by yandtguy » Wed Jun 15, 2011 3:35 am
The spiritual lyrics on Eclipse are more Universalist - or from a Hindu/Buddhist viewpoint specifically. Take the lyrics from "Chain of Love":
"Send the mantra to an endless night."
Mantras are Hindu. A mantra is a word or group of words that cause spiritual transformation.
"There's no beginning, there's no end"
This is a direct contradiction to the idea of the alpha and omega, not just God as Alpha and Omega, but of the whole biblical narrative of Genesis ("In the beginning...") to Revelation (. "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.).
"There is no self, no fortress to defend"
In Genesis, Adam is named. His first job is to, in turn, name the animals. God makes covenants with individuals throughout the Bible and picks individuals for specific tasks. The line quoted is more in keeping with the Buddhist concept of renouncing self as the highest form of enlightenment.
"An endless circle beyond space and time."
Again, the biblical narrative calls for beginnings and endings, with one of God's names being Alpha and Omega. God does live outside of space and time, but reducing Him to a construct takes away His personality, His individuality. God is one...that is the ultimate expression of individuality.
There are other examples of the Hindu/Buddhist worldview, the most obvious being the song "Tantra." Tantra is a form of Hindu spirituality.
As to the "concept album" approach, it's weakened by the universalist approach. In "City Of Hope," the city of hope is where "miracles happen," but in "Anything Is Possible," "You don't need a miracle, believe that anything is possible." When all paths lead to God, you end up contradicting yourself along the way.
"To Whom It May Concern" seeks to tie it all together, but it leaves more a question mark than anything. I assume "Whom" is supposed to be your deity of choice. While the goal is to allow people to plug in whatever god they wish, as a Christian, I cannot relate to the song at all. Christ himself said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No man comes to the Father except through me." I believe all people should have the right to worship the gods or goddesses of their choice. I believe that no person should be discriminated against for believing whatever religious beliefs they hold. But, I also believe that Christ is the only Way. I know that I am narrow-minded, but honestly, I expect Muslims and Hindus to believe the same thing. Why believe in anything, if you are not sure of what you believe? That's why a song like "To Whom It May Concern" falls flat.
As a big fan of Neal, I really like the music on Eclipse. I think Arnel sounds almost like Infinity-era Perry in places. I just can't get into the "spiritual" lyrics on the album. That only leaves me with a few songs that I truly like. "Someone" and "Resonate" being two. Among the "spiritual" songs, "City Of Hope" is the one I feel most connected to as a Christian.
And, if you take the first 4:45 of "She's A Mystery" and put it on Departure, it would fit just fine. I like that a lot as the Gregg Rolie era is my favorite era.
Greg