Poems: Death Litany
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A common prayer spoken before one's death.
In knowing the beloved
Let me not long the unknown.
In cherishing mine beloved
I shall not want for more.
The cup empties and the cupbearer dies,
The mind forgets and its thoughts grow dull.
The sun and moon sets every day,
As footprints on the desert, as dust upon dust.
I am witness not to what could be witnessed
But an observer of what has been observed.Atha Voutha.
Atha Voutha: Thus spoken (praised).
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Is this spoken by the dying? For the dying? By loved ones? A priest of some sort?
What is the purpose of reciting the poem? Is it meant to be a form of closure or acceptance of death?
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@Aron It's spoken by the dying or by those in the face of death. It's popular amongst cavalry leaders who might intone the poem to his company as they ride out to charge at an enemy position, though virtually anyone who might think they could/would die would utter this prayer to themselves.
It is meant to be a form of closure that not everything you want to do in life will be done, but everything you have done in life is what matters in the end.
