The Lion Inside of Me

While on the subject of the spirituality or mysticism of Van Morrison’s music, the tracks that stand out for me beyond the seminal “Astral Weeks” are “You Don’t Pull no Punches” from the Veedon Fleece album and “Listen to the Lion” from Saint Dominic’s Preview.

For this latter song, as with much of Morrison’s more introspective music, it’s not so much the lyrics, as the way he sings them. After all the poetry in itself is pretty sparse

Oh, listen listen


To the lion


Oh, listen listen listen


To the lion...
Inside of me


Oh, oh, oh



And I shall search my soul


I shall search my very soul


And I shall search my very soul


I shall search my very so-o-oul



For the lion


For the lion


For the lion


For the lion...
Inside of me

But its the growls, the grunts and scats that make the song. The artist expressing the living breathing lion inside of him. And don’t we all have that? That inner self that wants to break out of the humdrum workaday life, to find expression and give vent to a mighty roar of “THIS IS WHO I AM” into the jungle of this world.

I have often been intrigued by the image of Jesus as the “Lion of Judah” that John paints in the Book of Revelation (Rev 5:7). I mean its only a single reference unlike the messianic metaphors of lamb, light, shepherd which pretty much run right throughout the Old and New Testaments. And its also a metaphor thats been taken up variously by Judaism, Ethiopian nationalism and the Rastafari reggae music of the West Indies, and C S Lewis of course in his Narnia books

John uses the metaphor it in direct contrast to the Lamb, looking as it had been slain (Rev 5:6) - meekness and power, suffering and triumph, gentleness and strength. Its a fantastic picture.

So Jesus is this Lion inside of me, roaring, His word consuming my being. Jeremiah talks about the Word of God being in his heart like a fire, a fire shut up in his bones. He is weary from holding it in. And that rugged old shepherd of Tekoa, Amos, declares in his prophecy, that the Lord is like a Lion

“The lion has roared, who will not fear.

The Sovereign Lord has spoken.

Who can but prophesy.” Amos 3:8

So ROAR, King Jesus. Consume me from within. Proclaim your lordship over my life. Declare yourself to be King of all creation