I sat beside a waterfall
Far from the path I'd strayed
The parrots in the trees
The tree frogs in the glade
Played a jungle symphony
Beneath the forest
Canopy's deep shade
Lost in time, I drifted to
The patterns of the rain
A vision of an old and wizened
Indian filled my eyes
He said, The fish will flee
The jungle birds will fly
These mighty trees will tumble
Roads will scar the earth
And smoke will fill the sky
Then, like the smoke
He rose and vanished
In the falling rain
Out in the falling rain
How can it be these giant trees
Will feel the winds of change
Since time began, this magic land
Had surely stayed the same
I believed it would remain eternal
And when I returned
The orchid still would bloom
And rain renew the forest fern
I went back to walk that path
But everything had changed
What happened to the trees?
The jungle parrots call
What happened to the orchid
That was blooming there
Beside the waterfall?
Now there's nothing left
But ashes in the rain
Ashes in the rain
Gone these woods primeval
Man's own greed must bear the blame
All that's left of this cathedral
Is ashes in the rain
Ashes in the rain
Ashes in the rain
Ashes in the rain