John Lennon – God

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  General Comment:I think this is John Lennon saying that at that point in his life nothing else matters or is important to him other than his happiness with his wife. The long list are just examples of things and people that have in some way influenced great masses of people in the past and are of no importance to him. The last line expressing his non-belief in 'Beatles' is what leads him to say that 'the dream is over - what can i say - the dream is over - yesterday. Though he is well beyond the Beatles at this time he realises that they are still important to a great many people. He is basically apologising for not being John the Beatle anymore, that he still regards them all as friends though they will have to carry on. The dream (being the Beatles) is over . .

  Flag jessyjackon October 24, 2012   Link

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  General Comment:I just believe in me
  Yoko and me
  And that's reality
  
  my heart melted by those lyrics.
  Maybe it means he just wants to live. Living not more

  Flag BrILjanTjeon October 10, 2012   Link

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    and he wants other people to do the same. Not only idolize him and the Beatles. Living you do for yourself

    Flag BrILjanTjeon October 10, 2012  
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  My Opinion:Every song means something different to each of us.
  
  In my opinion I think john knew about NWO (new world order) and the secret societies, the elite that rule the world, that rule music, media, religion, entertainment that control all of our everyday thoughts and Behavior.
  
  I will post my one or two sources for you to view so you can see why I have my opinion:
  
  ok 1st link. JFK speech before he was assassinated:
  
  youtube.com/…

  Flagged colinjohnedwardson October 09, 2012   Link

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  General Comment:I heard that this song was about the myths about the things items listed. He was saying he doesn't believe in any of the "legend" of the things he has listed. He was saying that the Beatles wern't as amazing as everyone made them to be. That JFK, Buddha, and Jesus, were blown out of proportion, and were made to be bigger than what they are. Unfortunatly, people also say, using that interpretation he was saying that Hitler wasn't as bad as everyone made him out to be. Although John was accused of bing an antisemite quite often. He said himself that the only reason he liked Epstein as the Beatles manager as because he was Jewish, and he believed in the stereotype that all Jews are good with money and business.

  Flag wowthatsbadon December 22, 2011   Link

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  General Comment:Hi, this song means heaps to me, one of my favourites, and a "signature song" for me. It is a great atheist anthem. "God is a concept" : this first part acknowledges that "god" is a concept, based only in our minds. There is no god. But it is a concept that most people on earth during their childhood years have been strongly encouraged to believe exists; which god or gods are different around the world, but still most adults remember a childhood where some sort of religion and belief has been forced onto them as a child.
  The next part I think means that: during our darkest moments (although intelligent enough to know that there is no god) we reach out to that childhood deity that we were told would be there when no one else would. When all seems lost, when there is nothing else left that can aid our difficult situation, we turn to childhood and pray - even though intellectually we know better - we pray as a last resort.
  So the greater the pain, the more illogical we become, and the more likely we are to reach out - to a god that never answers those prayers.
  I think Lennon'ss song ultimately is a statement of courage and embracing reality. We are taught not only to believe in a god and pray, but other things like "Coke adds Life;" that we can "trust banks" that "look after" our money for us; that "Christmas is a time of happiness" and that "Elvis is the king of rock n roll." Lennon is confronting the bullshit in his life, looking at what is relevant to HIS life and prioritsing those things. He also encourages the listener to do the same - not to believe what Lennon does or does not, but to re-evaluate YOUR own life and prioritsing first that which is of importancer to YOU (and for the listeners of the time, he was speaking to Beatles' fans who had been following him for nearly 10 years). His ultimate message is "I've moved on, I'm living my life for ME - and now I suggest You should do the samme in your OWN lives."

  Flag catcomplexon December 02, 2011   Link

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  General Comment:I was the Walrus
  but now I'm John
  and so dear friends
  you'll just have to carry on
  the dream is over
  
  I think this means that the dream of the Beatles is over and the world will just have to carry on without them
  

  Flag phoenixx_09on October 20, 2011   Link

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  General Comment:This is real simple one. This song is about John Lennon coming full circle with his life. Sometimes we have to destroy everything to begin anew. John throughout this song denounces all the things he once so adamantly believed in. And now he no longer believes in...Magic, Jesus, Elvis, Beatles ("the dream is over"), to name a few; he has finally found self reliance in himself, and his better half, through the powerful medium of love, whereas love is the only real thing because "God is only a concept by which we measure our pain." Thus the reason why he says he only believes in him ("...I'm just John") and Yoko at the end of the song. An absolutely brilliant song. Like "Imagine," it's simplicity at its finest, yet a deep spiritual subject matter. For him to write this at such a young age bears testament to the greatness of his gift as an artist. By no means is this an anti faith song, it's a pro religion song. Religion, as in the truest sense of the world - living a good life and finding happiness in our own heart and souls.

  Flag lyrickingon August 11, 2011   Link

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  General Comment:I think john lennon wanna say --- believe in yourself and your wife --- sharing 100% --- peace!

  Flag heartrueon July 05, 2011   Link

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  Song Meaning:I Have been a Beatles/Lennon McCartney fan since i was 14 and always come back to them when I get tired of what’s out there at the moment. They are like a musical rock and in my opinion the greatest band of all time.
  
  Anyway here is my opinion on the song GOD, one of my favourites if not my very favourite Lennon (post Beatles) songs......
  
  Throughout the 60’s Lennon spent most of his time looking for a guru/the answer to life/a new mother to replace the one he lost to a drunk driver in Liverpool. He always seemed to be looking for the answer to life whether it was fame, women, pot, acid, spiritual leaders, acid guru’s, art ect. He finally found it in ‘love’ and his love for Yoko. Yoko became his new Guru, his new ‘Mother’. His love for her was so complete that he wrote God to declare his state of mind to all his fans. The times were changing, he was saying goodbye to the Beatles and the glorious 10 years he spent with them reaching unprecedented levels of fame. So ‘God’ is a declaration. It starts with the line “God is a concept by which we measure our pain”, a line i can whole heartedly agree with. I think what he is trying to say here is we cry out for God or to a God (whatever you believe in) in times of pain. We ‘pray’ for badness to go away. Lennon is suggesting that the very idea of God is a man made concept, created by us (man) to help us through our pain. The very debate of religion is of course massive, but anyone who delves into that debate is missing the point here. Lennon is simply saying ‘hey, ive been through it all, ive seen it all and i no longer believe it, the most important thing in life to me is me & Yoko’ and Love. I think he was also using the declaration to put the final nail in the coffin of the Beatles. ‘The dream is over’.
  
  Lennon was always brutally honest about his thoughts in his songs and i think this is why he is so revered in the history of song writing. A true genius in my opinion.
  

  Flag Trickster1914on May 27, 2011   Link

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  General Comment:“God is a concept by which we measure our pain.
  I'll say it again: God is a concept by which we 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 the dream weaver, but now I'm reborn.
  I was the Walrus, but now I'm John.
  And so dear friends, you'll just have to carry on.
  The dream is over.”
  
  John opens the song with the declaration that God is only an idea created by man, and the more pain we feel, the more we produce the legend of God for our own superficial comfort and hopes. A clever device devised by man to avoid the work of dealing with our internal personal psychological and emotional battles, which too often seems too painful to acknowledge.
  
  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.
  
  Then Lennon emphasizes his non-belief in things associated with magic and superstition. Illusions that contribute to an already heavily disillusioned world.
  
  I don't believe in Hitler.
  I don't believe in Jesus.
  I don't believe in Kennedy.
  I don't believe in Buddha.
  
  John stresses the point that no human, especially political and/or spiritual leaders, can pave the way for others. Each person has got to realize their own inner truths through self awareness.
  John knew that praying for a savior is a waste of time and avoids the personal issues within that we each must look at and deal with if we expect individual peace and love, which could then blossom and flower worldwide. He had become “one” with himself, and thus had a more meaningful, purposeful, and fulfilling relationship with his fans and Yoko.
  
  I don't believe in Mantra.
  I don't believe in Gita.
  I don't believe in Yoga.
  
  John continues with his disbelief's. Such things as chants, scriptures, and physical exercises, which are supposed to enlighten us, actually do not. Again, John understands the importance of inner reflection above all else.
  
  I don't believe in Kings.
  I don't believe in Elvis.
  I don't believe in Zimmerman.
  I don't believe in Beatles.
  
  Lennon returns to humans as his source and outlet for disapproval. At the very end of the “I don't believe” chants, John echoes the syllables, “Bea-tles” with clarity and might. John accents his disfavor of the Beatle myth. John felt that the Beatles were nothing more than a vehicle of illusion just as Christ, Hitler, the I-Ching, Elvis, and the rest of man's fanaticisms, which John no longer wished to be a part of or involved in.
  
  He acknowledges that too much power in a few hands (Kings) over the masses is rarely good, Elvis had lost himself trying to live up to the legend the populace had created of him with his over-indulgence of drugs, Zimmerman (Bob Dylan) was really nothing more than a poet - far from being worthy of leading people to inner peace, and the Beatles were guilty of creating the illusion 'We can save you,' just as the Bible, Christ, and all of the other names and practices he denounces in the song. At this time John despised the Beatles as a mere “magic act,” who gained in popularity, but didn't do much more good than the other cult heroes of ancient and modern times. John went from, “We are more popular than Jesus,” during his time with the Beatles, to “I don't believe in Jesus” or “Beatles” while with Yoko. John, at this time, had become one with himself, and was writing his songs truthfully. personally, and less commercially without care of public scrutiny.
  
  I just believe in me. Yoko and me, and that's reality.
  
  John again alerts us to his awakening. He sees that putting faith in others for one's own salvation is an invalid approach to intrinsic treatment. Only we know what we are up to when we check our ulterior motives. No President, priest, performer, or card-reader can sort out our hallucinations and misconceptions for us. We must honestly and willingly seek our own salvation through internal observation and actions. This is the reality!
  
  The dream is over. What can I say?
  The dream is over – Yesterday.
  
  I think these two lines are amazing! John states how the “dream” he, Paul, George, and Ringo had created was finally behind him, and now he was going to reveal a more self-reliant Lennon to the world in the hopes to rid himself of the burden of “savior” once and for all. Also, the word “Yesterday” was a song Paul had written with the Beatles, which John did not think much of, and here he uses it the way he feels it fits best. John didn't believe in the notion of yesterday the way Paul did. John didn't like the idea of wishing for or living in the past, so for him yesterday was as good as gone - just as the Beatles were gone. “Today” was always a natural new beginning to John.
  
  I was the dream weaver, but now I'm reborn.
  I was the Walrus, but now I'm John.
  
  John feels a sense of guilt that he added to the illusions of the world – a world so bent on looking to “Redeemers” for their own personal guidance. “I was the dream weaver, but now I'm reborn,” defines a critical time in John's life. He can now concentrate on being a creative songwriter and activist, as opposed to wasting his remaining years being a guru to a Beatle cult audience who interpreted every Beatle word literally, much like the Bible and Gita. His songwriting had matured away from the whimsical style of the fab four.
  
  And so dear friends, you'll just have to carry on.
  The dream is over.
  
  John let's us know it is time for all of us “to carry on “ with our lives, and to stop looking up to the Beatles, Christ, Buddha, Kennedy and others for guidance. Lennon's message is uncomplicated. LOOK WITHIN – NOT OUTWARD! ...The dream is over folks!
  

  Flag Kenny5271957on May 11, 2011   Link

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    You put alot of work into this comment and just wanted to thank you. You obvious are BIG Lennon fan and in my book, that's a beautiful thing. Imagine all the people sharing all the world....

    Flag lyrickingon January 23, 2012  

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