By the Sea

Song Meaning

The lyrics paint a picture of the sea as a creature perpetually lamenting its separation from a divine realm. This "moan" isn't just sound; it's an existential cry against an unyielding "boundary shore." The vastness of the ocean is emphasized by the paradox that even "all earth's full rivers" can't quench its unending thirst, suggesting an insatiable, perhaps unfulfillable, longing. The poem then shifts focus to the hidden wonders beneath the waves, describing a world of "sheer miracles of loveliness." These underwater inhabitants, like anemones and shells, are presented as beautiful but strangely detached from intense emotion, existing in a state of passive, almost detached, proliferation. They "multiply and thrive" and are "born without a pang, and die / Without a pang," highlighting a stark contrast to the sea's own apparent suffering. This contrast between the sea's mournful cry and the serene, passionless existence of its inhabitants is the core tension. The sea's constant, almost human-like lament for something lost or unattainable is juxtaposed with the unbothered, cyclical life happening within its depths. The lyrics suggest a profound isolation, where even the vibrant life it supports seems alien to its own deep-seated ache.