Within You Without You
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| "Within You Without You" | ||
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| Song by The Beatles | ||
| from the album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band |
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| Released | June 1, 1967 | |
| Recorded | December 6, 1966 – April 21, 1967 | |
| Genre | Rock | |
| Length | 5:05 | |
| Label | Parlophone | |
| Writer(s) | George Harrison | |
| Producer(s) | George Martin | |
| Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band track listing | ||
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"Within You Without You" is a song written by George Harrison and recorded with a group of Indian musicians, without any input from his fellow Beatles. It was the second of Harrison's songs to be explicitly influenced by Indian classical music, after "Love You To". It was released in 1967 on Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, the last song to be completed for the album.
Harrison wrote this as a 30-minute piece. He trimmed it down into a mini-version for the album. The laughter at the end was Harrison's idea to lighten the mood and follow the theme of the album. There is also an instrumental version of the song on the Anthology 2 album.
"Within You Without You" was written on a harmonium at the house of long-time Beatles friend, Klaus Voormann, while "there were lots of joints being smoked". Harrison sought out Indian musicians to aid him in the track's recording, although all of them went uncredited. Of those who were credited, producer George Martin arranged the string section, charging £33, and Harrison and assistant Neil Aspinall played the tambura.
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[edit] Lyrical Interpretation
Many of the song's lyrics make references to Hindu ideas. One example of this is in the first verse:
- "We were talking - about the space between us all
- And the people - who hide themselves behind a wall of illusion
- Never glimpse the truth - then it's far too late - when they pass away."
The Hindu idea of Maya, which is the idea that all mortal people live in a false reality, and what people perceive as reality is actually an illusion.[1] Thus, this quote refers to humanity and its belief in the false reality. Then, in the next line, Harrison references the idea that if a person doesn't realize the concept of Maya, it is too late for them, in this life. However, Hinduism teaches reincarnation and therefore that person will eventually realize that its all within and without him.[1]
In addition to the reference to Maya in the first verse of the song, the song is littered with references to Hinduism and Indian culture. The second verse:
- "We were talking - about the love we all could share - when we find it
- To try our best to hold it there - with our love.
- With our love - We could save the world - if they only knew...
- Try to realize it's all within yourself, no one else can make you change."
The love that could save the world is an obvious reference to the Hindu doctrine of Dharma. Dharma is the ethical code of Hinduism.[1] George Harrison was trying to reference the idea that people could keep the world from being destroyed (due to its cyclical nature) by following Dharma. A great cycle of the universe is called a Maha Yuga. At the end of the Maha Yuga, the concept of Dharma is no longer followed and therefore the world must be destroyed. However, the universe is cyclical and like a phoenix, the earth rises again.[1] So, George was trying to say that if we were to follow Dharma and love one another, we could hold the world from the destruction. In addition, the last line of the verse says that "no one else can make you change" this being a reference to the eastern concept of looking within oneself as opposed to the western ideas of looking to a savior, prophet, or God.
In the third verse we have references to the vastness of the universe and another reference to reincarnation.
- "And to see you're really only very small
- and life flows on within and without you."
Seeing that we are very small shows the vastness of the universe because it enforces the idea that we are not significant, most of our lives do not change the world. This also leads us to the idea that life will go on without us because we will come back via reincarnation.[1] This idea of life going on can be found in a number of Beatles songs, including Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da from the White Album.
- "We were talking - about the love that's gone so cold and the people,
- Who gain the world and lose their soul.
- They don't know. They can't see. Are you one of them?
- When you see beyond yourself then you may find,
- peace of mind, is waiting there."
The fourth verse, touches again on the eventual destruction of the universe by the Hindu god, Shiva. This destruction would occur in the fourth age of the Maha Yuga, the Kali Yuga. Concepts of this final age are a battered world where the love (Dharma) has "gone so cold". People believe in capitalism losing their soul to gain the world.[1] They don't know of the concept of Dharma, but if they did, peace of mind would be waiting there to greet them.
In the final verse:
- "And the time will come when you see we're all one,
- and life flows on within and without you."
Harrison touches on the Hindu concept on monism, the idea that ultimately all things are one. This doctrine stems from observations of water. Water, whether is is in the form of a river, a lake, rain, ice, or a stream, all water will end up in the ocean.[1] The ocean being one continuous body of water shows that everything, like water is all connected and is ultimately all one thing. Life, just like the waters of the ocean flows on within and without you.
[edit] Cover versions
- Patti Smith performs the song on her April, 2007 cover album twelve.
[edit] Notes
[edit] References
- Beatles-Discography.com Beatles Songs - W, retrieved Jan. 31, 2005
