Curious About Melisandre's Game Of Thrones Prayer? Here's The Translation
Magic words for a snowy evening.
After the big reveal at the end of episode 1 of Game Of Thrones Season 6, in which Melisandre - aka The Red Woman - disrobed entirely and revealed herself to be a centuries old hag, episode 2, entitled Home, saw her regain her magical mojo as she performed the long-awaited spell on the dead body of Jon Snow.
It goes without saying that we're about to enter spoiler territory in discussing the conclusion to Home (this is Game Of Thrones, after all, so if you're not up to date stop reading now). This ending was one so hotly anticipated that Kit Harington has gone public with an apology to fans of the show in the wake of his resurrection, having spent the last year trying his best to convince everyone Snow was gone for good.
But Game Of Thrones completists may well have been left scratching their collective heads wondering what exactly was Melisandre incanting as she bathed Snow's wound-ridden chest and burned his hair for the ceremony. Thanks to the creator of the High Valyrian language used in the series, David J. Peterson, we now know the answer. Peterson kindly posted the full translation for the scene on his Tumblr blog - it reads:
Zyhys oñoso jehikagon Aeksiot epi, se gis hen syndrorro jemagon. "We ask the Lord to shine his light, and lead a soul out of darkness."
Zyhys perzys stepagon Aeksio Oño jorepi, se morghultas lys qelitsos sikagon. "We beg the Lord to share his fire, and light a candle that has gone out."
Hen syndrorro, oños. Hen ñuqir, perzys. Hen morghot, glaeson. "From darkness, light. From ashes, fire. From death, life."
While Peterson has cleared up any questions we may have had about Melisandre's prayer, plenty more questions remain. Will the revival of Jon Snow be enough to absolve her of her other crimes, not least the sacrifice of Stannis Baratheon's daughter Shireen (news Sire Davos isn't likely to take well)? How will Jon Snow's time spent as a corpse affect him now that he's back with the living? These questions may well be answered - and many more posed - as Game Of Thrones continues its run through Season 6.