Reference:Words

Words is a series of prophecies written by The Watcher, originally published in 4500 DE. The English-translated version takes the form of free verse poetry. The full work is 625 lines long – including blank lines – and seems to refer to a number of future events, such as the fall of D'ni and the discord of Atrus and his family.

Reception

Words was well-received by the D'ni when it was published, and retained a sizable following all the way up to D'ni's destruction in 9400 DE. King Jaron attempted to fulfill the prophecy that "because of tunnels, D'ni has changed forever" by undertaking a large-scale expansion effort throughout the D'ni cavern. It is likely that the work remained popular because of its perceived accuracy in predicting future events – though like all prophecies, its accuracy is a matter of personal interpretation.

Translated Text

Section 1

] Revere the Maker; cherish the made.
] Here lies wisdom.
]
] The door lies at the end of the path.
] Who will gather? Many.
] Who will finish? Few.
]
] The grower will take time.
] The grower will bring light.
] The grower will have Ages.
] Take it, and more it to and fro.
] Bring light, and give it to the dark places.
] Have Ages, and link to them without bindings.
]
] Loud cries yet again.
] Can it be made? No.
] We mourn our loss.
] No one sees.
]
] In the rock where changes are found.
] Because of tunnels D’ni has changed forever.
] New events surround us,
] Awaiting our arrival.
]
] The path to the left or right?
] That is the only power of man.
]
] The grower leads in the dark,
] While the deceiver flails in the light.
] The grower raises truth in the absence of eyes,
] While the deceiver blesses them in clear view of many.
] Without the grower, those who are like the grower would never learn.
] Without the grower, the name known by all would not have existed.
]
] Knowing the least is the path of wisdom.
] A sweet aroma rising up.
] Kings and prophets, the proud ones have the stench of death.
] The passing of time brings the path to the gathered.
] A breach has been cut, and now the paths are joined.
] The giving of gifts heals the wound of the builder.
]
] In cages they weep,
] Time and again.
] But without their tears,
] Truth remains hidden.
]
] Your cry is your call.
] If no one will hear them, weep for us.
]
] The choices of the wise bring pleasure to the Maker.
] The meeting of worlds is death and life.
]
] They count years and months.
] A long week is as short as an age is long.
]
] There is noise where once there was silence;
] Light where once there was not.
] Stone stands tall,
] And rock falls down.
] And they are watched;
] Always.
] Not knowing.
] Silence will return.
] Light will fade.
] Stone will fall.
] Rock will grow,
] Again.
]
] From the shadow of the wound, history will be rewritten.
] The disease will spread until D’ni cannot be saved.
]
] Seven they are,
] Though little do they realize
] Only four is seen as they see.
] For seven is one,
] And one is seven.
]
] Writing of links is a gift to be cherished.
]
] Where are our people?
] Who are our people?
] What are our people?
] Cry those who die on the streets.
]
] The crumbling of the walls will come from within.
] The stories of the destroyer will be the start of the burden.
] The burdened one will come from outside.
] The burden of the remnant will be laid upon his shoulders.
] Be still and the path will be made known.
]
] What will grow?
] The tree of all things.
] Who will grow it?
] The grower.
]
] Pages burn.
] Ink spills.
] Is there no one to protect us?
] When we turn against ourselves.
]
] Books will be your stronghold, and then you will die.
] The destroyer will cut down this great tree of wickedness?
] Another place will be their refuge,
] Another place will be their home.
] Dance and celebrate, for the tree grows again.
]
] Seven nameless abused;
] Six called abused;
] Five sent away;
] Four sell to three;
] Three excepted without eighteen;
] Two one of eight;
] One wear color and hold paper.
]
] Poison fills the hearts of many;
] New air enters some.
] Believe.
]
] The scream you hear has no breath.
] Old ways are kept just to test.
]
] Curses reign upon the others;
] From the lips of the proud.
] Eyes are removed,
] Yet sight is restored.

Section 2

] Do not trust the sons of the burdened one.
] They will seek comfort in their books.
] This is the warning of the fall.
] Do not seek comfort in your books.
] When destruction comes, other ages will not save you.
]
] Seen under bones in the jail cells,
] A row of keys is here.
]
] Minds are soft, hearts are callused.
] In the new place chaos reigns.
] Wisdom is hidden.
] But a storm approaches, and a new river flows.
] Its waters of deep red stain the land.
] Cross the valley of dry sand and new blooms will appear.
] Wisdom is found.
]
] The action of the gathered means nothing.
] The action of the deceived is toiling in vain.
]
] The dam has been destroyed,
] And the river opened.
] He who unleashes its fury
] Screams for mercy, and calls for help.
] But no one comes.
] As death drowns him,
] It takes everything in its path.
]
] Darkness makes the righteous humble and the evil bold.
] Darkness comes at the end of time.
] Take the path upward, or those above will travel downward.
] Seek the path of the shell.
] The meeting of worlds is destruction and blessing.
] The kingdom of D’ni is not made of rock and stone, but heart and mind.
]
] They rejoice at a spark,
] Though they never see the fire.
] They rejoice at a star,
] Though they never see the sun.
] They honor magicians,
] And never know of true power.
] They bow to liars,
] Because truth cannot wait.
]
] When the tree dies there will come a new one.
] A grower to learn of the death.
] A grower to see new life.
] A grower to bring the gathered.
] A grower to restore the least.
] A grower to move through time.
] A grower to link at will.
] A grower to follow the shell.
] A grower to banish the darkness.
] A grower to graft the branches.
] A grower to join the paths.
]
] Black turns to green.
] Red and yellow fruits emerge.
] And he laughs at the worm,
] And soon there are many.
]
] The hill of fire allows them to find their way.
] Evil follows their path.
] One will take where another left off.
] Vagabonds enter unknowingly.
] Incomplete is the task at hand.
] Soon there will be another.
]
] Thought not a King, the Ruler dies.
] The spilling of his blood
] Creates rivers in the city.
]
] He laughs and smiles and cries at him
] And the one with him.
] Another teachers,
] So that the choices are ours.
]
] The patient find solace in the wait,
] While the restless follow the path of folly.
] Follow the patient path.
]
] There are three who live in darkness and silence.
] Blinded are those who search for them.
] One saves D’ni and dies
] At the hands of rulers.
] Another destroys D’ni and lives
] At the hands of followers.
] There is another who both destroys and saves;
] Both lives and dies,
] At the hands of both rulers and followers.
] While there is always strength in the hidden,
] There is a great trust in those who live and die.
]
] The Maker uses those who are willing.
] He provides a light to discern the willing from the wicked.
] A light in the cavern eases fears and provides comfort for the willing.
] A light in the cavern causes the wicked to scurry to the darkness.
]
] A new life, in a new place, begins for a few;
] Full of blessings, full of good.
] But maturity does not come from ease and prosperity.
] Prepare for suffering, and growth will come.
]
] Life dies, darkness spreads.
] Day ends, Night grows.
]
] What is this invasion?
] For the fourth time, they come.
] Two come to war;
] Two run from war;
] Two die;
] Two live although they kill.
] All of them;
] Above whom are none
] They believe.
]
] So I say again
] Seven they are,
] Though little do they realize.
] Only four is seen as they see.
] For seven is one,
] And one is seven.
]
] Libraries hold the writings of man.
] Hearts hold the truth of the Maker.

Section 3

] Like a tree they spread.
] Like a tree they unite.
] Like a tree they spread.
] Like a tree they unite.
] It repeats over and over,
] And brings fits to my sleep.
] From many to one,
] And one to many.
]
] Pause.
] Harken unto my expressed summons as given.
]
] Remain.
] Know you are meant to go through it and wait nearby.
]
] Wait.
] If you can be calm,
] The way is simple thing to gain.
]
] Linger.
] Be quiet and see what’s near.
] You can open it.
]
] Do not forsake the Maker,
] For the meaning of his name is only for him.
]
] Mountains stand tall.
] New water feeds the stagnant.
] Through the minds of impostors
] Comes new life.
]
] A puddle frozen in time
] Brings strength to the weak.
] Minds are forsaken,
] And bodies are lost.
]
] A river of blood flows from the surface.
]
] It is written in the dark.
] The ten eyes do not see it.
] He creates alone;
] Weary of what may come.
]
] Why does the maker not know our choice?
] Because he chooses not to know it.
] He sees the branches of all choices,
] He knows the paths of all possibilities.
] But the pruning he has placed in the hands of man.
] This is the strength and downfall of man.
] This is how man will be measured.
]
] But it is many who will come
] To revel in his joy;
] To hide themselves from the eyes
] Who do not see the path.
]
] One who finds, will need.
] One who needs, will find.
] And one who meets the needs of another
] Will find his own needs met.
]
] They will subdue the weak and it will be their undoing.
] From above will come destruction, from above will come new life.
] The wound in the desert will bring forth the renewal of hope.
] Bring the least, and expect nothing in return.
] The passing of time brings the past to the present.
]
] Circles are the paths that lead to walls;
] And return to the beginning.
]
] Take time to know the faces of stone.
] Take time to understand the path of the shell.
] What will crush you?
] The weight of ordinances and laws.
] What will lift you?
] The wings of a heart for the Maker.
]
] The watcher will watch for words from the Maker.
] The voice will speak the mind of the Maker.
] The grower will grant the blessings of the Maker.
] The destroyer will hold the knife of the Maker.
] The seeker will share the truths of the Maker.
] The grower will bring the life of the Maker.
] The builder will build the peace of the Maker.
]
] First there is a one;
] Followed by a nine.
] Four leads a ten.
] Numbers;
] Cut into stone.
] If understood they could save,
] But their value is lost on the blind.
] Look at the time they spend trying to see numbers.
] There is no value in such numbers.
] For only after are they understood.
] Why do these numbers haunt us so?
] They will laugh upon us
] And reveal our weakness;
] In the face of the great time.
]
] Foolish men. Do you think that you are the only writers?
] Who is this new writer? The rules are written within him.
]
] The rain starts and the tree will grow,
] But are you the one to start it?
] You did nothing but follow.
] The grower is the one who leads.
]
] You toil and strive to write Ages and move stones.
] The path of the stone is toil for the gathered.
]
] Ink will be shared,
] And Ink will be lost.
]
] The Maker knows all the branches of the tree.
] The Maker can send the knife of the water.
]
] And few will be greater than the grower.
] For the grower will know pain.
] And the wounds will make the least the greatest.
] But do not be deceived.
] Few ears in the low places will know the grower.
] But many ears will hear those who claim to be the grower.
] Only the ears of the new ones will hear the true grower.
] Do not be deceived.

Section 4

] In the night they walk through the streets
] Looking to one another for explanation;
] Trying to understand the mourning that fills the city,
] And prevent them from lying down.
] Others ignore the wails.
] They feel safe and talk as though they are immortal.
] As they too succumb to death
] They remember the restless nights.
]
] The number of the watcher is six hundred and twenty five.
] It is the number of waiting.
] It is the number of truth.
]
] You only need to ask what has been viewed to know.
]
] A heart for the least is the path to forgiveness.
] Move your heart far from pride, and joy will come.
]
] A desert bird knows where to wait and watch
] A desert bird knows when the storm will come.
] A desert bird knows where the water will flow.
] A desert bird knows when the tree will grow.
]
] A new five reign.
] To bring them back;
] To return;
] To unite.
]
] A new one reigns.
] To send them away;
] To push away;
] To divide.
]
] If more you seek,
] Ask and then be given a ray of hope.
]
] A man pulls ten others behind him,
] Because he believes.
] Another lifeless body is thrown into the cart,
] Because it doubts.
] People line the street
] Watching the cart go through their midst.
] Wondering what they should choose,
] And where their own body will be soon.
]
] Learn from the least, for their burden is great.
] A bird from the desert will build a nest in the tree.
]
] There is a circle of seasons,
] Death and life,
] Until a final end.
] The way is made clear at the end of time.
]
] Do not fear the wound, it is a way of peace in time of need.
] A place of patience;
] A place of stone;
] The gathered are known by their faces of stone.
] A place to fall;
] A place to be raised;
] The gathered will fall into the wound.
]
] Like the lelam they grow,
] Expanding in size
] But lessening in thickness.
] Expanding in territory.
] Swallowing enemies and smaller beasts
] But dying slowly.
] For what they eat is of little value.
] And what they consume destroys the stomach.
] So they continue to expand,
] Until there is nothing left where they started.
]
] Winds of change blow from above.
] Feel the wind, it will move you.
]
] The little ones destroy;
] The little ones rebuild;
] The little ones remove;
] The little ones give back.
]
] The future is always revealed to those who wait.
] But the proud have no patience.
] Because of pride, the destruction will come.
]
] This is your one answer.
] What is given is proof of it.
]
] The wound gives birth to the rebuilder of pride.
] The wound takes the age of the rebuilder of pride.
]
] A new five reign;
] To bring them home;
] To return their life;
] To unite their desires.
]
] Rest in the light.
] Call in the dark.
] Sing in the time of joy.
] Weep in the time of the pride.
]
] A new one reigns;
] To send them away to what is good;
] To return them to what is right;
] To unite them to what is true.
]
] A heart for pleasure is a filthy pit of binding.
] A heart for the Maker is a clean breath of release.
]
] For they have claimed a share of very old order.
]
] I see the tree
] With only one branch.
] What misery
] To watch it fall
] And never grow.
]
] Nothing but a seed;
] A seed that grows slowly;
] Roots grow, fed by water;
] Growing upward, only one.
]
] The remnant will live in plenty,
] Until a time of testing comes.
] The remnant will learn of the Maker.
] From one who learns of the Maker.

Section 5

] Do my wishes deceive me?
] I have never seen like this before
] Darkness and tears fill my eyes,
] But not today.
] No longer do they mourn;
] No longer do they not realize their path.
] Is this the ending?
] Is this what I wait for?
] There can be no deception
] With such dreams that outweigh my own.
] Does this end have to leave so soon?
] Do not take the end from me.
]
] Do not put out the least for they will save you.
] The gathered will tell of the path of the shell.
] The bound will know of the path of the stone.
] Words are many, but action is what is desired.
] The gathered will find rest when the light comes.
] The circle is broken;
] The metal is melted in the fire.
] Strangely the cloth does not burn.
] The cloth of many;
] It remains in the fire
] And produces new life.
] Though the circle is gone
] It has brought triumph.
]
] The dreams of the wise are a gift from the Maker.
] The cleft is blessing to the gathered.
] Contempt is a gift from the accuser.
] Roll the stone to know the deceiver.
]
] They ask for it again.
] They cry out for yesterday.
] They want wisdom united
] Under one.
] “Never”, He says.
] That time has vanished.
] Misery will be great
] If that ancient place is visited again.
]
] Can a dead tree grow again?
] A man looks and sees death.
] It has been cut to nothing.
] There are no more branches,
] And no future is seen.
] But the Maker looks and sees life
] Beneath the death and destruction.
] A drop of water falls from the sky,
] And begins the journey downward.
] And the roots drink deeply.
] With the wisdom of the grower a new branch will grow.
]
] The burdened one will write to save worlds, and save one.
] The dreamer will dream to save worlds, and save many.
] The path is folly for those who toil.
] The path is wise for those who wait.
]
] I see the tree, with so many branches.
] What a sight!
] To watch it fall, and grow again.
]
] Can teeth replace Books?
] Can hands replace Ink?
] Can mirrors replace memory?
] Can one replace the many?
] When such things are believed
] So an ending nears.
]
] The Maker listens to D’ni,
] And he hears nothing.
]
] All of them look over you.
] And they do not see the right path.
] Follow the path of light, enter a new beginning.
]
] They seek answers in Ink and Paper
] And only find truth.
] They seek change in truth
] And only find empty hearts.
]
] They follow the truth and denounce all that is within.
] Evil is buried as quickly as love.
] They study the truth and denounce all choice.
] Evil is shunned as quickly as good.
] They write the truth and denounce all that came before.
] Perfection is sought as quickly as evil.
]
] Seek knowledge and you will find evil.
] Seek wisdom and you will find knowledge.
] Seek truth and you will find wisdom.
] Seek love and you will find truth.
]
] A new river flows through the land,
] Its paths are chosen wisely.
] The waters have lived through many dry lands
] And are no longer deceived by imaginary images.
] There are some who hear it roar through the land;
] Some see the dark waves and ripples.
] Those who refuse to acknowledge that it flows
] Are swept away by the storm that follows.
]
] Make a path to the sun,
] And the light will sine upon you.
] Make a path to the sky,
] And the storms will come.
]
] A new tree buries the beliefs of old;
] A tree of stone and power.
] Deep roots sustain it;
] Roots that absorb the waters of the past;
] Waters long forgotten
] But still flowing underground;
] Under new trees, with barks of life
] And rings of stone.
]
] Under the sun is the bringer of destruction.
] To the wound the bringer of pride returns.
] But the son of the son will carry the burden.
] And his wife will face the storm.
] Give him a pen, and he will plan.
] Give her a pen, and she will dream.
] And a daughter will carry the burden of her father.
] And the daughter of the daughter will live in peace.