The Sin Eater

 

This is an elegiac, gothic meditation on eternal devotion, spiritual limbo, and the enduring bond between parted soulmates.

Through mythological, occult, and literary imagery, the transmission presents a speaker trapped beyond the mortal veil who continues to anchor their love across worlds.

 The Ghostly Speaker

The Liminal Persona: 

Introduced by: 

A lone voice whispers; the speaker exists in a liminal afterlife—a "shadow walker" in "this endless cold" and "Under this black sky".

 The speaker assumes heavy archetypal identities:

Ghost of Christmas Past: 

Suggests an involuntary observer bound to memory and regret.

A Sin Eater: 

References the folk figure who consumed food over a corpse to take on the deceased’s sins, implying the speaker shoulders emotional or spiritual burdens from past trials ("dog-eared days", "The wars and sweet victories").

Reborn Archimedes:

Invokes discovery and deep thought amid lost knowledge, seeking mathematical clarity or revelation even while surrounded by "swirling dust".

The "Twin Candle" & Soulmate: 

The flame serves as a beacon of life and connection. 

Searching for a "twin candle to see if it still burns" emphasises spiritual entanglement—if one light endures in the physical realm, the connection remains alive.

"Velumbound" (Vellum):

A poetic play on vellum (parchment made from animal skin used for historic manuscripts), implying a soul or memory permanently transcribed, bound like an ancient grimoire into eternity. 

The ritualistic refrain "Blessed be" evokes sacred or pagan blessings, framing the transmission as an incantation rather than merely a lament.

The line "No yellow gold would buy this old soul" highlights the priceless nature of the relationship, placing personal devotion far above worldly concerns or mortal redemption.

Lament of Mortality:

The midsection confronts heartbreak ("Thinking / Why couldn't we make it / After all we've been through"). 

The speaker reflects on taking love for granted in life, a frequent realisation for spirits bound by unresolved grief.

Immortality Through Death: 

The resolution shifts from sorrow to protective ascension.

Because "the now dead / Never get old," physical decay and the passage of time can no longer erode love. 

The speaker vows to act as an eternal guardian, carrying the beloved's essence "To new places and higher kingdoms."

Now you know the know. 

Shall we begin, oh inquisitive one? 

 

Blessed be

Velumbound

Do you like listening to these lost voices?

Here's another

(A lone voice whispers) 

Sometimes

I look for my twin candle to see

if it still burns

My soulmate and gateway to new worlds

For now I'm a ghost of Christmas Past

A sin eater from dog-eared days

that now seems to always last

I walk through schools of old thoughts like a reborn Archimedes

Remembering carefully

How things used to be

Where I still breathe in the sweet musk

Even in this swirling dust

Now I live on where angels fear to tread

Under this black sky

Where I wander and cry

Alone

Thinking 

Why couldn't we make it

After all we've been through

The wars and sweet victories

That I know now

Since I'm a shadow walker

But if I could

I wouldn't take you for granted

No yellow gold would buy this old soul

Not anything

So if you hear this

Always know...

Even in here

I'll carry you

In this endless cold

To new places and higher kingdoms

For the now dead

Never get old

Blessed be

Velumbound...

(C)

Copyright John Duffy