The lyrics offer praise to Christ, Vishnu, Jehovah and Buddha, thereby marking a return to the concept of a universal deity, regardless of religious demarcation, that Harrison had first espoused in his 1970 hit single "My Sweet Lord".
[2] Both of these works had continued to present a softening in the artist's spiritual vision since 1974,[3] the year in which he had publicly espoused a hard-line Hindu religiosity in his North American concerts with Ravi Shankar[4] and in devotional songs such as "It Is 'He' (Jai Sri Krishna)".
[7] Later in 1979, the content of his HandMade Films comedy Monty Python's Life of Brian attracted controversy from Christian religious groups,[8][9] a point to which Harrison later responded: "All it made fun of was people's stupidity in the story [of Jesus Christ] ... Actually it was upholding Him and knocking all the idiotic stuff that goes on around religion ..."[10][11] Songs such as "Life Itself", "Writing's on the Wall" and "Sat Singing" nevertheless reflected his return to more spiritually focused songwriting,[12][13] recalling the themes of Harrison's albums All Things Must Pass (1970) and Living in the Material World (1973).
[16] According to Leng, the two compositions address a similar issue in their statements of faith, but whereas Dylan sings of "hanging in the balance of the reality of man", Harrison has "arrived at his destination" and is "making an offering" to his deity.
[20] The song is a slow ballad in the key of C.[21][22] In his lyrics, Harrison's directly addresses his deity, whom he describes as variously a lover, a friend, the source of truth,[23] and the essence of all "We taste, touch and feel".
[30][31] Aside from Harrison, who also served as producer,[32] the musicians at the sessions were Neil Larsen and Gary Brooker (both on keyboards), Ray Cooper (percussion), Willie Weeks (bass) and Jim Keltner (drums).
[44][45] "Life Itself" was sequenced as the third track, between "Unconsciousness Rules" and "All Those Years Ago", which was Harrison's tribute to his former Beatles bandmate John Lennon[46] and another song to which Kooper added a key musical contribution.
[7] Harry Thomas of Rolling Stone described the song as "an explicit paean to 'the One' in all His guises ... With beautifully filigreed overdubs of breathy, echoing voices and poignant slide-guitar figures ... the music conjures up a magical temple of mirrors.
[59] Conversely, writing in Creem, Mitchell Cohen cited the track as an example of the album's diminishing quality after the opening song, "Blood from a Clone", in which Harrison criticised Warner's, and he added: "'Life Itself' is God's resume, complete with noms d'omnipotence.
[63][64] In an act that Leng terms "unprecedented", Harrison authorised the inclusion of "Life Itself", along with "Writing's on the Wall" and "That Which I Have Lost", on the audio book release of Deepak Chopra's bestseller Ageless Body Timeless Mind.
"[74] Author Ian Inglis includes "Life Itself" among Harrison songs that possess "great charm, energy, and beauty" yet may be little known due to the lack of critical acclaim afforded their respective parent album.
[75] Inglis praises the song for its "gorgeous melody of rising and falling phrases" and adds: "It is a beautifully crafted and gently sung track ... his spiritual certainty is fixed, unchanging, and permanent.