Live’s music shows distaste in the lack of religion and compassion in modern society. In “Pain Lies on the Riverside” the line “you are a victim of this age” illustrates the evil seen in the present civilization. “Overcome” shows the emptiness of society in the lines “even now the world is bleedin’ but feelin’ just fine all numb in our castle.” Everyone living in his own castle away from the problems in the world illustrates the lack of compassion in modern times. The numbed society feels no sympathy to fix the bleeding world. T

“Overcome” illustrates the narrator himself finding a heightened level of spirituality from the water. The first refrain “I am overcome holy water in my lungs I am over come” demonstrates the narrator has found the cure of the water. The man has fully taken the “holy water” into his body and soul. In the image of rebirth, the man has entered back into the womb of God in absolute faith. In John 4 of the Bible Jesus preaches of being the “living water” that once taken inside will end one’s thirst forever (Abrams 3). The man is “overcome” by the power of Jesus’ love symbolized by the holy water. Breathing in the water, the man finds the strong love that will save him. The man has spiritually evolved in breathing in the water. His faith has increased from trust needed to first learn how to swim. Breathing in the water, the narrator of “Overcome” has complete faith in Jesus. The metaphorical drowning is religiously fulfilling in the line “beautiful drowning this beautiful drowning this holy water this holy water is in my lungs.” The man reaches supreme connection to God in his “beautiful drowning.” The intensified trust needed to let oneself drown indicates the evolution of the spirituality of the narrator.

Through the metaphor of water, religion becomes the cure for the problems of society. “Pain Lies on The Riverside”s argument is a discussion of actively pursuing religion. The lines “you’ve got to learn to live until no end but first you must learn to swim all over again” is a call to take on religion. The quest of life is to “live until no end” but an after-life cannot be achieved without first learning to swimming. Learning to swim is the process of taking religion into life. The pain present on the riverbank will be washed away in the water that represents God’s love. The metaphor of learning to swim has the context of a parent and child. The individual must trust in God as the child does his parent. Jumping into the river is having faith that God will be there. The advice of the song is to have this faith in the lines “and to wait for a flood, is to wait for life.” Individuals cannot wait for a flood to force them into learning to swim. The ones with pain can be cured in the river if they have faith to learn to swim. The faith a child has in his parents while learning to swimming is parallel to faith in God in religion.

Live’s lyrics focus on the ills of modern society and the salvation of God’s love. The metaphor of water for spirituality and salvation is a dominant eleme

Some topics in this essay:
Babylon God, Lies Riverside”, Bible Jesus, Lies Riverside”s, God Entering, Religion Live’s, Water Baptism, god’s love, water baptism, modern society, cure water, water religion, “pain lies, metaphor water, learning swim, faith god, holy water, “pain lies riverside”, water god’s love, god’s love metaphor, connection god individual, society “pain lies,