written on dam square in the netherlands

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there is a large statue in amsterdam on the square oposed to the palace the queen used to live in. this is written on the back of it.

i have looked up a translation in english so i could share it

“Never ever, from the ore in the earth to the eagles in the sky, any creature has been free underneath the sun, neither is the sun itself, nor the constellation.
But the spirit broke the law and put mankind on the breach.
From the very first incalculable many descended.
Fearing his high regard, the flocks returned within the boundaries of the law and became human peoples and threatened each other’s lives in a tragedy underneath a nightly cloud which is called the World.
From then onwards no man became free other than called upon from beyond his ceiling, no people than ruled upon from beyond its towers.
Lest this remains with us, salvaged as we were from this Reign of Terror by the underworld.
Not uncontrollable but only controlled from up and above the world, freedom will be our inheritance.”

The National Monument, remembrance to the Second World War and subsequent armed conflict.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_M ... sterdam%29

Original text:
"Nimmer, van erts tot arend, was enig schepsel vrij onder de zon, noch de zon zelve, noch de gesternten. Maar geest brak wet en stelde op de geslagen bres de mens. Uit die eersteling daalden de ontelbaren. Duchtend zijn hoge blik deinsden hun zwermen binnen de wet terug en werden volkeren en stonden elkander naar het leven, onder nachtgewolkten verward treurspel, dat wereld heet. Sindsdien werd geen mens vrij dan ontboden van boven zijn dak, geen volk dan beheerst van boven zijn torens. Blijve ons dat bij, verlost als we werden uit het schrikbewind van een onderwereld. Niet onbeheerst, doch enkel beheerst van boven de wereld blijft vrijheid ons deel."
(Source: http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nationaal_Monument)

@thedaywalker:
My curiosity is this, what point do you want to make with this post?

well fearing his high regard could be interperted in 2 ways espacialy in the dutch version of the text. it could be interperterd as the the vision of god down on earth but could equealy well be iterperted as man looking up at the sky and being scared by it. maybe if you read it in this context the text will seem more meaningfull. i hapend to read it when i was realy stoned ^^

The God-Fearing Man, touché.

i'm not sure if you get what i meant... i see it kinda like this man looks up at the sky and realizes he is free he's scarded as hell by this so he sets laws for himself and builds towers to undo his freedom. the text ends by saying that man is stil free to create his own law and towers so that mankind is still free but man is not. well that's not what it says but thats the vibe i get from the text put into english to express it. ow and it says man will inherit freedom.

I think the translation has gone awry, I'll give it a try:

Nimmer, van erts tot arend, was enig schepsel vrij onder de zon, noch de zon zelve, noch de gesternten. Maar geest brak wet en stelde op

Never, from ore to eagle, was any creature free under the sun, not even the sun itself, neither the stars. But spirit broke law and placed upon

de geslagen bres de mens. Uit die eersteling daalden de ontelbaren. Duchtend zijn hoge blik deinsden hun zwermen binnen de wet terug

the stricken breach the human. From the firstborn descended the innumerable. Fearing his high gaze put astern their swarms back within the law

en werden volkeren en stonden elkander naar het leven, onder nachtgewolkten verward treurspel, dat wereld heet. Sindsdien werd geen

and became tribes and became hostile to others, under night-clouded confused tragedy, that is called world. From that point on no

mens vrij dan ontboden van boven zijn dak, geen volk dan beheerst van boven zijn torens. Blijve ons dat bij, verlost als we werden uit het

man was free unless called upon from above his own roof, no people then controlled from above his towers. Keeping that to mind, freed as we were from the

schrikbewind van een onderwereld. Niet onbeheerst, doch enkel beheerst van boven de wereld blijft vrijheid ons deel.

reign of terror of a underworld. Not uncontrollably, though solely controlled from above the world freedom stays our part.

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I get the idea that the poem want to say that freedom was there all along, but human race as a whole choose to confine itself even when it was made available since the known situation made them feel safe.
To illustrate: Used too living in a cage it chooses to stay in the cage even when the doors are wide open, even better it build a cage within it's cage where it willingly stays since that is what it knows and can control it's boundaries. Afraid to look past it's boundaries it experiences 'safety' within the space marked out.

I think I get your point.

yes i think you do very nice

My take on it is that it claims man fell from religion and world wars broke out. So they returned to the god that had kept them caged for safety. Each has to understand religion and be recognized in order to be free.

Apparently Hitler was an Atheist... he was, but I don't think one Atheist justifies a need for religion. IMO science says we should keep life around and a true atheist will appreciate that if they are properly educated and never induced into believing that they are living in a world filled with terrible people ruled by demons rather than admitting that religion made them ignorant in the first place.

I'd rather have ethical atheism over religion any day.

Hmmm..

Its saying that only humans have free will.

The rest of nature does not.

But humans choose to remained caged anyway.

Something along those lines.