Firewalking

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garethw
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Firewalking

Post by garethw »

Ummm... is there anyone who is not aware of this term, or am I really uniquely retarded?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firewalking

Odd... I don't think I've ever heard this mentioned in any TP thread, and yet it's even mentioned (by JJ Wheeler, no less!) in the show.

Boy, do I feel dumb... Someone tell me I'm not the only one?
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gavriloP
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Re: Firewalking

Post by gavriloP »

Well, it would put the whole theme in quite different light ;) I mean if it would really mean:" firewalk with me". In other words, take a leap of faith to hot stones/coals and walk fast so you don't really feel anything, but it looks fancy...
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garethw
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Re: Firewalking

Post by garethw »

Yeah, I mainly just thought it was interesting - it's not really said or written in a way that's consistent with that interpretation. I was just surprised to have encountered the word elsewhere, and that I'd never heard it mentioned.

"For the longest time you wouldn't feel anything... Then you'd burst into fire".

Indeed!
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Audrey Horne
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Re: Firewalking

Post by Audrey Horne »

you mean you had never heard about people walking on hot coals before? Or seen it in a movie (usually a comedy)?
God, I love this music. Isn't it too dreamy?
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garethw
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Re: Firewalking

Post by garethw »

Audrey Horne wrote:you mean you had never heard about people walking on hot coals before? Or seen it in a movie (usually a comedy)?
I had never heard of the practice being called a "firewalk".
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p-air
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Re: Firewalking

Post by p-air »

I found this old thread and I was just wondering what people think or know about about the phrase “fire walk with me”, what it might actually refer to (if anything), and who came up with it… I’d always assumed this does refer to the act of firewalking over hot coals, but then some viewers (and the characters themselves, around half of the time) apply a short pause after “fire” almost like a comma: as in “fire, walk with me”, thereby invoking something more obscure. Interestingly while references to fire abound in Twin Peaks, the original poster has correctly noted that the only mention of firewalking itself comes completely out of context from John Justice Wheeler of all characters, towards the end of Season 2 !

According to the Wikipedia article on firewalking (I recopy the link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firewalking) and other sources the practice may originate in ancient Vedic Hinduism. For this reason especially, I thought I’d bump up the thread as Hinduism has been a general topic on the boards lately.
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OK,Bob
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Re: Firewalking

Post by OK,Bob »

The phrase is always spoken with a pause, as in, "Fire, walk with me." Margaret believed that "fire is the devil, hiding like a coward in the smoke." Mike spoke of the FWWM tattoo as having symbolized being "touched by the devilish one." There is certainly a devilish theme...

Probably unrelated: little Nicky was thought to be the Devil, and his caseworker's name... was Judy!!! ;-)
"OK, Bob. OK, BOB. OK." -Audrey Horne
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LostInTheMovies
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Re: Firewalking

Post by LostInTheMovies »

p-air wrote:I found this old thread and I was just wondering what people think or know about about the phrase “fire walk with me”, what it might actually refer to (if anything), and who came up with it… I’d always assumed this does refer to the act of firewalking over hot coals, but then some viewers (and the characters themselves, around half of the time) apply a short pause after “fire” almost like a comma: as in “fire, walk with me”, thereby invoking something more obscure. Interestingly while references to fire abound in Twin Peaks, the original poster has correctly noted that the only mention of firewalking itself comes completely out of context from John Justice Wheeler of all characters, towards the end of Season 2 !

According to the Wikipedia article on firewalking (I recopy the link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firewalking) and other sources the practice may originate in ancient Vedic Hinduism. For this reason especially, I thought I’d bump up the thread as Hinduism has been a general topic on the boards lately.
I read/heard that Lynch himself jotted down the poem when it came to him on a taxi or car ride one day...perhaps to the hospital location the day it was shot? Not sure but I believe Al Strobel said it was handed to him on a handwritten something like 20 minutes beforehand (along with the rest of his lengthy speech!)

Re: JJW & firewalking, I love how Coop doesn't play along with the whole "those wacky Hindus" corny line but instead rather matter-of-factly corrects the Sweatered One: "No, it's for self-discipline." Maybe the only JJW scene I like (not just for that moment).
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Re: Firewalking

Post by Smiling Bag »

Also remember this is referenced between Cooper and our boy John Justice, when he said The Hindus's are "also known to walk accross hot coals", and Coop replies "It's self discipline"...........In thinking about the irony of that, Cooper LACKED Self discipline in the lodge when he "walked in" which led to Bob getting the best of him ..............Perhaps this will be explored in 2016
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Jasper
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Re: Firewalking

Post by Jasper »

Smiling Bag wrote:Also remember this is referenced between Cooper and our boy John Justice, when he said The Hindus's are "also known to walk accross hot coals", and Coop replies "It's self discipline"...........In thinking about the irony of that, Cooper LACKED Self discipline in the lodge when he "walked in" which led to Bob getting the best of him ..............Perhaps this will be explored in 2016
I don't think he lacked self-discipline when he entered the lodge. He lacked "perfect courage" when he was tested and fled.
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p-air
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Re: Firewalking

Post by p-air »

See this is why I actually tend to lean towards the “firewalk” (rather than “fire, walk”) interpretation, because that notion of firewalking ties directly into Cooper’s character arc (and in a way Laura’s) as a test of courage and/or self-discipline.

Either way I just noticed something else. A similar exhortation to “walk with me” can be found in the lyrics to “Sycamore Trees” – “I got an idea, you take me for a walk” etc. Never occurred to me before.
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Jasper
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Re: Firewalking

Post by Jasper »

I've always considered it to be "Fire, walk with me," and I presume that impression is largely due to the way it's spoken, but also because of the inherent poetry of that reading. It's as if the fire is a power, or a state, or a representation of evil, or even a sort of entity (like when Margaret calls it the devil). So, it's as if the speaker is invoking an incredibly strong, perhaps evil force in the aid of evildoing. Kind of the opposite of "Get behind me, Satan."

I'm able to find value in the firewalk interpretation, though I've not spent much time with the idea relative to my first reading. There's also something appealing about the ambiguity. It could simply be that this combination of words is emotionally powerful, and we're thinking too literally. After all, if I'm recalling correctly, the original "one chance out between two worlds", was mistakenly transcribed as "one chants out", and Lynch found the latter more appealing. This isn't to say that Lynch didn't subsequently build meaning atop the latter version.
p-air wrote: Either way I just noticed something else. A similar exhortation to “walk with me” can be found in the lyrics to “Sycamore Trees” – “I got an idea, you take me for a walk” etc. Never occurred to me before.
I don't know if that's related or not, but it's an interesting observation. OKBob recently posted this fantastic section of an early draft of Ronnie Rocket (then called Ronny Rocket):
GIRL
I got idea, man...you take me for a
walk ( she moves closer to the guy)
under the sycamore trees (closer)
the dark trees that blow, baby. In
the dark trees I'll see you and you'll
see me...I'll see you in the branches
that blow in the breeze...I'll see you
under the trees.

GUY
I'll twist your neck.

GIRL
NO, NO, NO, NO you won't...I'll
run away from you.

GUY
I'll catch you...I'll catch you
in the dark trees and kill you.
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p-air
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Re: Firewalking

Post by p-air »

Jasper wrote:It could simply be that this combination of words is emotionally powerful, and we're thinking too literally.
Not to put the topic to rest but in actuality yes, this is quite probably the case.
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The Grey Lodge
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Re: Firewalking

Post by The Grey Lodge »

I've always interpreted it as Fire, Walk With Me to suggest that fire is its own metaphysical entity, and someone is asking it to walk side-by-side with them between worlds (i.e., you're walking with fire). If the poem were meant to denote firewalking, I would've expected it to appear as such, "Firewalk With Me", which would convey the idea of asking another human being to walk through the fire (Hell?) with you.

Both are intriguing interpretations but every time the FWWM verse is shown - subtitles, note in the train car, film title - it has corresponded to the former.
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p-air
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Re: Firewalking

Post by p-air »

Jasper wrote:OKBob recently posted this fantastic section of an early draft of Ronnie Rocket (then called Ronny Rocket):
GIRL
I got idea, man...you take me for a
walk ( she moves closer to the guy)
under the sycamore trees (closer)
the dark trees that blow, baby. In
the dark trees I'll see you and you'll
see me...I'll see you in the branches
that blow in the breeze...I'll see you
under the trees.

GUY
I'll twist your neck.

GIRL
NO, NO, NO, NO you won't...I'll
run away from you.

GUY
I'll catch you...I'll catch you
in the dark trees and kill you.
Another thought - the "Sycamore Trees" lyric appearing in Ronnie Rocket’s script may be of additional interest since it uses that very strange phrasing “i got idea man” (rather than “i got an idea man”) here just as it does in the song. This sticks out to me because I had always assumed that line was only phrased as such to fit the syllabic cadence of the music. Now I wonder if there is some special significance to it, or at least some perceived “emotional power” (to paraphrase you Jasper) as well which may have inspired David Lynch to adhere to that syntax both before and after the lines became lyrics.
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