I Ziscu Jev Diwed

I Ziscu Jev Diwed (roughly translated as "The Undending Sleep") is an ancient Imerian hymn dating back to before the fall of Naira. Written in the ancient Imerian dialect, it appears to have been sung during Ziscu Diwetav, a ceremony during which asari Matriarchs who had reached the autumn of their lives voluntarily interred themselves in open sarcophagi and imbibed a draught which induced an irreversible coma.

Though the Ziscu Diwetav is no longer performed, the song has persisted. It has received a negative connotation as the asari equivalent of the "Gloomy Sunday", due to the popular misconception that the Ziscu Diwetav was a form of ritual suicide, but its supporters, like Siani T'Nair, who published the English and Modern Asari translations of the song, insist that the song does not glorify suicide but instead celebrates the life of the Matriarch undergoing the ritual.

Lyrics[]

The Imerian version

Dwyd radym wedi
Yir guly ternol
Guda zelun plinydeg
Ond habusi geli urofan

Fengyth cal gyen, ferheden dod
Hyni grus ziscu a malis

Dwe, edig noros
Dwe, bediz crani
Dwe, ji gonsone
Dwe, ije hauni

Dwe, edig noros
Dwe, bediz crani
Dwe, ji gonsone
Dwe, ije hauni

The translation

Come have we
To the final bed
With a weary heart
But happy to be finished

My works are done, my wars ended
This sleep is welcome and sweet

End, you are waiting
End, you will meet us
End, you console us
End, you complete us

End, you are waiting
End, you will meet us
End, you console us
End, you complete us

Trivia[]

The Imerian lyrics are based on rough, bastardized Welsh.
The Imerian lyrics are arranged so that they can be sung to the tune of "In Uthenera" (AKA "Leliana's Song"), from the Dragon Age: Origins soundtrack.