Naraku

Romaji and English translation of the song 奈落 (Naraku) from the single SHIVER by the GazettE.

I didn’t give this the explicit tag because there’s nothing overtly graphic in it language-wise, but just a heads up: this song is about a (kind of one-sided) sadomasochistic relationship that sounds like it doesn’t end well.

Lyrics originally sung in English are in italics , and words or phrases I felt were implied are in [brackets] in the translation.

I also (usually) put repeats of chorus/verses/stanzas in [brackets] if they’re not written that way in the original lyrics for ease of singing along.

If he writes a word in the lyrics but doesn’t sing it, I put it in light grey to make it easier to skip when singing along.

I usually romajize katakana characters in CAPITALS, and keep punctuation and line spacing as close to the original booklet as possible. If you see me putting spaces before punctuation at the end of a sentence or writing things in mixed-case capitals, that’s because it’s how it was in the booklet.

Any comments I had during the romajization/translation process will be included as footnotes so as not to disturb the flow of the song. They’re not required reading, but Ruki does some pretty nifty things with his lyrics/kanji choices, or sometimes there’s further explanations about words or phrases in there.

Naraku: Romaji

Kake chigau honnou to karada
Myakuutsu “gyaku¹” wo enji teta
Shizuka ni sugari tsuku youni

Futari wa totemo kirei datta
“Kegare” wo shirisugite takara

Barabara ni chiru jouyoku no saki ni aishiteiru to kotaete

Azawarau ka no youni mukidashi no kizu wo hoshigaru
Itami yorimo fukaku anata kanji tetakara
Enjite yukeru

Kowareteku risei to karada 　myakuutsu “gyaku¹” wo mitsumeteta
Sono te ni oboreru youni

Futari wa totemo kirei datta…

Barabara ni chiru jouyoku no saki ni aishiteiru to kotaete

Azawarau ka no youni mukidashi no kizu wo hoshigaru
Itami ni mi wo shizume anata omou

Kubisuji wo hawaseru sono te sae shinjite itai

Aizou no hazama 　yume wo miteita
Nukumori ga hagarete yuku
Jouyoku ni mamire shinjita ai no owari ni

Naraku wo mita

Hell²: Translation

My body and instincts are at odds with each other
As I played your “opposite” with pounding heart³
As if doing so would allow me to peacefully hold onto you

We two were so beautiful [together]
Because I knew your “obscenity” all too well

After the lust has dissipated and fled, I want you to tell me you love me

As if only to mock me, you crave [those] naked wounds⁴ [you inflict]
But because I’ve felt you even more intensely than the pain,
I’ll continue to play my role

My body and senses are being broken　as I’m subjected to throbbing “abuse”
As if I’m drowning in your games⁵

We two were so beautiful [together]

After the lust has dissipated and fled, I want you to tell me you love me

As if only to mock me, you crave [those] naked wounds [you inflict]
I think of you as my body is immersed in pain

I want to trust you, even as those hands slither across my neck

At the threshold between love and hate,　I dreamt
[That] warmth was ebbing away
And in the end, I still trusted in love, besmeared with lust

And I saw hell

虐 gyaku is not typically used alone, but as part of kanji compounds for words meaning such things as “abuse/mistreatment/atrocity/tyranny.”
奈落 naraku can be translated a couple of ways, all of which kind of make sense in the context of this song (more on that in the next note). So it can be translated as “hell/Hades,” or “the worst possible circumstances,” or even “theater basement” – which also kind of fits, because she’s acting a role for the sake of her relationship.
According to interviews, this song is about a girl (kind of begrudgingly) in a sadomasochistic (S&M) relationship. She acts as if she’s a masochist (aka, someone who gets off on having pain inflicted upon them) when she’s really not into it to get her sadist (aka, someone who gets off on inflicting pain on other people) boyfriend to love her. So she’s playing the role of someone who likes to be dominated/degraded/physically hurt when it’s really not something she’s actually into.
The way this is written can be literal or figurative, and I kind of feel like it’s meant to be both here. 剥き出し mukidashi can mean “naked, bare, uncovered” or “frank, open, blunt.” 傷 kizu can mean a physical “wound, gash, injury” or “flaw, defect, weak point.” So basically, the way I read this, he not only enjoys inflicting physical pain on her (remember he’s the sadist in this relationship) but also with the “mocking” she mentions, he’s probably enjoying tearing her down verbally/emotionally by taking advantage of her inability to say no to him.
その手 sono te can be translated separately as “that hand/those hands” or as a phrase meaning “in that way; that trick, that game.” 溺れる oboreru can be either “to drown/nearly drown, sink below the surface” or “indulge in, lose one’s head over something.” So again, this could either be that she’s physically being smothered by his actual hands (quite likely) and/or that she’s being broken by his rough treatment of her if translated as “your games/tricks” (just as likely). I picked the second for the translation, but it could (and probably does) go either way.