KARMA – English Lyrics

• By: Alien Stage

Lyrics & Translation

Embark on a unique language learning journey with "KARMA" by Alien Stage. This song, the grand finale of a popular web series, offers a captivating blend of Bossa Nova and jazz, providing a pleasant musical backdrop. However, its profound lyrics and symbolic visuals delve into intense themes of despair, morality, and complex human relationships, making it a rich text for understanding nuanced expressions in English. By exploring the stark contrast between its musicality and its deep, often dark, narrative, learners can gain insights into emotional vocabulary and cultural storytelling, making "KARMA" a truly special and immersive language learning experience.

[English]

​​​ ​Stop pretending to be righteous​ ​​

​​​ ​Neither you nor I​ ​​

​​​ ​deserve to be saved​ ​​

​​​ ​Me, together with you​ ​​

​​​ ​We head to the distant star below​ ​​

​​​ ​To eternity, or perhaps even beyond​ ​​

​​​ ​You and me, or "we"​ ​​

​​​ ​Me, together with you​ ​​

​​​ ​At last, we reach the star below​ ​​

​​​ ​To eternity, or perhaps even beyond​ ​​

​​​ ​You and me, or "we"​ ​​

​​​ ​When twilight falls and gently embraces us​ ​​

​​​ ​Our hearts burst into joyful bloom​ ​​

​​​ ​We ride the wind to a place beyond time​ ​​

​​​ ​If I'm with you, this love​ ​​

​​​ ​Hyuna, there's something I need to confess​ ​​

​​​ ​She was secretly rehearsing her death every night​ ​​

​​​ ​And I knew, but pretended not to​ ​​

​​​ ​Maybe I just wasn’t as desperate for her​ ​​

​​​ ​I know my love was different from yours​ ​​

​​​ ​But it was love, too​ ​​

​​​ ​Who could really blame me?​ ​​

​​​ ​If you'd seen the look on her face too, you wouldn't be able to judge me either​ ​​

​​​ ​When twilight falls and gently embraces us​ ​​

​​​ ​Our hearts burst into joyful bloom​ ​​

​​​ ​We ride the wind to a place beyond time​ ​​

​​​ ​If I'm with you, this love​ ​​

​​​ ​You were running away from the very beginning​ ​​

​​​ ​Not once did you face your real feelings​ ​​

​​​ ​Did clinging to some noble cause or sense of justice ever really fix anything?​ ​​

​​​ ​But what came of it? A meaningless death​ ​​

​​​ ​And even if we’d been granted freedom, we’d have still felt alone​ ​​

​​​ ​Because humans are the root of all this pain​ ​​

​​​ ​We're creatures who can't seem to love without exploiting​ ​​

​​​ ​When twilight falls and gently embraces us​ ​​

​​​ ​Our hearts burst into joyful bloom​ ​​

​​​ ​We ride the wind to a place beyond time​ ​​

​​​ ​If I'm with you, this love​ ​​

​​​ ​ISAAC) For humans… and for these beasts too​ ​​

​​​ ​innocence was a luxury they couldn’t afford​ ​​

​​​ ​In this endless suffering​ ​​

​​​ ​to love and be loved​ ​​

​​​ ​to hold onto hope for a day that may never come​ ​​

​​​ ​Is that a survival instinct, or selflessness​ ​​

​​​ ​At the center of it all was a woman​ ​​

​​​ ​a woman now called a witch, who was always searching for love​ ​​

​​​ ​Can we really blame her for that​ ​​

​​​ ​Where did this original sin begin​ ​​

​​​ ​And in the face of a trial with no clear answer​ ​​

​​​ ​can these lives ever overcome it​ ​​

​​​ ​​​ ​​

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
love /lʌv/ A1	noun - an intense feeling of deep affection verb - to feel a deep romantic or sexual attachment to (someone)
death /deθ/ A2	noun - the permanent cessation of all vital functions of an organism
pain /peɪn/ A2	noun - highly unpleasant physical sensation or mental suffering
hope /həʊp/ A2	noun - a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen verb - to want something to happen or be true and usually have a good reason to think that it might
suffering /ˈsʌfərɪŋ/ B1	noun - the state of undergoing pain, distress, or hardship
freedom /ˈfriːdəm/ B1	noun - the state of being free or at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint
justice /ˈdʒʌstɪs/ B1	noun - fairness in the way people are dealt with
deserve /dɪˈzɜːv/ B1	verb - to do something or have or show qualities worthy of (a reward or punishment)
pretend /prɪˈtend/ B1	verb - to behave so as to make it appear that something is the case when it is not
blame /bleɪm/ B1	verb - to feel or declare that (someone or something) is responsible for a fault or wrong
judge /dʒʌdʒ/ B1	verb - to form an opinion or conclusion about
distant /ˈdɪstənt/ B1	adjective - far away in space or time
exploit /ɪkˈsplɔɪt/ B2	verb - to use (a person or situation) in an unfair or selfish way
innocence /ˈɪnəsəns/ B2	noun - the state, quality, or fact of being innocent of a crime or offence; lack of worldly experience or sophistication
overcome /ˌəʊvərˈkʌm/ B2	verb - to succeed in dealing with (a problem or difficulty)
embrace /ɪmˈbreɪs/ B2	verb - to hold (someone) closely in one's arms, especially as a sign of affection
twilight /ˈtwaɪlaɪt/ B2	noun - the soft diffused light from the sky when the sun is below the horizon, either from the evening to nightfall or from dawn to sunrise
bloom /bluːm/ B2	noun - a flower, especially one cultivated for its beauty; a state or period of vigor, freshness, or beauty verb - to produce flowers; to be in flower; to flourish or thrive
meaningless /ˈmiːnɪŋləs/ B2	adjective - without meaning or purpose
selflessness /ˈselfləsnəs/ C1	noun - concern more with the needs and wishes of others than with one's own

Key Grammar Structures

• Neither you nor I deserve to be saved

  ➔ Correlative Conjunction ('Neither...nor') and Passive Infinitive ('to be saved')

  ➔ "Neither...nor" is used to connect two negative ideas, meaning "not one and not the other". "to be saved" is an infinitive in the passive voice, indicating the subject (you/I) is receiving the action of saving.

• When twilight falls and gently embraces us Our hearts burst into joyful bloom

  ➔ Adverbial Clause of Time ('When clause')

  ➔ The clause starting with "When" describes the time at which the main action ("Our hearts burst...") occurs. It functions as an adverb, modifying the verb "burst".

• If you'd seen the look on her face too, you wouldn't be able to judge me either

  ➔ Mixed Conditional (Type 3 condition, Type 2/Present result)

  ➔ This sentence mixes a Type 3 conditional in the 'if' clause ("If you 'had seen'" - referring to an unreal past condition) with a result in the present/general time ("you 'wouldn't be able to judge'" - referring to a present consequence of that past unreal condition). "you'd seen" is a contraction of "you had seen".

• Not once did you face your real feelings

  ➔ Negative Inversion

  ➔ When certain negative expressions like "Not once" (or "Never," "Seldom," "Hardly ever," etc.) are placed at the beginning of a sentence for emphasis, the subject and auxiliary verb (or main verb 'be') are inverted, similar to a question. Here, "did" is the auxiliary verb for the past simple.

• Did clinging to some noble cause or sense of justice ever really fix anything?

  ➔ Gerund as Subject

  ➔ The "-ing" form of the verb "clinging" functions as a noun and is the subject of the verb "fix". It refers to the *act* of clinging.

• And even if we’d been granted freedom, we’d have still felt alone

  ➔ Third Conditional (Type 3) with Passive Voice

  ➔ This is a Type 3 conditional, describing an unreal situation in the past and its unreal consequence in the past. The 'if' clause ("if we 'had been granted'") uses the past perfect passive voice, and the result clause ("we 'would have still felt'") uses the past modal perfect.

• We're creatures who can't seem to love without exploiting

  ➔ Relative Clause ('who can't seem to love'), Phrasal Verb ('seem to'), and Preposition + Gerund ('without exploiting')

  ➔ "who can't seem to love" is a relative clause that modifies "creatures", specifying what kind of creatures they are. "seem to" expresses appearance or impression. "without exploiting" uses the preposition "without" followed by a gerund, indicating the absence of an action.

• to love and be loved to hold onto hope for a day that may never come

  ➔ Infinitives of Purpose/Result, Passive Infinitive ('be loved'), and Relative Clause with Modal ('that may never come')

  ➔ The infinitives "to love" and "to hold onto" express a purpose or a potential outcome. "be loved" is an infinitive in the passive voice. "that may never come" is a relative clause modifying "day", using the modal verb "may" to express possibility or uncertainty.