"Ars Moriendi" - also the name ofa song by Black Metal band Marduk, from La Grande Danse Macabre, is in fact Latin. It translates to "The Art of Dying."

By that same token, the words in the song are also Latin. They are, going down:

• "In the extremes" - means, "At the point of death"
• "Laugh if you have taste"
• "Hello and Goodbye" - a quote from Catullus's famous poem 101

I've always liked this song. Its extremely manic melody I'd have to characterize as klezmer-zydeco-metal. That's Bungle for yer.

As the above nodes state, Ars Moriendi translates as "The Art of Dying". Consider this a pretentious use of Latin to make a poem sound archaic and dignified (yes, TWAJS). The similarities to Louis Macneice's Prayer Before Birth are intentional, as it served as inspiration. Note the inverted rhyme scheme, because many people don't.


There are too many things that could kill me:
This cannot be fair.
If man does not slay me with nail-bombs and stress,
Toxins and terrorists, arrows and slings,
Viscous greases and viruses born of the lab –-
I may not meet my end on the end of a slab.
If man cannot snuff me with all these things,
The pretty girl dancing in her bright new dress
And sweet sunbrushed hair
Will smile still, and her beauty will fill me.

---

Another NightWriter original, with recognition to Macneice.