The speaker is walking away from a life of fear and pressure, and doing it calmly. The opening lines describe modern city life as a place where anxiety has become proof that you're alive: if you aren't quaking, you must not be paying attention. The line "Everything not forbidden, is compulsory" captures a world where freedom has quietly turned into obligation, and even a candle feels like a threat.
Then the tone softens. The speaker says we rarely hear our inner voice over the surrounding noise, and asks friends not to grieve. Jumping off the ark into the flood sounds like a reversal, since the ark is normally the safe place, but here the safety seems to be what the speaker is escaping. The poem doesn't spell out whether this is death, a symbolic departure, or simply a break from a life. The imagery supports each reading. The closing repeated line, "I was bound to leave that ark behind," feels settled and accepting, with a quiet, wistful calm beneath the unease.