How we cite our quotes: (Line)
Quote #1
Go, go, go said the bird: human kind
Cannot bear very much reality. (44-45)
The bird in the speaker's garden suggests that modern folks spend so much time distracting themselves from reality, they can't really handle too much of it at any one time. This is because we've become way too dependent on work and entertainment to keep us from thinking too deeply about our lives and our place in the universe.
Quote #2
The inner freedom from the practical desire,
The release from action and suffering, release from the inner
And the outer compulsion (72-74)
If we're ever going to be happy, we have to achieve a form of consciousness that goes beyond our everyday routines and practical thinking. We need to think of something that in rational terms might not have a clear purpose. We have to think about the nature of existence, which is at the root of our sadness. Getting that pair of boots or new cellphone isn't going to make everything all better. We need to get to the roots of our spiritual sickness.
Quote #3
Erhebung without motion, concentration
Without elimination, both a new world
And the old made explicit, understood
In the completion of its partial ecstasy. (76-79)
The German word that kicks off this excerpt means a sort of spiritual enlightenment that make us feel like we're being lifted up. But, for the speaker, it can be very easy to mistake normal excitement for a true spiritual experience. If we're really going to have a go at a rebirth of consciousness, we're going to have to open our minds to possibilities that might not seem to make sense at first.