I do not know the world is liedI have liedI do not know if the world has conspired against loveI have conspired against loveThe atmosphere of torture is no comfortI have torturedEven without the mushroom cloudstill I would have hatedListenI would have done the same thingseven if there were no deathI will not be held like a drunkardunder the cold tap of factsI refuse the universal alibiLike an empty telephone booth passed nightand rememberedlike mirrors in a movie Palace lobby consultedonly on the way outlike a nymphomaniac who binds 1000into a strange brotherhoodI wait for each one of you to confess.This poem, entitled ‘What I’m Doing Here’, was published in 1964 and has something of the character of a manifesto for existential authenticity. In a similar vein the song ‘The story of Isaac’ which is a plea for the leaders of one generation not to slaughter the next generation has the lines:When it all comes down to dustI’ll kill you if I mustI’ll help you if I canWhen in all comes down to dustI’ll help you if I mustI’ll kill you if I can.In both cases I certainly took these to represent an authentic honesty that needs to be confessed if we are to be serious.This confessional quality is a central motif of a great deal of Cohen’s work which is no doubt part of its deeply personal appeal - but what exactly is being confessed and who is being confessed to is not always straightforward matter particularly in an artist who embraces a number of religious traditions and treats love in a quasi religious manner. Much as my love of Leonard Cohen is profound the last time I saw him live even I found the religious moping and confessing got bit much at times and likewise I’m sure most of his audience politely ignores his occasional missives against abortion.The Book of Mercy is firmly in religious territory. It consists of 50 prose pieces all of which have a solemn, measured, confessional tone and most of which I barely understood. Maybe they can only be properly understood if you are drenched in the Torah, the Bible and Buddhist scripture. Maybe they can only be properly understood if you are Leonard Cohen. I found them mostly rather indulgent, solipsistic and annoying. I do however recommend the following:23: because it contains these lines about pylons: “A strange sound trembled in the air. It was caused by the north wind on the electric lines, a sustained chord of surprising harmonies, power and duration, greatly pleasing, a singing of breath and steel, a huge string instrument of masts and fields, complex tensions.” Likewise I’ve always rather liked pylons.27: because it seems to be a highly evocative invective against any notion that the state of Israel is anything other than corrupted: “All bloated on their scraps of destiny, all swaggering in the immunity of superstition…. You decompose behind your flimsy armour, your stench alarms you, your panic strikes at love… Your shrines fall through empty air, your tablets are quickly revised, and you bow down in hell beside your hired torturers, and still you count your battalions and crank out your marching songs…”30: because it seems to be a highly evocative invective against the lack of religiosity in life: “all trade in filth, carry their filth one to another, all walk the streets as though the ground did not recoil, all stretch their necks to bite the air, as though the breath had not withdrawn. The seed bursts without blessing, and the harvest is gathered as if it were food. The bride and the bridegroom sink down combine, and flesh is brought forth as if it were a child….They write and they weep, as though evil were a miracle… There is no world without the blessing, and every plate to which they drop their face is an abomination of blood and suffering and maggots.” Not exactly the cuddly Leonard to whom so many seem enamoured since Jeff Buckley covered ‘Hallelujah’.31: because it seems a bemoaning of complacency in the spiritual realm: “when the heart grins at itself, the world is destroyed”.Having quoted those bits I find myself drawn towards the idea of reading it in again in the hope that more of it will make more sense – then I too can bathe in the self-righteous pomposity of religious solipsism.
Sadly, I had not heard of Leonard Cohen until True Detective 2 used his song “Nevermind” as its theme song. The song intrigued me enough that I bought the album “Popular Problems”. After reading about Cohen I knew I had to buy some of his writings.The Book of Mercy is billed as a modernization of Psalms. Cohen’s talent as a poet/writer is evident as he laments about life and its troubles. Written in a prose style, his poetic talent shines through.While reading each selection, I was constantly reminded of the actual Psalms. This made me think of these as more of a reworking than as new reflections. The tone is somber and while there are 50 selections, they seemed to have one note. I am a wretch but God loves me anyway.This was a hard book to review as Cohen is an amazing writer but this particular book did not demonstrate his talent very well.This one, reluctantly, gets only three stars.
What do You think about Book Of Mercy (1986)?
Cohen sings from the gap. He knows exactly what his pain is all about, but that doesn't stop him from feeling it. He prays to a masculine God, which does not resonate so much for me, personally, but he is a Jewish man who believes in the Judeo-Christian divinity, and he sure isn't alone in that so I can't really fault him. My favorite verse from the collection is #27 which starts, "Israel, and you who call yourself Israel, the Church that calls itself Israel, and the revolt that calls itself Israel, and every nation chosen to be a nation--none of these lands is yours, all of you are thieves of holiness, all of you at war with Mercy." This poet speaks for himself, sings for himself, and has captured the hearts of millions, so all I'll say is it was my great honor to see him in concert this March. The 74-yr-old man moved like a cat and received ovations after every other number. He played four encores and at the end of a three-hour concert said coyly, "Well I hope you're satisfied." So rock on with your bad self, Leonard. Thanks for your contributions to humanity.
—Erin
