Did Lennon understand Tomorrow Never Knows?
John Lennon first discovered The T ibetan Book of the Dead in the Indica Bookshop, hang out for London's grooviest tambourine shakers in the mid-60s. John began to scan the shelves. His eyes soon alighted upon a copy of The Psychedelic Experience, Dr Timothy Leary's psychedelic version of the Tibetan Book of the Dead. John was delighted and settled down on the settee with the book. Right away, on page 14 in Leary's introduction, he read, 'Whenever in doubt, turn off your mind, relax, float downstream.' He had found the first line of 'Tomorrow Never Knows' . Many Years From Now Barry Miles Did Lennon understand what he was singing? Though intellectually curious, Lennon always cheerfully conceded that his research tended to be haphazard. In Anthology , George Harrison dismisses Lennon's knowledge of Indian mysticism: I am not too sure if John actually fully understood what he was saying. He knew he was onto something ...
