While this is horribly tangential to the thread overall, this specific phrase reminds me of one fan theory about the setting's mechanics which is sufficiently baroque to be plausible. While I'm not sufficiently versed in the lore to elaborate on the underpinnings, the theory is that, essentially, the Dragonborn, by absorbing the souls of the dragons, is beginning the process of apotheosis. This ends with the Dragonborn gaining powers over time, and traveling back to the beginning of the universe, becoming Akatosh. (Had to Google to get that name right, and remind myself of Akatosh's domain.)