Lyrical Deep Dive Special: さよならアンドロメダ - A traditional interstellar folklore reimagined

This post was originally a standalone comment on reddit and was not intended to be part of the series. However, it is very long and informative so I decided it was worthy of being archived for future generations to read.

So this song has a lot of cool lore to explore, so here we go again with zhu writes too much about a fucking idolgame song. But before we can just jump in first I needed to talk about astronomy and folklore because that's a necessary part of this song. You're gonna have to forgive me for my incompetence in astronomy related matters because I had to do quite a bit of research to make sure I wasn't just spitting pure nonsense but I can't confirm that I've read any of the maps correctly lol

Andromeda is a constellation. Its somewhere in space north of something called the celestial equator. We'll come back to this at some point, but the main thing to note is that these are nowhere near the subjects of our story here today. The things to follow are far more important in understanding the song here today.

Altair is the brightest star in the constellation of Aquilla. The main thing to note is that Aquilla is a constellation that passes through the celestial equator, and that objects near the celestial equator appear above the horizon on earth. Really this isn't a science lesson I swear we're gonna get somewhere. Anyway, since andromeda is also a constellation near the celestial equator, it means that we get to see andromeda in the horizon too. Andromeda is most visible during the month of November due to the earth's orbit. Altair on the other hand being in the Aquilla constellation is most visible in August, so you can imagine that Andromeda is quite a bit further down the trajectory of the earth's orbit than Aquilla is.

Vega is the brightest star in the constellation of Lyra. While Lyra is not on the celestial equator, Vega happens to conveniently be the 5th brightest star in the sky while Altair is only the 12th brightest. (Of course we're talking about brightness from earth and not luminosity which is a far more scientific discussion) Anyway it just so happens that the constellation of Lyra is also the most visible during the month of August as well. The two stars Vega and Altair together with a third star Deneb form what's known as the Summer Triangle. Each is the brightest star of 3 different constellations. So if you see triangles and start thinking of love triangles and not a certain million live idol then you're probably on the right track here, but this isn't some harem anime is it?

We're still not done talking about things that aren't the song itself. What gives? Well there's one more thing to note here. First I need to give everyone a rundown of the Cowherd and Weaver Girl chinese folk tale. There are many variants of this tale, including a Japanese version, but most of the history attributes it's origins to the chinese one. If you wanted more details you could look it up but I'm gonna give a basic rundown. Basically there was a weaver girl (or 織姫, weaving princess in the Japanese version, represented by the star Vega) and a cowherd. (represented by Altair) The princess was basically an immortal goddess who fell in love with the mortal cowherd. Some drama later and the two are punished by the god/father in the form of eternal separation. The milky way (or "celestial river") stood between the two lovers, and they were only permitted to meet once a year on the 7th night of the 7th moon. The tears of the princess would move a flock of magpies (represented by the star Deneb) to form a bridge for the two to cross and meet each other. The lunar cycle os 29.5 days long, therefore the 7th night of the 7th moon cycle puts it somewhere at around 213 days with an error of +-14 days. 213 days on a non-leap year is the 1st of August.

So maybe this is the point where the whole song clicks for you, but for the benefit of everyone I'm going to continue. I'm going to continue using the names Altair and Vega because its far more consistent than the multitude of variant names available for orihime and hikoboshi alone in Japanese not to mention other cultures have their own. (Seriously, look at this mess)

Sayonara Andromeda is a song about the night Altair reunites with Vega. It surprisingly has very little to do with Andromeda itself. (andromeda is used more of as a representation of a distant hopeful future, as we'll soon go over) The song is sung from the perspective of Altair which is why boku (male pronoun for I) is used throughout the song.

The song starts with Altair describing the eternal punishment, spending eternity in isolation, unable to feel happy as time blows by. He closes his eyes to everything, even the light of the sun. (太陽さえ目を逸らした) Then it goes on to talking about them meeting. In the original tale it's the tears of Vega that cause some magpies to form some kind of bridge, but here there is no mention of that. "The unfulfilled promised became rain" (叶わない約束が雨になって) refers to Vega's tears. If you check out the various variants of this tale you'll learn about how there's different interpretations of rain from various cultures. (Such as rain on the significant day meaning they're unable to meet) The song then goes on to talk about how they finally meet in autumn and him opening his eyes to find Vega besides him. (秋をそっとつれてきたその夜 目を覚ましたら君は隣にいて)

From the prechorus, it's Altair talking to Vega, he's asking her why she's constantly crying. (ねえ　どうして　どうして　ずっと泣いているの) As we know from the original folklore, Vega doesn't cope with being separated from her lover very well. She's perpetually crying and it's her tears that allowed them to meet for a day.

The chorus itself describes what Altair wants to do together with Vega. They want to journey together to see the rest of the world, to go towards Andromeda. (ぼくら　今夜　今夜　そう旅立とう　ずっと　ずっと　遠くへ　星の海のむこう　アンドロメダ) They basically want to go on a honeymoon to some other world. Maybe it's used as an image that they want to do something seemingly impossible, considering the astrological separation of Vega and Altair from Andromeda. Like mentioned earlier, Andromeda is used as a kind of goal, a destination or a hope for a better future. Anyway the chorus continues that they want to be together forever in another distant galaxy, Andromeda. (そしていつかいつかと　僕らはずっとずっと遠くの銀河見てた　二人　アンドロメダ) You see, andromeda isn't just about a star constellation. There actually is something known as the Andromeda Galaxy, which is another Galaxy just like the milky way that we live in (and that separates the lovers) So here we have a classic example of lovers wanting to escape from their situation into another world. A world where they hope to be together and find happiness again. (君はどんな　どんな暗い夜でも　もう笑えない僕にも笑ってくれた　笑ってくれた)

The next verse explains why Andromeda is the destination of their dreams. They made a map of space riding a rainbow comet, and this rough map is what contains their dreams of getting to that galaxy. (不器用な地図をふたり描いた　隣の銀河を夢見て) Andromeda is then described as a "place that can make wishes take material form" which Altair claims that he read it in a book a long time ago back when he was still a human. (願いが形になって叶う場所だと　昔本で読んだよ) In this story it is described as a safe haven for them where as long as they're together they won't be afraid of the rain or storm of stars. (星の雨も嵐も怖くないよ　君と行けるなら)

The our 2nd prechorus buildup talks about how they feel like they're finally able to reach their destination. It's "Just a little bit more" (ねえもう少しさ　ねえあと少しだ)

The chorus here talks about their dream within reach. Tonight is the magical night where they'll finally be able to touch it. (今夜そう触れるよ) They just need to stretch out their hands to grasp their Andromeda (手を伸ばすよ　僕らのアンドロメダ) And just maybe, just maybe their wish will be granted and Vega will laugh again. (今夜もしも　もしもね　願いが叶うなら　君に笑えるかな　笑えるかな)

Between this and the conclusion we're treated to an instrumental break. The plot in the song has just climaxed and we await the continuation, the outcome of the story. In a way this is the suspense before the conclusion.

Unfortunately reality sets in and because of their curse and punishment the two must be separated again after the night. Altair understands that because of Vega they can't be together. That's why the line of "why must you be you" (どうしてきみは君なんだ) Because of this they must separate again tonight. (そして　今夜　今夜　そうお別れ) He doesn't think they can meet again (きっと　もう　会えないけど) but he will constantly think of her (ずっと　ずっとさ　きみを思っているよ) Even with her face swollen with tears and her voice, she will always be gorgeous in his eyes (泣きはらした顔も　声も　ねえ　いつでも　きみはすてきだったよ) Altair will leave alone on his own two feet (僕らはきっときっとそう一人で　僕の足で帰るよ) and say goodbye to his paradise Andromeda, which is the title drop Sayonara Andromeda. (今日でさよなら　さよならアンドロメダ) Finally in the end of each summer, on a night with gentle rain he will think of the memories of her, gaze and the sky and smile (again). (そして夏の終わり　雨が静かに降る夜は　君のことを思い出すから　空見上げて微笑むから)

A beautiful retelling of a classic tale. The lyrics are elegant and simple, yet profound. Sometimes the greatest of literature is also the simplest ones.