the faith of john lennon


mp3: John Lennon- God (link removed)

According to Buddhist and Hindu scholar and philosopher Alan Watts in his book The Wisdom of Insecurity, to "believe" is often to have a specific, limiting doctrine or creed to which you are clinging--something which is actually, well, not real. It is like trying to put a gallon of water inside of a paper parcel and mail it to a friend. Instead one must immerse oneself in the river.

On the other hand, "faith" is embracing the river: its perhaps indefinite, amorphous nature and all. Perhaps this is something like Paul Tillich's "ground of all being", though that might be a bit of a stretch in mixing such metaphors.

Watts writes, "And the attitude of faith is the very opposite of clinging to belief, of holding on."

Faith is letting go in trusting and embracing the uncertainty of life and reality, embracing the numinous but terrifying "ultimateness" of existence and experience.

Watts writes in The Wisdom of Insecurity, "But the attitude of faith is to let go, and become open to truth, whatever it might turn out to be. "

As different as Watts and Tillich are in ideology and tradition, I think they both embraced something with similar roots. In many ways I see Watt's surrendering to existence and being itself as different words for Tillich's immanent, infinite, and transcendent.

For me, John Lennon's song God is all about letting go and surrender, about choosing faith over belief.

God

God is a concept by which we can measure our pain.

I'll say it again,

God is a concept by which we can measure our pain.

I don't believe in magic,
I don't believe in I-ching,

I don't believe in Bible,

I don't believe in tarot,

I don't believe in Hitler,

I don't believe in Jesus,

I don't believe in Kennedy,

I don't believe in Buddha,

I don't believe in mantra,

I don't believe in Gita,

I don't believe in yoga,

I don't believe in kings,

I don't believe in Elvis,

I don't believe in Zimmerman,

I don't believe in Beatles,

I just believe in me.

Yoko and me.

And that's reality.

The dream is over, what can I say?

The dream is over.

Yesterday, I was dreamweaver, but now I'm reborn.

I was the walrus, but now I'm John.

And so dear friends,

You just have to carry on,

The dream is over.