Cosmos - a year older

Thoughts:

So, I've turned a year older again. Honestly, my birthday this year was sad yet peaceful. I went to work, like always and tried to cheer myself up. I did receive a present from my boss. I had dinner with my parents afterwards and went home. My birthday isn't special. To think hours before my birthday, I was crying. Like others at my age, I am at crossroads. Feeling lost is not uncommon. 

Birthday song:

My birthday song for today is COSMOS by Buck-Tick. COSMOS was composed by the enigmatic composer, Imai Hisashi and the lyrics were written by the dark poet, Sakurai Atsushi. Released back in 1998, COSMOS is a symbolic song and a hymn of hope. Whenever I listen to it, I feel peaceful.

Video:

In 1998, BT went through another set of sad events. Their long time friend, Hide of X-Japan, suddenly died. It must have been painful for them. Also, it was a year after Sakurai Atsushi (vocals) resumed to work after he cheated death. Even the staff at that time granted his death wish to return to Tokyo after already visiting two countries just to get into a hospital. You can still see his weakened state in this film. Despite the events that occurred, the band was able to produce music that everyone can relate to.  Perhaps, it was a trigger for them to write about the life and universal love. 

The video above is a footage of 'Sweet Strange Live'. This performance, perhaps was one of the most memorable footage of COSMOS. The SSL was known to be not the smoothest live performance they produced. The performance was interrupted twice, surprisingly. At the second interruption, Sakurai somewhat was implying Hide's spirit was visiting them, who at that time just recently passed away. In the middle of the live, Imai's guitar seemed to have malfunctioned. In return, Sakurai sang COSMOS in a Capella. Truly, a rare treat.

Video notes (by the uploader):

So, I HAD to do some quick research on the symbolism in this song, and what I found is probably common knowledge, but I thought I'd post it for the people like me who aren't knowledgeable when it comes to symbolism~
1. Cosmos, as you likely know, can be one of two things: (a) a flower, (b) the universe seen as a well-ordered whole.

A search of "cosmos flower symbolism" brought me this: "The cosmos flower is mostly thought to be the symbol of order, peace and modesty. When given as a gift to a romantic partner, these flowers are commonly meant to represent the notion of walking together hand in hand, or to express the joys that love and life can bring."
So regardless of which meaning Sakurai is referring to, the basic idea is "peace and order."

2. The line dealing with the "sixth day" and an encounter with a snake obviously makes one think of the biblical story of creation and the garden of Eden, (at least, if you live in a Christianity-dominated culture like mine, lol).

BUT Atsushi specifying it as a "white" snake bothered me, and so I had to Google its symbolic importance. "The most common view of the white snake is a positive one. In the Japanese culture, if someone encounters a white snake in their life, they are considered to be lucky and will continue to have luck. In China, a snake is more than often a positive symbol. It is said that a snake in your house means peace as long as it is not killed. The snake represents bravery of men and beauty of women in both Japanese and Chinese cultures."

So perhaps Sakurai is referencing a "negative" story, but putting a "positive" symbol in it to show that the imperfection of the world may not be such a bad thing, "if only there is love?" And that there is always hope if there is love?
...Or maybe I'm babbling and completely off the mark. ^_^