is anyone who rejects the attempt to describe or account for man wholly on the basis of physics, chemistry or animal behaviour." ~Joseph R. Krutch
The FAQ really put a great quote out there about 46&2. Since it's a quote, it's okay if I reproduce it.
"There are three totally different kinds of humans on the Earth, meaning that they perceive the One reality in three different ways, interpreted differently. The first kind of human has a chromosome composition of 42+2. They comprise a unity consciousness that does not see anything outside themselves as being separate from themselves. To them, there is only one energy - one life, one beingness that moves everywhere. Anything happening anywhere is within them, as well. They are like cells in the body. They are all connected to a single consciousness that moves through all of them. These are the aboriginals in Australia. There might be a few African tribes left like this. Then, there is our level, comprising 44+2 chromosomes. We are a disharmonic level of consciousness that is used as a steppingstone from the 42+2 level to the next level, 46+2...These two additional chromosomes change everything." Drunvalo Melchizadek.
I have great respect for Melchizadek.
yea, that statement isn't true at all, i'd agree with everyone else, although DNA structure is definately a role in this song. the title, I've read, comes from the book, entitled, "46 & 2"...i think the significance of 46 is that there are 46 chromosomes in a human cell. One recieves 23 from each parent. A male has 46 X and Y chromosomes, which is what determines his sex. A female has 22 y's and 24 x's, meaning they have an extra X.
I must say, I love this forum, because it is a collection of people's interpretations of Tool's music, which is what the band wanted people to do with their music.
Perhaps if once we finally beat the shadow (our alter-ego) then we could evolve as it were the 46+2. At that point, we wouldn't have the alter-ego and would become based on our instincts. No more hypocracy, none of those things that hold us back because we refuse to accept different parts of ourselves. If we became gorillas we'd be better off than we are now.
If we discover the mysteries of the universe, unravel time itself, weave our own time, or whatever, what will it accomplish, we are mortal and will die anyway. We are not God, we will never be God, and that is it. Perhaps if we knew who we were and lived by that, then we wouldn't care, and we would probably be better off.
Of course, this is an opinion. My opinion right now, actually, I don't know what my opinion of this song are. In fact, it is so obscure in what we think that it might mean, that it loses all meaning because we have no idea. It is just a jumble of words put together that goes along with music and means exactly one thing to one person only.
