Is The Police's "Invisible Sun" a metaphor for God?

[Mojotronica]

I don't want to spend the rest of my life
Looking at the barrel of an armalite
I don't want to spend the rest of my days
Keeping out of trouble like the soldiers say
I don't want to spend my time in hell
Looking at the walls of a prison cell
I don't ever want to play the part
Of a statistic on a government chart

There has to be an invisible sun
It gives its heat to everyone
There has to be an invisible sun
That gives us hope when the whole day's done

It's dark all day and it glows all night
Factory smoke and acetylene light
I face the day with me head caved in
Looking like something that the cat brought in

There has to be an invisible sun
It gives its heat to everyone
There has to be an invisible sun
That gives us hope when the whole day's done

And they're only going to change this place
By killing everybody in the human race
They would kill me for a cigarette
But I don't even wanna die just yet

There has to be an invisible sun
It gives its heat to everyone
There has to be an invisible sun
That gives us hope when the whole day's done

 

[Inhalaattori]

Sun is propbably the oldest thing man has worshipped as god. So called "Sol Invictus" was a state religion of Rome before Christianity. Christianity took much from this religion.

You know in these old pictures, where are dudes like Jesus and they have this yellow thing behind their heads... that is Sun or so called "Sol Invictus".

So my point is... in a way Sun = God... and without sun we would perish.

By the way. Sol Invictus = THE INVINCIBLE SUN.

 

[CurtSibling]

The sun is a nuclear fireball in space - it is our planet's solar battery.

But why worship a battery?

 

[The Last Conformist]

The Sun's a solar battery? And they say irony is dead?

 

[Bozo Erectus]

It charges up during the day

 

[CurtSibling]

I am trying to win the Ironic Cross...

 

[The Last Conformist]

That went to Helsinki along with the Holy Sarcastic Empire.

 

[CurtSibling]

Anyway - it carries a strong possibility that the 'Police' just wrote a weird song, with odd lyrics.

A song does not need to have a deep meaning.

Even Lennon admitted his songs were gibberish mostly.

 

[Achinz]

to me the key lines are:

There has to be an invisible sun
That gives us hope when the whole day's done

If you're religious it's the hope of spiritual values providing some comfort and meaning to the grime of the daytime world.

Otherwise it's just a hope that there is more to life than the gloom and doom that the writer apparently feels about his daily life.

 

[Xen]

Please Note

Sol Invictus is the Roman version of Mithras

 

[Pongui]

He's singing about the effect of Dark Matter on quantum physicists.

 

[Maj]

Sting was all about quantum mechanics in those days.

Songs can have deeper meaning if you want them to. They're open to interpretation and do not necessarily have to be aligned with whatever the artist had envisioned.

If there's any band I do believe writes nothing but gibberish for lyrics it's the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Either the guy who writes them is being too profound and confused with his wording or he randomly selects phrases that best go with the instruments.

I don't know if The Police intended this invisible sun to represent God in the way most major monotheistic religions present Him. It may refer to some comsic/spiritual energy. Karma, maybe? Or god ... depends on what parameters you use to define 'it' or 'them'.

 

[Marla_Singer]

Originally posted by CurtSibling
The sun is a nuclear fireball in space - it is our planet's solar battery.

But why worship a battery?

Well maybe for that reason. Without that battery, we wouldn't be here to talk.

 

[gael]

I think its a metaphor for optimism and change, in whatever way you interpret it. Hes kept it pretty open.

But it does sound like a metaphor for religion.

 

[Aphex_Twin]

Actually, upon reading that my mind drifted towards the "nuclear sun" and the great hopes it gave mankind, just before Cernobil.

 

[Homie]

Originally posted by Inhalaattori
Christianity took much from this religion.

Like what exactly? Name one thing.

 

[The Last Conformist]

The date of Xmas, IIRC.

 

[cgannon64]

That was so they weren't persecuted and killed.

 

[Homie]

Originally posted by The Last Conformist
The date of Xmas, IIRC.

And what was this day (24.december) all about in the solar worshipping religion? Was it supposed to be the birth of the sun or something? And why would the christians say to themselfs "Hey, why don't we celebrate Jesus birth on a holy day from the solar worshipping religion, his original birth date is just so boring and average"
I mean, what is the motiv? Why change it? To play a practical joke on the rest of history?

 

[cgannon64]

Homie: They made it Dec. 25 so they could blend in with the pagans.