KNOW YOURSELF [Verse 1 — intimate, piano and cello] We pay a heavy price for walking Through a stranger we call “me,” Reading every face around us, While our own we never see. Feelings leave, then circle backward, Wearing different names each time, Yesterday's desire was harmless— Tonight it's keeping me awake. [Pre-Chorus] I thought ambition was a fire That would carry me somewhere, Till the fire became a siren And achievement tasted like fear. [Chorus — soaring, memorable] Know yourself, Before the world decides you. Know yourself, Before your shadows guide you. There's a thousand voices talking In the chambers of your heart— Learn the one that speaks in anger, Learn the one that falls apart. You can cross a thousand oceans, You can gather fame and wealth, But the longest road you'll ever walk Is the road into yourself. [Verse 2] Envy wore a friendly color, Till it slowly turned to rust, Someone else's shining window Made me question what I was. Anger started as a whisper, Then a raging bull broke free, While my sadness sat so quietly No one heard it drowning me. [Pre-Chorus] How many wars begin inside us Long before the cannons sound? How many times we blame the heavens For the storms beneath the ground? [Chorus] Know yourself, Before the world decides you. Know yourself, Before your shadows guide you. There's a thousand voices talking In the chambers of your heart— Learn the one that speaks in anger, Learn the one that falls apart. You can cross a thousand oceans, You can gather fame and wealth, But the longest road you'll ever walk Is the road into yourself. [Bridge — music nearly disappears] Long ago an old philosopher Left no kingdom, crown, or gold, Just a mirror made of language And a truth that won't grow old: “What are you when no one's watching? What remains when masks are gone? Which desires are truly yours, And which were handed down?” Maybe wisdom isn't knowing Every answer life can give— Maybe wisdom starts by asking: Who is the one who's trying to live? [Instrumental rise — cello, strings, heartbeat percussion] [Final Chorus — full orchestra] Know yourself, When love has overwhelmed you. Know yourself, When fear is standing near you. Know the difference between wanting And the hunger to be seen, Between a wound that needs compassion And the rage that hides beneath. You may never tame the ocean, You may never stop the rain, But when you know the soul within you, You can learn to name the waves. [Outro — piano, almost whispered] Before you conquer mountains, Before you chase what's left— There's one small door The whole world walks around: Know yourself... Know yourself.
0/500