Passing By lyrics and meaning
Vai šaliu šaliu sieras sakalėli pro mani
Vai šaliu šaliu mėlynas paukšteli pro mani /x2
Ašišlakiojau šimtų mylalį dar ir tris
Ir nepamatiau tokios paukštelės kap tavi /x2
Raibos plunksnelės geltonos akelės tai tavo
O tu gegiula, o tu raiboji tu mano /x2
Vai šaliu šaliu juodas debesėli pro mani
Vai šaliu šaliu jaunas bernužėli pro mani /x2
Aš išvaikščiojau šimtų kermošėlių dar ir du
Ir nepamatiau tokios mergelės kap tavi /x2
Gelsvos kaselės mėlynos akelės tai tavo
O tu mergela, o tu jaunoji tu mano /x2
Passing By: song interpretation
This song can be understood as a parallel love song comparing a falcon and a young man. At the beginning, the speaker addresses the gray falcon, the blue bird flying past, saying: I flew a hundred miles and three more, but I did not see a bird like you. This image can be interpreted as the search for a matchless beloved.
Then the cuckoo's speckled feathers and yellow eyes are praised, and the bird is called the speaker's own. These images can be understood as praise of the beloved's beauty.
At the end, the same structure is transferred to the young man, compared with a black cloud: I walked through a hundred fairs but saw no young woman like you, with fair braids and blue eyes. These images can be interpreted as the beloved's uniqueness among all others. This is one possible meaning, but the parallel between falcon and young man is clear in the song. The song is close to another variant built on the same imagery.
Passing By: symbols and phrases
- Gray falcon, blue bird
- The falcon flying past. It is parallel to the young man.
- "I flew a hundred miles and saw none like you"
- The falcon that has flown great distances without finding an equal. It marks the beloved's uniqueness.
- Cuckoo's speckled feathers and yellow eyes
- The praised beauty of the cuckoo. It marks the beloved's charm.
- Young woman's fair braids
- The girl's light-colored braids. They mark the beloved's beauty.
Passing By: song history
"Vai šaliu šaliu" belongs to love songs in which the beloved's uniqueness is conveyed through a bird parallel. The song is made of two parallel parts: first the speaker addresses a gray falcon, or blue bird, flying past and says that after flying a hundred miles "and three more" no bird like this one was found; then the same formula of praise is transferred to the young man and young woman, for whom after walking through a hundred fairs no equal was found. This comparison of bird and human, psychological parallelism, is one of the most characteristic features of Lithuanian lyrical love songs.
The exact place and time of recording are not given on this page, so the song is presented according to genre features. This song is a close variant of "Vai šaliu šaliu sieras sakalėli": the same images and formulas recur with small differences, here "and three more" and yellow eyes, and such small deviations are typical of living sung tradition.
sources
- Lietuvių liaudies dainynas, t. 1–23, Vilnius 1980–2011 (LLTI)
- Lietuvių liaudies dainų katalogas, 6 t., Vilnius 1972–1986
Passing By: sources
Passing By: frequently asked questions
What kind of song is this?
It is a lyrical love song in which the beloved's uniqueness is conveyed through a bird parallel, especially falcon and cuckoo imagery.
How does this differ from "Vai šaliu šaliu sieras sakalėli"?
It is a close variant of the same text, with small differences such as "and three more" and yellow eyes. Such variation is typical of living sung tradition.
What does "I flew a hundred miles and saw none like you" mean?
It is a hyperbole emphasizing the beloved's uniqueness: even after traveling great distances, no equal has been found.
Why does the song begin with a falcon and end with a young man?
This is psychological parallelism: the bird's search prepares and explains the human image. The falcon stands for the young man, and the cuckoo and young woman for the beloved.