U2: Moment of Surrender Meaning
Moment of Surrender Lyrics
To let the horses roam free
Playing with the fire
Until the fire played with me
The stone was semi precious
We were barely conscious
Two souls too smart to be
In the realm of certainty
Even on our wedding day
We set...
-
I tied myself with wire is to be tangled in addiction. We make choices that make no sense. We do damage to ourself and it seems as though we are stuck in a pattern that we are incapable of breaking out of.
"Every eye looking every other way counting down til the pain would stop." Numb.
Richard Rohr says everyone is addicted to something, it's just that some addictions are more obvious than others. We each yearn to be released from control. To make the self-inflicted pain stop. Freedom.
The goal and the battle is to reach the moment of surrender. That is typically found on our knees looking up. In that moment nothing surrounding us seems to matter than returning to the rhythm of our soul. The battle perhaps is the fear of being found out, but surprisingly what others think of us no longer matters and it's as though others are kept from genuinely seeing our mess of being set free.
When new life is birthed it's both bloody and beautiful and that is paradox. That is when true vision is captured and we truly see for the first time. -
(.. Speeding on the Subway.." )
'Every eye looking down the other way, counting down 'til the pain would stop, at the moment of surrender, a vison or visibility, I did not notice the passsers by, and they did not notice me.
I have experienced this song both on the Chicago L train, and walking in a park in
the city. It was as if on the train everyone (or most) looking down or counting the time to a screeching halt. Seldom do I see people communicate on the train. It is kind of like an elevator lift no one seems to pay attention to the next fellow.
And in the city walk I can recall that same sadness. I am passing by people,many people, but they do not notice me, and I don't much take the time to notice them. This can happen in a store, mall, or even a sport event or concert. We are not all socialites, and I value private times. It is a little sad though to pass by people ( good samaritan?) who may be in need of an encouraging word or is in some need and I pass him by as I am not likely in touch. Thing it is the singers way of saying a need to reconnect. Take out the headphone, etc.
Mere visibility expresses as if seeing through a cloud, fog or mist.. Vison, however, it is significantly more potent than visibility. I woould fold to my knees in prayer to discover a vision within me. I would gladly surrender. There is someone in past and possibly a present, presence known as the 'Great Physician.' A loving eye to bind up the broken hearted, and heal wounds self-inflicted or otherwise. -
The first verse is obviously about a wedding. The "stone was semi-precious" could be a suggestion that the couple was young and poor, perhaps could not afford a diamond. So in love that they were "barely conscious" yet too smart to be certain that they were making the right decision. Surrendering to love in that moment because it would have been impossible to say no.
The middle section is about the frailty of the human spirit. That all of us are messed up in some way, that we all have an innate longing to get back "home". To me that means that we long for heaven, and no other part of life (even the good parts) seem right.
The last verse is about how we are all the same, and all so self-absorbed in our own lives that we don't notice others. All so consumed with our own pain. "At the moment of surrender, of vision over visibility" I think that's a reference to the rapture or death, the moment when our pain will come to an end. At that time we won't notice the passers by, we'll have our full attention on God. -
I think Bono is trying to say that he's tried everything and the moment of surrender symbolically means that he's dying and no one notices.
More U2 songs »
Latest Articles
-
A new era for Millennial favorite, Linkin Park
-
Anime to watch for the soundtracks… and other reasons you’re undateable
-
Dolly, we need you
-
The Stranger Things Effect: How new media is drawing Gen Z and Alpha's attention to aging media
-
The most underrated soundtrack of the early 2000s
-
Buy the Soundtrack, Skip the Movie: Brainscan (1994)
Trending:
Blog posts mentioning U2
Just Posted
Amnesia | anonymous |
Your Smiling Face | anonymous |
You Should Be Dancing | anonymous |
Washing Machine Heart | anonymous |
Souvenirs | anonymous |
Art Deco | anonymous |
Let It Go | anonymous |
The Greatest Show | anonymous |
Vampire | anonymous |
Vampire | anonymous |
Sippy Cup | anonymous |
A Place For My Head | anonymous |
I Hope You Dance | anonymous |
Metaphor | anonymous |
Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now) | anonymous |