What does The Light Behind Your Eyes mean?

My Chemical Romance: The Light Behind Your Eyes Meaning

Tagged: Suicide [suggest]
Album cover for The Light Behind Your Eyes album cover

The Light Behind Your Eyes Lyrics

So long to all of my friends,

Everyone of them met tragic ends,

With every passing day,

I’d be lying if I didn’t say,

That I miss them all tonight…

And if they only knew what I would say,

If I could be with you tonight…...

  1. 1TOP RATED

    #1 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
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    Nov 17th 2017 !⃝

    I don’t believe that this song is a story, but it’s more of a message.
    Gerard has always heavily spoken to the teenage community, and often speaks out about depression and suicide and even states that the band’s message is to save kids lives.
    In the first line;
    - So long to all my friends, everyone of them met tragic ends
    I believe he is referring to all the his fans or followers who ended their own lives and the song is about him wanting to help them but being unable to reach every single fan.

    Gerard knows that My Chemical Romance has saved lives, but he’s always aware that many kids are still taking their own lives.
    In the line;
    - If I could be with you tonight, I would sing you to sleep.
    From experience, he knows that depression and negative feelings hit hard at night and he’s speaking to his following and telling them that if it were possible for him to help every single person he would! When he says “I would sing you to sleep” that’s a direct statement saying he writes songs for the kids and that we can listen to their music and learn and escape a harsh world.

    In the song, he also sings about his own experiences with depression and explains that he got through it and he didn’t let the world break him.

    I really believe this because it’s a very soulful song, and you can tell a lot of feeling went into it. Personally I’ve spent many nights, and I can speak for us all, and just cried myself to sleep, and most the time I’ve been listening to My Chemical Romcance, and Gerard has sung me to sleep.
    It’s a song that is obviously meant to be directly reaching to people.

    This is my interpretation, I like it and when I think of this meaning and listen to it, it feels a lot more powerful and it gets me through a lot knowing that this band was genuinely music and didn’t care for money, but wanted to see a change. And I’m just glad that we’ve had the opportunity to become so inspired and follow in their ways.

    Eternal love for

    Mikey Way
    Frank Iero
    Gerard Way
    Ray Toro
    (These people have really become like family)

  2. 2TOP RATED

    #2 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jul 18th 2014 !⃝

    I think this song is one of their best. I believe it is from suffering the death of friends, "so long to all my friends. Every one of them met tragic ends." And he's telling everyone else Who has suffered from a death or depression. "Never let them take the light behind your eyes" could either mean don't let them take your happiness aways or don't allow depression to cause you to turn to suicide.

    I'm not exactly sure why he wrote it. All I know, is that I want this song to play at my funeral.

  3. 3TOP RATED

    #3 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Feb 26th 2015 !⃝

    This is such a beautiful song and it really comforts me as a close family member has recently passed.
    It makes me feel like they are still here with me.
    To me, this song is from the dead persons POV and they are telling you (the listener) to be strong now they aren't there anymore ("when I'm here, no longer"). Also the line "if you promise not to cry, I'll tell you just what I would say if I could be with you tonight" is like the dead person is helping you to be strong. The light behind our eyes is your happiness or even life.

  4. anonymous
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    Jul 11th 2019 !⃝

    Okay, so I think this song is about the main character telling to be strong to his young daughter while dying in some sort-of hospital related thing (like trying to recover a serious shot wound, while trying to protect his daughter when the random gun-slinger approached). I'll start with my theory.
    The first verse is about the main character going to a funeral or the graves of his friends (mourning for them), WAY BEFORE he experiences the shot wound.
    "And if they only knew what I would say."....I think this is when the main character is in heaven, thinking if he was actually alive again, they'd know what he'd say, because he can't speak to them (only if they were in heaven with him or if they are physic).
    The second verse is the main character suffering the stinging pain, thinking while crying about when he was at home, singing a lullaby softly to his daughter while she tried to sleep.
    Then he thinks with anger about the bullies that would "take the light behind (her) eyes", because of the taunting that they do about that her father is dying. "One day I'll lose this fight...." is when he is in the hospital, thinking this while his daughter and wife are visiting him. He thinks: "As we fade in the dark", I think, is referring to him that everyone "fades in the dark", meaning that everyone dies when they are in a dark time (the coming of their death).
    I will skip "Just remember, you...", because it's just obvious to my theory.
    The third verse is still when his family is still visiting the main character, and he is telling his daughter "to be strong" while holding his hand as she stands next to the gurney, because when he dies, she will not be strong, 'cause she would be crying in her room, hugging a stuffed toy in her bedroom.
    And as he speaks,"Time becomes for us, you'll understand", is that, when children are young, they don't really understand things correctly, and he's trying to say it conveniently, so that she understands what he is saying. "We'll say goodbye today....", is when he's saying that he is nearing death, and he doesn't want his family to be with him when he dies.
    The fourth verse is that he is, once again, suffering the stinging pain, thinking about the things in the second verse. "I'll fail and lose this fight; Never fade in the dark", is when he is SO CLOSE to his death, and he is "fading" (his family is not there, but the doctors and nurses are there, so he is thinking this while crying.)
    "Sometimes we must grow stronger....", is when he is telling this to his daughter (in the hospital. AGAIN.).
    The fifth-&-final verse before the ten "The light behind your eyes", is when he is FINALLY in heaven, looking down on his daughter and wife, as they mourn his passing at his funeral. His emotions are ENGULFING him, and he thinks about how he "failed and lost (the) fight" from the shot wound. But then, he thinks about his daughter, and repeats "The light behind your eyes" softly to make him happy.

    Remember, this is just only a theory, and that this whole theory could be entirely wrong!

  5. anonymous
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    Dec 24th 2018 !⃝

    It seems like he's comforting his fans and writing how he wishes he could sing each and every one of us to sleep and help all of us to get through out hard times, even though he can't. And telling everyone that, even though the band isn't going to be around much longer, to never let them take the light behind your eyes, or the hope and positivity from our minds. I love this song so much and hope it helps other people as much as it helps me. Remember, there is always someone who cares and this is eternal proof that our majestic gee is one of them. <3

  6. anonymous
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    May 12th 2018 !⃝

    it kinda sounds like a suicide note. :/
    (sorry all i can think about is suicide rn im kinda going through a week 10 times worse than usual rip)

  7. anonymous
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    Dec 24th 2017 !⃝

    To me, this is probably wrong but I see the song as keeping some positivity. The light behind your eyes could be that positivity and "never let them take the light behind your eyes" never let anyone take away the positivity even if it's a small amount don't let anyone take it. by bandfreak at song meanings
    I've always interpreted the song as encouragement for anyone listening, as a way of saying don't be who they expect you to be. And never let them take the light behind your eyes is saying to be unique and never let anyone tell you who to be.You'll always shine as bright as anyone else. by bandtrash at song meanings
    - Hope you have a Merry Christmas people

  8. anonymous
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    Dec 22nd 2017 !⃝

    I seriously though this song was about a school shooting or a type of shooting idk its 2017, its happened too much.

  9. anonymous
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    Jul 13th 2017 !⃝

    While yes it is most likely a letter to his daughter(which i will touch on) i saw it this way the first time i heard it: it takes place after the ghost of you, Gerard has lost all this friends in battle (hints the line "so long to all my friends everyone of them met tragic ends") he can no longer take the ptsd after war and witnessing his own friends and brothers deaths and decides to take his own life and is writing to his daughter(bandit) talking about how horrible this world is and telling her to never let them take the light behind your eyes (your innocence and will to live) and he is talking about how he lost the fight which can be a reference to war or the fight against ptsd so i see the song as a suicide note that his daughter is reading as he is talking about wanting to see her and talk to her but he couldn't keep on living with what he's seen and ultimately takes his own life
    I know this is a dark "theory" but it is a real struggle that my father delt with and he almost took his own life over it so take it or leave it but this is what i interpreted it as and i hope it makes as much sense to you as it did me x

  10. anonymous
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    Jan 15th 2017 !⃝

    imo this is about someone who regret a personal decision that made him/her leave his/her friends.

    "So long to all my friends, every one of them met tragic ends"

    "We'll say goodbye today and i'm sorry how it ends this way"

    And in that time of regret, he/she misses them more than he/she thought

    "With every passing day, I'd be lying if I didn't say that I miss them all tonight"

    He/she would give anything to be with them again happily and tell them not to let anyone ruin their happiness. His/her heartfelt longing for their friendship to be the same as it was back then can be felt everytime the chorus repeats.


    "If I could be with you tonight, I would sing you to sleep, never let them take the light behind your eyes"

    Since his/her decision is irrevokable, he/she expresses that he/she may not last longer due to the regret or might commit suicide because of it as well, though he/she wanted them to stay strong as time goes by without him/her and maybe one day in the afterlife, they could reunite and be happy again

    "Be strong and hold my hand, time; it comes for us, you'll understand"

    "One day, I'll lose this fight. As we fade in the dark, just remember you will always burn as bright"

    Here, he/she convinces them that they can grow stronger even in his/her absence, not wanting them to linger in the broken remnants of their friendship but rather let it leave a mark for them to grow strong

    "Sometimes we must grow stronger and you can't be stronger in the dark (or 'you can be stronger when i'm gone')"

    "When I'm here no longer, you must be stronger"


    //note: based off of personal experience.. and i also always wanted to sing this to the person i used to call my best(est) friend but she's in the group of best friends i left for personal reasons.. I hope they're doing well..

  11. anonymous
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    Sep 24th 2016 !⃝

    I don't know about that whole cancer theory because in the song it's saids tragic end the could be about a friend that got in a car accidenti in a car or took his or her life so I think song is. About taking the easy way out the song depressed describes a Suicidal person just listen to the song some day I will lose this fight

  12. anonymous
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    May 23rd 2016 !⃝

    I didn't read all of the interpretations of this song but I definitely believe that this is strongly about his depression. He was going to kill himself and he was telling everyone else with depression or trying to kill themselves to never "let them take the light behind your eyes" and don't make the same decision that he was going to. But obviously he never killed himself.

  13. anonymous
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    Apr 22nd 2016 !⃝

    I don't know, but I think, this song is about cancer. A person with cancer will die soon and talks to his / her family and friends. ''I'll loose this fight'' could mean the fight against cancer. And don't forget, MCR already wrote other songs about cancer, for example ''cancer'' ( okay, everybody knows, that ''cancer'' is about cancer ) and MAYBE ''welcome to the black parade'' ( you can see a person with cancer in the music video ) and other songs. But I'm not sure.

  14. anonymous
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    Oct 14th 2015 !⃝

    I think most of these interpretations are correct. This song could have been about depression, it could have been a letter to bandit, and I wholeheartedly believe this song was written also for the fans. The band released all of the Conventional Weapons tracks just before they broke up and I think this and World is Ugly are both everything described above.

    The first My Chemical Romance song I ever heard was I'm Not Okay. It touched my ten year old soul in 2005 because at the time I remember being on three different medications for adhd and feeling things no ten year old should have felt, like depression, anger, extreme apathy, and I began wondering what it was like to die. All at the age of ten. When I heard I'm Not Okay, with all of its angst and anger, it sang to me because it described exactly how I was feeling. And thus began my journey into recovery. I admit falling off a few times, like when I was sixteen and felt as if I didn't matter and that no one gave a shit what I was going through. I turned on the Black Parade and immediately began to feel better. When Danger Days came out, I was trapped in this feeling of never being able to amount to anything and that the world was always going to try and shut me down. Danger Days reminded me of not only my potential, but the potential of humans as a whole.

    I believe that this song in particular and the entire list of Conventional Weapons was a final goodbye to the fans as well as a reminder to never give up on yourself and always to burn the brightest you can, and a letter to bandit for whenever she feels that way and Gee isnt around to help.

  15. anonymous
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    Jun 8th 2015 !⃝

    To me personally it is anything but I think its about depression and telling someone you love that even though everyone goes to heaven or hell and spends eternity there part of your eternity is spent here on this earth and nobody stays on earth forever and everyone dies and leaves earth, some earlier than others and that when someone you love dies you cant spend the rest of your life in the dark and that you need to stay strong and burn bright and you cant do that in the dark and at the part where it says "I failed and lost this fight..." they lost the battle with cancer or depression.

  16. anonymous
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    Oct 17th 2014 !⃝

    is this a beautiful song. this is the only song I know by My Chemical Romance.. and I must say, I am impressed. :) it is my favorite song at the moment. I am pretty sure it is about someone who he loved a lot and lost (died or suicide). "Be strong and hold my hand". it could also be about depression maybe? anyways. I don't know. all I know is its such a beautiful song and I want it played at my funeral..... hopefully that will be a quiet a ways away.

  17. SkullGirl
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    Sep 16th 2013 !⃝

    this song is obviously about bandit. yes.
    But in a way this was Gerard's formal farwell to the band members "so long to all my friends" or you could look at it in another light and this could be his way to say goodbye to the characters he created and thus killed in Danger Days
    either way it always makes me cry

  18. anonymous
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    Mar 24th 2013 !⃝

    I believe this was written for his daughter, Bandit. It's about how he know's how bad this world is, and that people might make her unhappy. He know's he isnt going to be around for her whole life, so he is saying to her to stay strong for him.

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