0:08 [Music]
0:11 upon buying the legendary 1971 lead
0:14 Zeppelin 4 record fans excitedly opened
0:16 up the sleeve only to be confronted with
0:18 an image of an old man on a Hilltop
0:22 holding up a lantern that man is in fact
0:24 an archetype from the ancient ult
0:27 practice of tarot known as The Hermit
0:29 numbered as the ninth card in the major
0:32 Arcana that is the first 22 cards of the
0:34 tarot which outline the Soul's Journey
0:36 from ignorance to Enlightenment The
0:38 Hermit is representative not only of
0:40 solitude and wisdom but even more
0:42 specifically he represents spiritual
0:45 Evolution introspection and inner
0:49 guidance that is spiritual intuition no
0:51 stranger to the esoteric Mysteries
0:53 himself Jimmy pagee Led Zeppelin's
0:56 guitar player and Main songwriter echoed
0:58 this very sentiment in many interviews
1:00 while explaining why this character was
1:02 chosen to Grace the inside of Zeppelin's
1:05 album once stating for example The
1:07 Hermit is a symbol of the search for
1:09 truth and knowledge it's about the inner
1:12 journey in spiritual enlightenment we
1:14 wanted the album to reflect a deeper
1:16 more mystical side of our music and the
1:19 hermit perfectly captured that Essence
1:21 so let's keep that in mind as it truly
1:23 is the key to unlocking the meaning
1:26 behind the most famous song on that
1:28 record in fact quite possibly the most
1:31 famous song of the 20th century the
1:33 monumentally successful Masterpiece
1:36 known as Stairway to Heaven now it would
1:38 be hard to argue with the assertion that
1:40 no other Rock lyrics have been debated
1:42 as to their true meaning more than
1:46 stairways have they're the ultimate in
1:48 ambiguity even Robert Plant himself the
1:50 man who wrote the lyrics has never
1:54 really specified line for line what
1:55 exact messages he was sending through
1:59 his famous words in fact while he has
2:01 said that there about such things as
2:04 being one with nature spiritual
2:06 transformation Enlightenment and
2:08 Universal balance he also readily admits
2:10 that the words came to him as if
2:12 channeled from the great
2:15 beyond I was holding a pencil and paper
2:17 he'd once relate then all of a sudden my
2:20 hand was writing I just sat there and
2:22 looked at the words and then I almost
2:23 leapt out of my
2:26 seat now despite not having been given a
2:29 clear line by line explanation as to
2:31 Stairway to Heaven's meaning from its
2:33 lyric writer with a little understanding
2:36 of the occult spirituality philosophy
2:40 and literature most notably JRR tolken
2:42 the very things the band is documented
2:44 to Vin into at the time the codee is
2:47 easy enough to crack as a clear message
2:49 through a definite narrative does
2:50 present itself when the lyrics are
2:54 analyzed closely and it's a deep one to
2:56 be precise Stairway to Heaven is an
2:58 allegorical poem illustrating the
3:01 dichotomy between spiritualism and
3:04 materialism or the Inward and the
3:07 outward the esoteric and the
3:10 exoteric and it does this by comparing
3:12 two proposed paths to Enlightenment
3:14 which if you'll notice is exactly what
3:16 is meant by the phrase Stairway to
3:19 Heaven it is another way of saying path
3:22 to Enlightenment or bridge to
3:25 Transcendence or lad to Ascension
3:27 however you want to phrase it one of the
3:29 paths being the true path and the other
3:32 being the false path therefore the poem
3:35 focuses on two main characters one
3:38 referred to Simply as the Lady
3:40 represents the false external
3:43 materialistic path the other main
3:46 character is called the piper who like
3:48 the hermit in Tarot represents the
3:51 internal spiritual path to Enlightenment
3:55 the true path now the piper or more
3:58 accurately the tune he plays represents
4:00 our spiritual intuition
4:02 That Tune is the inner vibration that we
4:05 are to follow in order to reach heaven
4:07 or Enlightenment just as the hermit's
4:09 lantern represents the inner light that
4:11 intuitively guides us towards becoming
4:14 our higher self or in other words it
4:16 guides us towards heaven these two
4:18 characters The Hermit and the piper
4:21 represent the same concept that Jimmy
4:22 pagee was talking about in the earlier
4:25 quote just through different allegories
4:27 the piper in his tune are the
4:29 personification of such ancient
4:31 teachings is that of the Buddha who said
4:35 look within you are the Buddha or the
4:38 Dharma is found within oneself or as the
4:41 Hindu vas say the Serene being is not to
4:44 be sought in the outer world but within
4:47 the heart or as the New Testament
4:49 depicts Jesus as saying neither shall
4:52 they say loow here or loow there for
4:56 behold the kingdom of God is within you
4:59 now I could go on for days because these
5:00 lessons the common message that they
5:03 share a message which spans centuries in
5:05 cultures around the globe is the same
5:07 message being put forth in Stairway to
5:10 Heaven it is in a nutshell telling the
5:13 reader or listener that heaven is only
5:14 found through the spiritual
5:16 transformation that occurs when
5:19 following Your Inner Path a good way to
5:20 look at the concept that Robert is
5:22 putting forward in following the Piper's
5:24 tune is to think about how a radio
5:27 signal works right now in the Very Room
5:29 that you're sitting in or wherever you
5:31 are there are radio signals all around
5:34 you that you can't see hear or touch but
5:37 they're there now if you get a radio and
5:39 start turning the dial you'll start to
5:42 tune into different frequency bands and
5:44 the music being broadcast on those
5:45 frequencies will play through the
5:47 speaker letting you hear them in the
5:50 physical world well think of the Piper's
5:52 tune as the ultimate band of frequency
5:55 the Divine frequency which permeates
5:58 throughout the entire universe one which
6:00 if you inwardly work hard hard enough
6:03 you can tune your Consciousness into
6:05 that's what Robert means as we shall see
6:06 in a second when he talks about
6:10 following the Piper's tune now
6:12 additionally apart from the
6:14 individualistic standpoint yet
6:16 completely attached to it there is a
6:18 message being put forward in Stairway to
6:20 Heaven that the modern world the modern
6:22 world of the time the song was written
6:25 and even more so now actually modern
6:29 culture is on a very dangerous path the
6:32 lyrics warn that we mankind are
6:34 forgetting our place within nature and
6:37 are instead separating ourselves from it
6:39 and thus becoming a threat to ourselves
6:43 and all that exists around us again the
6:45 remedy being put forth to fix this
6:47 dilemma is for all to tune into the
6:49 inner vibration of the spirit
6:52 represented as we just went over by the
6:54 tune of the piper and stairways lyrics
6:57 through doing so mankind will once again
7:00 connect to the flow of nature we will be
7:03 brought back into Oneness and this again
7:05 according to the message of the lyrics
7:08 can only be done by each individual that
7:10 makes up the hole following their Inner
7:13 Path however the song starts by
7:16 detailing the opposition to that path
7:18 that is it begins by detailing the
7:21 materialistic path in the form of the
7:24 lady as Robert writes there's a lady
7:27 who's sure All That Glitters Is Gold and
7:30 she's buying a Stairway to Heaven
7:32 when she gets there she knows if the
7:35 stores are all closed with a word she
7:38 can get what she came for and she's
7:40 buying a Stairway to
7:43 Heaven so then right off the bat we see
7:47 this lady is a woman of means a woman of
7:50 wealth a woman who gets what she wants
7:52 through that wealth as even if the
7:55 stores are closed she can get what she
7:57 seeks we're told that she believes that
8:00 All That Glitters Is Gold that is to say
8:03 in her opinion value comes through
8:06 materialistic appearances basically an
8:08 object's intrinsic worth is measured by
8:12 how shiny it is as stated before and as
8:14 should be apparent through these opening
8:17 lines the Lady represents the erroneous
8:19 materialistic path to Enlightenment
8:22 proven through the statement that she is
8:24 of the belief that she can buy a
8:25 Stairway to
8:28 Heaven there's a sign on the wall the
8:31 lyrics continue but she wants to be sure
8:34 cuz you know sometimes words have two
8:37 meanings in a tree by the Brook there's
8:40 a song bird who sings sometimes all of
8:41 our thoughts are
8:44 misgiven like the rest of the lyrics
8:46 There are a few things to be taken away
8:48 from these lines first of all the sign
8:50 on the wall is likely a reference to the
8:52 common phrase about reading the writing
8:55 on the wall which comes in several
8:57 variations but generally refers to being
8:59 able to see the truth of a situation
9:01 ation and in many cases the
9:03 repercussions that situation is likely
9:06 to bring with it this saying finds its
9:08 roots in the old testament's Book of
9:12 Daniel 5 where a mysterious message
9:13 appears on the wall in front of the
9:16 Babylonian King Bazar and so he calls in
9:18 all of his seers and Prophets and
9:20 enchanters to decode it but none of them
9:23 can that is until the Hebrew Prophet
9:26 Daniel arrives and becomes the only one
9:28 who can read the writing on the wall and
9:31 interprets a warning of danger hence the
9:34 famous phrase in this verse in Stairway
9:36 to Heaven the lady believes the writing
9:38 on the wall says that she can buy her
9:41 way into Paradise she thinks she can buy
9:43 her Stairway to Heaven but as Robert
9:46 Plant tells us she is mistaken the words
9:48 she believes she has interpreted
9:50 actually have a different meaning
9:53 altogether in other words she can't read
9:55 the writing on the wall she can't see
9:57 the truth of the situation and she is
10:00 headed for danger we are then brought to
10:02 the first scene representing nature
10:04 where we meet a song bird in a tree who
10:06 solidifies this notion when he sings
10:09 that sometimes our thoughts are misgiven
10:12 meaning the lady is wrong no one can buy
10:15 their way to Heaven the song bird in a
10:17 tree by the Brook by the way is a direct
10:19 reference to another tarot card in the
10:22 major Arcana that of the star a card
10:24 which represents the guidance that comes
10:27 from our highest form of intuition an
10:29 exact parallel to the message being put
10:31 put forward in stairway featuring a
10:34 songbird by a brook on the card the lady
10:37 clearly isn't heeding its message
10:40 additionally on an even deeper level of
10:43 esotericism the phrase you know
10:45 sometimes words have two meanings is
10:47 also a personal hint for the reader or
10:50 The Listener Robert is using this double
10:53 on Tandra about a double on Tandra to
10:55 say to the listener this isn't a song
10:57 about a real woman in a physical
11:00 staircase that leads to a geographical
11:03 place called Heaven read deeper listen
11:06 closer the words below their surface may
11:08 just mean more than what you first
11:11 assumed them to mean he then Ponders the
11:13 proposition he's putting forth in the
11:15 lyrics and forces us to do the same as
11:18 he repeats it makes me wonder before
11:21 moving on into yet more metaphors to
11:23 paint his picture in Greater detail
11:26 writing there's a feeling I get when I
11:29 look to the west and my spirit is crying
11:32 for leaving in my thoughts I have seen
11:35 rings of smoke through the trees and the
11:37 voices of those who stand
11:40 looking here we find ourselves still in
11:43 the setting of Nature and no surprise we
11:45 are once again confronted with
11:47 multifaceted lines veiling several
11:50 different meanings at once the key to
11:52 understanding these lines though is the
11:54 knowledge of Robert Plant's love for the
11:57 writings of JRR tolken specifically his
11:59 most famous work the lord of the the
12:02 Rings trilogy as many know Robert has a
12:05 propensity to write tolken references
12:08 into his song lyrics for example on the
12:10 album Stairway to Heaven is on Leed
12:12 Zeppelin 4 there's a song called Misty
12:14 Mountain Hop the Misty Mountains are
12:17 arrang in Middle Earth tolken fantasy
12:19 world in the setting for several of his
12:21 stories not least of which the Lord of
12:23 the Rings then there's Ramble On from
12:26 lead Zeppelin 2 where Robert sings about
12:28 being in Mordor and having his love
12:31 stolen by Gollum a place and character
12:33 from The Lord of the Rings other songs
12:35 such as the Battle of Evermore also on
12:38 Le Zeppelin 4 and over the hills and far
12:40 away from houses of the Holy include
12:42 tolken references themselves Zeppelin
12:45 songs are Rife with them Stairway to
12:48 Heaven is no exception and here in these
12:50 lines we come across a couple more of
12:53 them first of which there's a feeling I
12:55 get when I look to the west and my
12:58 spirit is crying for leaving this is a
13:00 reference to a place in token's Universe
13:03 known as the undying lands or even more
13:05 specifically a place within the undying
13:08 lands called valinor generally referred
13:11 to in these stories simply as the West
13:13 this is the place where the race of
13:15 elves retire to after their lives on
13:17 Middle Earth come to a close in order to
13:20 live in peace throughout eternity it is
13:22 a paradise where they never again have
13:24 to encounter Earthly troubles including
13:27 death in other words the West is
13:30 tolkien's version of Heaven so then in
13:32 these lines Robert is expressing his
13:35 Soul's imperative to find Heaven
13:38 moreover through referencing tolken
13:40 world and using the term my spirit is
13:43 crying for leaving he's illustrating his
13:45 spirit's sadness with the state of our
13:47 world by expressing its ambition to
13:51 escape it the lines that follow which go
13:53 in my thoughts I have seen rings of
13:55 smoke through the trees and the voices
13:58 of those who stand looking both expand
14:01 on and solidify this notion while also
14:03 presenting a dual meaning to the
14:05 previous lines that we just went over as
14:07 in The Lord of the Rings a corrupted
14:10 wizard character named Saruman clears
14:12 the forests and burns the Fallen trees
14:14 in a fortress called Eisen guard to
14:17 industrially fuel his war effort
14:20 meanwhile to the east of Eisen guard is
14:23 a place called fangorn Forest where a
14:26 race of trees known as ants who have the
14:28 ability to walk and talk notice smoke
14:32 coming from the West that being Eisen
14:34 guard and are thus alerted to the
14:36 destruction of Their Own Kind at the
14:37 hands of the wizard
14:40 sarumon so we see the double on Tandra
14:43 being used here the West both signifies
14:47 the undying lands that is heaven and
14:49 Eisen guard in directional relation to
14:54 fangorn Forest but most importantly all
14:56 of these tolken references are being
14:59 used as an allegorical commentary on our
15:02 our own world where our own culture has
15:04 separated itself from being a connected
15:06 member of the very system of nature
15:08 we're destroying in our Pursuits of
15:11 material ends ultimately destroying
15:14 ourselves in the process however it's
15:17 not all doom and gloom there are
15:19 alternative paths to take which may lead
15:21 us to Salvation And this is the
15:24 narrative Robert addresses next as he
15:27 writes and it's whispered that soon if
15:29 we all call the tune then the piper will
15:32 lead us to reason and a new day will
15:35 Dawn for those who stand long and the
15:37 forests will Echo with
15:40 laughter now aside from these lines
15:42 being the solution to the dilemmas
15:44 posited in the ones that we just went
15:46 over for which we'll return to in a
15:48 moment it is here that we finally meet
15:52 our second main character the piper as
15:54 we've gone over before he represents the
15:57 inner spiritually intuitive path to
16:00 Enlightenment or stairway to heaven the
16:03 true path and we are told here that if
16:05 we follow his tune it will lead us to a
16:08 place of Reason in other words he will
16:11 take us out of the destructive unnatural
16:13 state that was described in the previous
16:16 lines and lead us to the promised land
16:19 now this Piper Motif is playing on two
16:21 separate lines of tradition the first
16:24 the exoteric concept of following the
16:27 Piper's tune hearkens back to such myths
16:30 as the pi Piper Mozart 's Magic Flute
16:32 the Irish Celtic traditions of the fairy
16:35 Piper most of whom LED their listeners
16:37 to magical Realms of paradise just like
16:39 the piper and Stairway to Heaven who is
16:41 supposed to lead us to The Stairway to
16:44 Heaven this is made obvious by the
16:46 second line of tradition being used here
16:49 the esoteric tradition which is the
16:51 mystical idea of following your inner
16:54 tune towards Enlightenment or Heaven
16:56 however you want to say it this concept
16:59 of our intuition being allegorized as
17:01 music can be found in several ancient
17:03 systems of belief most notably the
17:06 beautifully titled Music of the Spheres
17:09 in Pythagorean mysticism the inner song
17:11 or resonance spoken of in Christian
17:14 mysticism the many Sufi poems which
17:16 speak of an inner music that leads one
17:19 closer to God or the inner vibration in
17:21 Buddhist or Hindu traditions for
17:23 instance in the Eastern text known as
17:27 the surangama Sutra the Buddha says that
17:29 all beings have their seeing and hearing
17:32 confused they listen and see outside
17:33 themselves and don't know how to turn
17:35 the light and hear
17:38 inwardly on that same token the ancient
17:40 Indian texts known as the upanishads
17:43 speak of the anahat NAT the unstruck
17:45 sound that is heard during deep
17:47 meditation which is considered to be the
17:49 inner resonance that guides the Seeker towards
17:50 towards
17:52 self-realization this idea spans
17:54 cultures throughout the centuries and it
17:56 is the exact concept being put forward
17:58 in these lines in Stairway to Heaven
18:00 presented in the form of the Piper's
18:04 tune and as Robert asserts if we follow
18:07 that tune a new day will Dawn governed
18:10 by reason and nature will be brought
18:12 back into a harmonious equilibrium
18:15 indicated by the forests echoing with
18:18 laughter moreover these lines like the
18:20 previous ones also parallel the Lord of
18:23 the Rings as those who stand long and
18:26 the idea of laughing trees both apply to
18:27 the end of Middle Earth that we
18:29 previously discussed
18:32 we'll also note here that underneath the
18:35 those who stand long metaphor is the
18:37 suggestion that those who stand by their
18:39 principles and adhere to the tune that
18:41 is their moral compass or Intuition or
18:44 Guardian Angel whichever you prefer
18:46 they'll make it to the dawn of a new day
18:49 or the rise of a new illumination or
18:51 Enlightenment and this line of thought
18:53 only continues into the next stanza in
18:56 which Robert writes if there's a bustle
18:59 in your hedro don't be alarmed now it's
19:01 just a spring clean for the May Queen
19:04 meaning well you may at first perceive
19:06 it as some sort of disturbance a bustle
19:09 in your hedro Don't Fear the inner
19:11 resonance calling out to you that's the
19:13 Piper's tune beckoning you to change
19:17 your ways embrace it like the May Queen
19:19 a traditional figure in European
19:21 folklore who symbolizes the essence of
19:24 spring that is the renewal of life and
19:27 birth of nature a new light the new dawn
19:30 that resonance or tune as the song deems
19:33 it is the path to genuine spiritual
19:36 growth true Enlightenment and Robert
19:39 completely solidifies this proposition
19:41 in the next line which is truly the key
19:44 to decoding the entire piece when he
19:47 says yes there are two paths you can go
19:50 by those two opposing paths being as we
19:52 know that of the lady the outward
19:55 materialistic path and that of the piper
19:59 the inner spiritual path this idea being
20:01 a mirror of the two paths Parable in Matthew
20:03 Matthew
20:05 7:13 but in the long run Robert then
20:07 says before putting forth the
20:09 thought-provoking and inspirational
20:11 statement of there's still time to
20:13 change the road you're
20:16 on then after another brief pause of
20:19 Wonder Robert goes deeper into this
20:21 narrative writing your head is humming
20:25 and it won't go in case you don't know
20:28 the Piper's calling you to join him
20:30 these lines of course are speaking
20:33 directly to you the listener reiterating
20:35 the meaning of the previous bustle in
20:38 your HED lines which we know denote the
20:40 tune of the piper calling from within
20:42 which at this point is impossible to
20:45 ignore your head is humming with it and
20:48 you can't turn it off Robert then talks
20:49 to our original character the
20:52 representative of the false path asking
20:55 dear lady can you hear the wind
20:58 blow this question is playing on two
20:59 different fronts
21:00 the first being a play on the common
21:02 phrase of knowing or seeing which way
21:04 the wind blows which is to
21:06 metaphorically ask if someone
21:08 understands what's really going on in a
21:10 particular situation another variation
21:12 of the writing on the wall saying from
21:15 earlier secondly the flute the Piper
21:18 plays is a woodwind instrument its music
21:22 is literally the product of blowing wind
21:24 so Robert is asking the lady the
21:27 materialist can you not hear the Piper's
21:30 tune he then furthers this metaphor by
21:32 asking and did you know your stairway
21:36 lies on the Whispering Wind meaning
21:38 don't you see the path of heaven lies in
21:41 following the Piper's tune not in
21:43 chasing and hoarding riches possessions
21:45 and shiny
21:47 things then following this
21:50 all-encompassing question the revelation
21:52 of the entire philosophical ride he's
21:55 taken us on Robert sums up all of his
21:57 previous verses in a series of final
22:00 statements the first of which being and
22:03 as we wind on down the road meaning as
22:05 we travel through the ups and downs of
22:08 life our shadows taller than our
22:12 soul now this statement contains much
22:15 more depth as the idea of our shadows
22:17 being taller than our souls aside from
22:19 being another key to understanding the
22:22 entire poem as a whole is actually the
22:25 reflection of a yian concept stemming
22:27 all the way back to the very infancy of
22:31 analytical Psych ology Carl Young father
22:34 of modern psychological theory and Tarot
22:36 utilizer coined defined and wrote
22:39 extensively about the concept of the
22:42 Shadow as he described it the shadow is
22:44 the unconscious part of one's
22:47 personality more specifically the part
22:49 which contains all of our repressed
22:52 weaknesses desires and instincts it is
22:54 to put it in the absolute simplest of
22:58 terms our Dark Side young felt that only
23:00 through dredging our shadow up into our
23:02 conscious mind can we properly deal with
23:05 it otherwise these negative attributes
23:08 stay under the surface wreaking havoc on
23:10 us by steering our actions and emotions
23:11 into destructive
23:14 territories here in these lines Robert
23:17 is pointing out that in our culture in
23:20 our delusion the shadow rules and our
23:23 soul is blackened out by it or in other
23:26 words as we go through our lives ruled
23:29 by our dark side we are as a consequence
23:32 ignorant to our spirit in terms of the
23:35 song as we now know the lady is the
23:37 representative of our shadow which is
23:39 why after declaring that we have been
23:41 traveling through our lives led by it
23:44 Robert points out that on that path
23:47 there walks a lady we all know who
23:50 shines white light and wants to show how
23:53 everything still turns to Gold so then
23:56 to our vision the lady appears to be
23:59 pure emanating an angelic white light
24:02 however looks can be deceiving as in
24:05 reality she wants to convince us of her
24:08 alchemy that figuratively speaking base
24:11 materials can be made into gold a return
24:13 to the first stanza which pointed out
24:15 how she believes that All That Glitters
24:18 Is Gold the basis of hers and all
24:21 materialists Folly so knowing that we
24:24 know that we'd be wise to not believe
24:26 her and would instead be much wiser to
24:29 search for deeper truths such as those
24:31 offered through the alternative path
24:33 that of the piper which Robert points
24:36 out next as he writes and if you listen
24:39 very hard the tune will come to you at
24:42 last that is if we put in the work it
24:44 takes to tune out the static of ego and
24:47 illusory material fulfillment we will be
24:49 able to tune into the Piper's song our
24:52 divine intuition and walk the righteous
24:55 path reassimilate ourselves within the
24:57 delicate balance of the natural system
25:00 we belong to to and thus if each of us
25:02 can attain this calling we can
25:05 collectively achieve and stand firm in
25:08 Oneness where Harmony will rain and this
25:11 is exactly what Robert is referring to
25:14 in his last lines where he writes when
25:19 all are one and one is all to be a rock
25:20 and not to
25:23 roll now aside from this being a clever
25:25 nod to the term rock and roll Robert is
25:27 saying that as the rock that rolls
25:30 destroys is everything in its path after
25:33 transformation after Enlightenment we
25:37 must stand firm in our convictions but
25:39 until we reach that day we are subjects
25:41 to the destructive path of the
25:43 materialist the path where it is
25:45 erroneously believed that one can
25:48 vicariously and externally simply
25:50 purchase their way to Salvation rather
25:53 than doing the great work themsel the
25:56 path governed by the lady we all know
25:58 and Robert ends his poem by revisiting
26:01 visting her position solemnly writing
26:04 and she's buying a Stairway to
26:07 Heaven and that is what it's all about
26:10 beneath all the ingenious allegorical
26:13 veils the proposition is this there are
26:15 two paths we can go by in our quest for
26:20 heaven the misgiven external path or if
26:24 we listen very hard the spiritual Inner
26:28 Path one brings Folly the other Harmony
26:31 so then Stairway to Heaven really boils
26:34 down to one simple question which path
26:41 [Music] [Laughter]
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