--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We pass and leave you lying. No need for…" description: "\"“We pass and leave you lying. No need for rhetoric, for funeral music, for melancholy bugle-calls. No need for tears now, no need for regret. We took o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54f/richard-aldington-23688_elegy_we-pass-and-leave-you-lying-no-need-for_117603.png" --- # We pass and leave you lying. No need for rhetoric, for… ![“We pass and leave you lying. No need for rhetoric, for funeral music, for melancholy bugle-calls. No need for tears now, no need for regret. We took our risk with you; you died and we live. We take your noble gift, salute for the last time those lines of pitiable crosses, those solitary mounds…” quote by Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54f/richard-aldington-23688_elegy_we-pass-and-leave-you-lying-no-need-for_117603.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54f/richard-aldington-23688_elegy_we-pass-and-leave-you-lying-no-need-for_117603.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/54f/richard-aldington-23688_elegy_we-pass-and-leave-you-lying-no-need-for_117603.png) > ““We pass and leave you lying. No need for rhetoric, for funeral music, for melancholy bugle-calls. No need for tears now, no need for regret. We took our risk with you; you died and we live. We take your noble gift, salute for the last time those lines of pitiable crosses, those solitary mounds, those unknown graves, and turn to live our lives out as we may. Which of us were fortunate--who can tell? For you there is silence and cold twilight drooping in awful desolation over those motionless lands. For us sunlight and the sound of women's voices, song and hope and laughter, despair, gaiety, love--life. Lost terrible silent comrades, we, who might have died, salute you.”” [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage mourns fallen comrades while contrasting their silence with the living’s continued hope and daily life. **In simple terms:** Dead are silent; the living move on. Key Takeaway War’s loss coexists with life’s persistence. Themes war memory loss hope survival Mood somber reflective Type elegy war poetry When to use this quote - remembrance ceremonies - veteran support groups - historical documentaries Key Concepts collective mourning Practical Applications - honor fallen with personal reflection - share stories of sacrifice Questions to Reflect On - How do societies balance remembrance with moving forward? - What responsibilities do survivors have toward the dead? A Different Perspective The tone may romanticize sacrifice, overlooking trauma. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Elegy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elegy/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [“I care not how humble your bookshelf may be, or how lonely the room which it adorns. Close the door of that room behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/i-care-not-how-humble-your-bookshelf-may-be-or-how-lonely-the-room/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [The men who died at D-Day did not die shoulder-to-shoulder with their French comrades. They died to liberate the French from a sinister and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-korda/the-men-who-died-at-d-day-did-not-die-shoulder-to-shoulder-with-their/) [Michael Korda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-korda/) > [There's something really unnatural about losing a child, and there's something unnatural about having to write an elegy for your child, but I felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/there-s-something-really-unnatural-about-losing-a-child-and-there-s/) [Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/) > [I can’t talk about my books. I have written them and tried to forget them. I have written once, and readers have read me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/i-can-t-talk-about-my-books-i-have-written-them-and-tried-to-forget/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [I want my images to achieve two things in this regard - to be an elegy to a world that is tragically vanishing, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-brandt/i-want-my-images-to-achieve-two-things-in-this-regard-to-be-an-elegy/) [Nick Brandt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-brandt/) > [“It's really over." He put his arms around her, pulling her to him. "Now just as long as you don't get tangled up with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-hocking/it-s-really-over-he-put-his-arms-around-her-pulling-her-to-him-now/) [Amanda Hocking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-hocking/) > [The elegy does the work of mourning; it allows us to experience mortality. It turns loss into remembrance, and it delivers an inheritance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/the-elegy-does-the-work-of-mourning-it-allows-us-to-experience/) [Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/) > [Travel is a caprice in childhood, a passion in youth, a necessity in manhood, and an elegy in old age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-rizal/travel-is-a-caprice-in-childhood-a-passion-in-youth-a-necessity-in/) [Jose Rizal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-rizal/) > [“How the time passed away, slipped into nightfall as if it had never been!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/how-the-time-passed-away-slipped-into-nightfall-as-if-it-had-never/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When I was from Cupid's passions free, my Muse was mute and wrote no elegy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/when-i-was-from-cupid-s-passions-free-my-muse-was-mute-and-wrote-no/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [We should write an elegy for every day that has slipped through our lives unnoticed and unappreciated. Better still, we should write a song…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-ban-breathnach/we-should-write-an-elegy-for-every-day-that-has-slipped-through-our/) [Sarah Ban Breathnach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ban-breathnach/) > [ELEGY, n. A composition in verse, in which, without employing any of the methods of humor, the writer aims to produce in the reader's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/elegy-n-a-composition-in-verse-in-which-without-employing-any-of-the/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [My images are unashamedly idyllic and romantic, a kind of enchanted Africa. They're my elegy to a world that is steadily, tragically vanishing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-brandt/my-images-are-unashamedly-idyllic-and-romantic-a-kind-of-enchanted/) [Nick Brandt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-brandt/) > [Full many a flower is born to blush unseen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/full-many-a-flower-is-born-to-blush-unseen/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) > [“Peace, peace! he is not dead, he doth not sleep, He hath awaken’d from the dream of life; ’Tis we, who lost in stormy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/peace-peace-he-is-not-dead-he-doth-not-sleep-he-hath-awaken-d-from/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) ## More by Richard Aldington > [We must grow out of religion. It is either bugaboo, formalism, or hysteria. Besides, what proof is there that "the churches" know more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-aldington/we-must-grow-out-of-religion-it-is-either-bugaboo-formalism-or/) [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) > [No man who has managed to keep out of an office can be called a failure in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-aldington/no-man-who-has-managed-to-keep-out-of-an-office-can-be-called-a/) [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) > [A little common sense, goodwill, and a tiny dose of unselfishness could make this goodly earth into an earthly paradise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-aldington/a-little-common-sense-goodwill-and-a-tiny-dose-of-unselfishness-could/) [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) > [I have sat here happy in the gardens, Watching the still pool and the reeds And the dark clouds. . . . But though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-aldington/i-have-sat-here-happy-in-the-gardens-watching-the-still-pool-and-the/) [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) > [“But if I'm useless only because I haven't been properly educated, is that my fault?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-aldington/but-if-i-m-useless-only-because-i-haven-t-been-properly-educated-is/) [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) > [Adventure is allowing the unexpected to happen to you. Exploration is experiencing what you have not experienced before. How can there be any adventure,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-aldington/adventure-is-allowing-the-unexpected-to-happen-to-you-exploration-is/) [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) > [“All nations teach their children to be "patriotic", and abuse the other nations for fostering nationalism." ("Sacrifice Post")”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-aldington/all-nations-teach-their-children-to-be-patriotic-and-abuse-the-other/) [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) > [Cats are like donkeys and camels, they won't ever quite give in to human tyranny, they won't try to imitate the human soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-aldington/cats-are-like-donkeys-and-camels-they-won-t-ever-quite-give-in-to/) [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) > [“In the twentieth century the women who wanted to be on their own were some of the best, the honest ones, those who instinctively…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-aldington/in-the-twentieth-century-the-women-who-wanted-to-be-on-their-own-were/) [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) > [“The casualty lists went on appearing for a long time after the Armistice - last spasms of Europe's severed arteries.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-aldington/the-casualty-lists-went-on-appearing-for-a-long-time-after-the/) [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) > [Such shame is not even skin deep. And as to forgetting, surely, you know that is Woman's First and Greatest Art?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-aldington/such-shame-is-not-even-skin-deep-and-as-to-forgetting-surely-you-know/) [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) > [“He wore the black suit which he used for funerals, a form of social entertainment which greatly appealed to Mr. Judd since it combined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-aldington/he-wore-the-black-suit-which-he-used-for-funerals-a-form-of-social/) [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) > [All nations teach their children to be "patriotic", and abuse the other nations for fostering nationalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-aldington/all-nations-teach-their-children-to-be-patriotic-and-abuse-the-other-2/) [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) > [I began to write what I called 'rhythms' ie unrhymed pieces with no formal metrical scheme where the rhythm was created by a kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-aldington/i-began-to-write-what-i-called-rhythms-ie-unrhymed-pieces-with-no/) [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) > [“Quite rapidly Etta became acquainted with the realities of poverty in one of its loneliest forms -- that of the poor middle-class girl looking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-aldington/quite-rapidly-etta-became-acquainted-with-the-realities-of-poverty-in/) [Richard Aldington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) [Explore all 25 Richard Aldington quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-aldington/) ## More Elegy quotes > [“Peace, peace! he is not dead, he doth not sleep, He hath awaken’d from the dream of life; ’Tis we, who lost in stormy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/peace-peace-he-is-not-dead-he-doth-not-sleep-he-hath-awaken-d-from/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Full many a flower is born to blush unseen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/full-many-a-flower-is-born-to-blush-unseen/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) > [My images are unashamedly idyllic and romantic, a kind of enchanted Africa. They're my elegy to a world that is steadily, tragically vanishing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-brandt/my-images-are-unashamedly-idyllic-and-romantic-a-kind-of-enchanted/) [Nick Brandt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-brandt/) > [ELEGY, n. A composition in verse, in which, without employing any of the methods of humor, the writer aims to produce in the reader's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/elegy-n-a-composition-in-verse-in-which-without-employing-any-of-the/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [We should write an elegy for every day that has slipped through our lives unnoticed and unappreciated. Better still, we should write a song…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-ban-breathnach/we-should-write-an-elegy-for-every-day-that-has-slipped-through-our/) [Sarah Ban Breathnach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ban-breathnach/) > [When I was from Cupid's passions free, my Muse was mute and wrote no elegy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/when-i-was-from-cupid-s-passions-free-my-muse-was-mute-and-wrote-no/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [“How the time passed away, slipped into nightfall as if it had never been!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/how-the-time-passed-away-slipped-into-nightfall-as-if-it-had-never/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Travel is a caprice in childhood, a passion in youth, a necessity in manhood, and an elegy in old age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-rizal/travel-is-a-caprice-in-childhood-a-passion-in-youth-a-necessity-in/) [Jose Rizal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-rizal/) > [The elegy does the work of mourning; it allows us to experience mortality. It turns loss into remembrance, and it delivers an inheritance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/the-elegy-does-the-work-of-mourning-it-allows-us-to-experience/) [Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/) > [“It's really over." He put his arms around her, pulling her to him. "Now just as long as you don't get tangled up with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-hocking/it-s-really-over-he-put-his-arms-around-her-pulling-her-to-him-now/) [Amanda Hocking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-hocking/) > [I want my images to achieve two things in this regard - to be an elegy to a world that is tragically vanishing, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-brandt/i-want-my-images-to-achieve-two-things-in-this-regard-to-be-an-elegy/) [Nick Brandt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-brandt/) > [I can’t talk about my books. I have written them and tried to forget them. I have written once, and readers have read me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/i-can-t-talk-about-my-books-i-have-written-them-and-tried-to-forget/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [There's something really unnatural about losing a child, and there's something unnatural about having to write an elegy for your child, but I felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/there-s-something-really-unnatural-about-losing-a-child-and-there-s/) [Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/) > [“An Elegy A thousand times must we deplore The lost will never come to life again; Even as flowing water runs away, Returning nevermore.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reiko-chiba/an-elegy-a-thousand-times-must-we-deplore-the-lost-will-never-come-to/) [Reiko Chiba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reiko-chiba/) > [Part of elegy is confrontation - not just with the idea of death, but with the person who has died.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allison-joseph/part-of-elegy-is-confrontation-not-just-with-the-idea-of-death-but/) [Allison Joseph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allison-joseph/) [Browse all 55 Elegy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elegy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We pass and leave you lying. 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