What do you think Parabola means?

Tool: Parabola Meaning

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Album cover for Parabola album cover

Song Released: 2002


Parabola Lyrics

We barely remember who or what came before this precious moment,
We are Choosing to be here right now. Hold on, stay inside...
This holy reality, this holy experience. Choosing to be here in...

This body. This body holding me. Be my reminder...

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  1. Fenno
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     Feb 1st 2008 !⃝

    We and all other things on this planet are eternal energy. Our body, and it's many components are our vessels much like a leaf is the vessel of the leaf. The difference between our vessel and the vessel of a leaf is our ability to realize ourselves. Many transitions of energy occurred prior to your vessel becoming what it is today. Perhaps some of the same energy that makes you up was once a leaf. After all, you are what you eat. I believe Maynard could mean that we don't remember what came before this precious moment of realization. The energy of our mind is held by the key to our mortality, our bodies, our vessels. Of course our energy is eternal, but our life as our present selves is momentary. Therefore, we have but a blink of an eye, compared to time as a whole, to realize, rationalize, and remember who we are.

  2. anonymous
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     Oct 17th 2007 !⃝

    "Parabol is like the calm meditation leading to the mind's enlightenment, which becomes the surrounding, exciting feel of Parabola."

    Yup. There are many other words for it.. being a "Warrior", or "open-minded". Well, this is MY interpretation of being "open-minded". Tool is quite similar to me.
    It's, like in many of Tools songs, the question "wtf free will!??" and how to use it.

  3. anonymous
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     Oct 11th 2007 !⃝

    Before I say this, I am not a stoner myself. Completely sober in every way shape and form.

    However, to back up QTOOL a bit

    LSD and other hallucinogenic drugs have much greater purpose in spirituality than most people realize. For some, yes, it's about getting baked off your mind. However, for the user thinking of the drug's intended purpose, it is a way to transcend and get a kind of "preview" of the divine without actually reaching that state. Many artists have cited using the drug and being about to see a type of "Universal Mind Lattice" (speaking specifically of Alex Grey on the quote). Though it may seem like complete fodder, many have depicted the same exact thing and some have come to Alex Grey himself crying because his depictions have been the exact experience they had gone through.

    To sum up, hallucinogens aren't simply a means to get baked, they, for some, are a means to experience the divine in the world. To transcend the body and truly become one with all that surrounds you.

  4. anonymous
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     Sep 28th 2007 !⃝

    I think I heard somewhere that the song is about Maynard's son. Maynard holding him as an infant. That could be. But, that would only be a dual meaning. The song is pretty obviously about sex, being inside a woman, connecting, being so totally into them that the entire world does not exist. No pain, no future, no past, only their body and yours. If you are not getting this out of the song, maybe you just have not had sex like that, which is sad.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
  5. asdfasdf
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     Sep 19th 2007 !⃝

    In my opinion it is about sex, just think about it, sex can be a very spiritual experience. notice how Parabol is very slow and very quite yet it is the same song as Parabola. for most people (assuming there is someone here that has actually gotten laid before) sex starts fairly slow and then speeds up as you reach climax, hence why Parabola is much faster paced.

    "Choosing to be here right now. Hold on, stay inside...
    This holy reality, this holy experience. Choosing to be here in this body holding me" need I say more? and also a parabola is a cartesian equation, a curved line on a graph, if you think deep about the spirtual side of sex it is almost as if you are joined as one being, and hence the 2 graphical points of a parabola are 2 spiritual beings joined as one.

    as to everyone that thought this song was JUST about a spiritual experience of some sort your interpretations still apply to mine, like I said before, sex can be a very spiritual experience if it is with someone you love very much

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
  6. anonymous
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     Aug 13th 2007 !⃝

    I think that this song deals with life in its physical form as a journey, starting from the beginning of the song (birth) and ending at the last words of it (death). Note the beginning, "We barely remember who or what came before this precious moment" referring to having no memory of before your birth from you mother into the physical world; "Swirling round with this familiar parable (relates to your lifetime on this world),
    Spinning, weaving round each new experience (is talking about the gift of learning),
    Recognize this as a holy gift and celebrate this (is talking about how precious life is - chance to be alive and breathing)"
    then, the final verse, "This body holding me reminds me of my own mortality, embrace this moment; Remember: we are eternal, all this pain is an illusion" directly states that the human body is merely a mortal existence, and death is inevitable, you should embrace life with what you have.
    Anyway that's just my interpretation.
    Sorry its so long

  7. anonymous
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     Jul 18th 2007 !⃝

    My interpretation is much like the ones listed above, but I don't think it is directly linked towards dmt specifically. Yes tool's music may be a product of dmt experiences but I do not think it is simply a dmt trip. I think the transition from parabol to parabola is a metaphor for enlightenment or reaching enlightenment. The lyrics (and we all know them) feel like they are directed towards either birth or reaching a state of body and mind meld. By realizing that nothing really exists or matters we can deal with all the shit in the world and pain seems merely as a warning that we are in harms way, to not die. Pain is an evolutionary tool to keep us alive longer. I think the "holy gift and celebrate this chance to be alive and breathing" is basically saying just that. That we should just chill the hell out and not worry about this trivial bullshit because there will be time later to worry about it. We will be dead and gone and then who knows what happens? Instead of griping about it we should just realize that we are lucky as balls to be here and enjoy it for the short time we have it. The "body holding me" is his body and it is holding him from being free. He almost sounds angry about it though. like he is repeating to himself to make him believe it. But he says "stay inside" pretty much saying to be a bitch and kill yourself because your mom didn't buy you that ipod just chill out and live because it might be the only chance you get at it. The transition between the songs I think is key. And I really do believe that it is the transition from our monotonous lives of puke and jobs and putrid bullshit to a pure overwhelming all encompassing white wash of enlightenment. I believe the video backs up my claims. The very end when the dude has the eyes circling up him and opening the iron cross looking thing floating above a lotus in his chest and then opening his third eye is pretty much the meat and potatoes of the song. Then you see the person just become a loop of energy surrounded by others and we at the moment are meant to realize that everything is just part of a bigger thing. We are all just energy grooving off our own vibrations and these vibrations that we call pain are just there to screw with us. So just chill in your body for now because we might only get one shot at it and it would suck to go through life thinking you got another chance and not enjoying the things that are given to us. Thanks for listening and even if I am wrong as hell and Tool would laugh at me for days for my lackluster interpretation it is still pretty good to just chill every once in a while and just say none of this bullshit matters and to close your eyes and groove out on your vibration.

    -The almighty Bob

  8. anonymous
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     Jun 24th 2007 !⃝

    I agree that this song is about a disassociative experience, most likely DMT or tranquilizers. However, there is a subtle connection to spirituality in the song.

    Firstly, the recognition of your own body as a separate entity from yourself, holding you, is a feeling shared by people who experience certain drug effects and those who experience transcendental enlightenment. Recognizing the body as a container for our true self, "This body, this body holding me," illustrates a psychological and spiritual disassociation from the body which forces one to recognize that our physical form is temporary.

    The line "twirling round this familiar parable" obviously connects this song to the previous one, Parabol. I also agree that there is a duality to this arrangement. However, I believe it is a progression between being within your own body (parabol) and leaving your body to experience something larger (parabola).

    Personally, I believe that the parabola, a mathematical shape that touches an origin at the center but extends into infinity at each end, symbolizes the ascension to the origin of all things through a particular experience, then returning back down. However, this aspect of my interpretation is less supported than the rest.

    This song could also reference other disassociative experiences such as astral projection, out of body sensations, or general meditation. Whatever the specific mode, the song is about leaving the body and finding something larger and divine on the other side.

    Excellent song.

  9. anonymous
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     Jun 7th 2007 !⃝

    I don't want to say what everyone else said... and to tell the truth I only read half of the things here... But I don't think anyone mentioned a good thing to use this song for.

    If the pain is an illusion, and if you are eternal, Why should you then fear anything. This song really taught me to fear nothing.

  10. anonymous
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     May 30th 2007 !⃝

    This is my interpretation of Tool lyrics for Parabola ;

    As we all know, (sorry for those who don't) Tool members are experiencing drugs and their songs often refers to some trips they had in the past. In this song, I see a way they found to free themselves (and ourselves too, well it works for me) from a bad trip... They always repeat REMEMBER WE ARE ETERNAL ALL THIS PAIN IS AN ILLUSION... It also says : < This holy reality, this holy experience.>> what means to me : <>. And then Tool seems to pass a message for the next times you planned to go high on drugs :< Spinning, weaving 'round each new experience.
    Recognize this as a holy gift and celebrate this
    chance to be alive and breathing>> Like if we shouldn't neglect our lives, it's a gift after all and we are lucky to have it, so why do we scrap our health in doing drugs? But remember, it's all gonna pass, 'cause we are eternal, all this pain is an illusion.

  11. slipknotkid1
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     Apr 16th 2007 !⃝

    I believe that Parabol/Parabola is about a sexual encounter: (Here are a few examples/reasons I believe this)

    So familiar and overwhelmingly warm
    This one, this form I hold now.
    Embracing you, this reality here,
    This one, this form I hold now, so
    Wide eyed and hopeful.
    Wide eyed and hopefully wild.

    -Well, looking from mans perspective the "inside" of a woman can represent a "warm" and "familiar" place. Usually when referring to intercourse people refer to it as two people becoming "one." The words "Hopefully wild" could refer to the speaker wanting kinky sex? (just a thought)

    We barely remember what came before this precious moment,

    -When in the moment you don't really think or care about anything other than the "precious moment."

    Choosing to be here right now. Hold on, stay inside...
    This body holding me, reminding me that I am not alone in
    This body makes me feel eternal. All this pain is an illusion.

    -They are both consenting to this act and the line, "choosing to be here right now," indicates this. "Hold on, stay inside" could be related to trying to become pregnant by keeping the penis into the vagina after ejaculation to prevent sperm from, for lack of a better word, 'running' out of the vagina, or it could refer to a woman wanting the man to "stay inside" long enough for her to have an orgasm.

    All this pain is an illusion.

    -Could be referring to the pain that is being inflicted on him by his "friend," and he is realizing that no matter the pain he feels the pleasure makes it seem like an illusion.

    In this holy reality, in this holy experience.

    -Many religions view the act of sex as a holy experience, so maybe that is what this line is referring too.


    This is just my opinion. I am in no way trying to dissuade you of your own opinions. That's the great thing about Tool's music is that it can be interpreted many ways and this is what I got out of it. I'm probably totally wrong, but whatever it doesn't really matter.

  12. anonymous
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     Apr 12th 2007 !⃝

    This whole album is entirely comprised of therapy concepts, concepts used in counseling and therapy to help people keep from freaking out. This is not about sex, although that is what I thought it was about when I first heard it. The concept here is the practice of living RIGHT NOW, which is very hard. It is about the difficulty and the reward of not living entirely in the past and in the future. The idea is to live without your preconceptions and your hopes and projections ruining the wonder of the immediate world. Try it sometime, and you will see why it is worth writing songs about. The pain mentioned is the anguish of always worrying about the past and the future. Those things are not happening right now, so any pain you are feeling from the past and the future is illusionary. It is only you. Crucify the ego, and you find that there is not much that is worrisome that is happening RIGHT NOW. Try it

  13. anonymous
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     Mar 2nd 2007 !⃝

    Here, this may help you understand this song even more.

    In this moment, focus your attention on your internal states (emotions, thoughts) and observe them. Do not become identified with them, just observe.

    As you do this, receive all incoming phenomena of external events with the consciousness, observe them and analyze.

    You must learn to observe all external and internal events simultaneously. This is living in the moment, without becoming identified with the mind and letting your ego (anger, lust, pride, gluttony, etc.) take control. We must learn to eliminate these psychological defects so we can be awakened, and know the Truth.

    Now listen to this song, and stay in the moment, in this holy reality.

    (to learn more, go here http://www.gnosticteachings.org/content/view/53/1/)

  14. kjcisco777
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     Feb 19th 2007 !⃝

    i think this song is talking about a reality that exist on top of seeing the world through a higher state of consciousness (third eye). The definition of the word parabola is " a plane curve formed by the intersection of a right circular cone and a plane parallel to an element of the cone" I can't draw it with a keyboard but it looks something like this |(

    if you play the song before parabolA called parabol I think its suppose to represent the | which is looking at reality as most people do and parabola is suppose to represent the (
    meaning that there's this state of mind we all experience in our minds everyday where we have jobs/cars/eat food/feel pain...but then there's an alternate state of mind that exist in the same point in space where we are "eternal" as the song says. However I think that the song is trying to say that the only times most people reach this higher state of mind is when we are first born, deep meditation, high on (psychedelic or hallucinagenic) drugs, death etc.

  15. anonymous
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     Dec 30th 2006 !⃝

    it's hard to say anything without really repeating what everyone else before me has said... but here goes:
    it's ultimately about not knowing who you were before life and who you will be afterlife but you walk around in your body knowing/thinking/believing that you were or will be something better one day. Honestly, I don't go a day without thinking about death or something different from the life I'm currently passing. I do think about my skin being my vessel, but I wouldn't say temporarily because I don't know any better. MJK sounds so sure in all his songs about what he's saying, but then I think about it and a lot of it is uncertainty... I guess that's how you could summarize Tool (if I dare!) - very certain about uncertainty... maybe ill go listen to all the albums I have and think about this some more...huzzah!

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
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