The Book of Mercy Discussion - Look back in pleasure

[DBCohen]

When we started our discussion of BoM, I estimated it will take us a year or two to go through the book, but with much procrastination, and an occasional loss of heart, that period stretched to almost three and a half years (and who could have foreseen back then that we were about to experience a gloriously rewarding world tour, which also diverted some of the energies away from the discussion). But we persevered. When I brought up the idea of this discussion, several people picked it up enthusiastically, and many others joined along the way, but most of them vanished gradually like so many digital ghosts. Only Mat James and I stayed on doggedly from the first to the last page. In fact, rather than the polyphony I’d wished for, occasionally the discussion seemed like a dialogue between the two of us. Luckily, it never turned into a monologue. And many people made very valuable contributions along the way. So, while perhaps not living up to the initial expectations, it can still be said to have been a worthy endeavor.

Following is a short “history” of our discussion, thread by thread. Let me just point out that the first four threads were actually a single long one, and it was broken down to smaller pieces by Tom, largely following the protest by the late and lamented Greg, who complained at the time that it was too difficult to locate anything in such a long thread. After that we started a new one whenever it seemed appropriate.

Part 1
BoM #1-5: begun 2006.11.28; 9 pages; 134 postings; 41257 views
Simon and Tom picked up my challenge and kicked off the discussion. From the first steps the discussion involved language, poetics, allusions, religious contents, biographical hints and more. Simon had some wonderful insights from the point of view of Zen Buddhism, and I greatly missed his contributions later on. Mat was always ready with the mystical perspective. Steven was another early and loyal participant, although he disappeared occasionally before turning up again at various stages. Another early participant was JiminiC (aka James), who, like Mat, is a poet from down under, but who, unlike him, chose to leave the Forum after a relatively short but intensive participation. I hope he is well. Jack Lazariuk was contributing his elaborate personal experiences, which I, frankly, often found irrelevant, but which some people liked and encouraged. Also there from the first part, and often with most valuable contributions, were Joe Way, Diane and Lizzytish.

Part 2
BoM #6-7: begun 2006.12.24; 10 pages; 148 postings; 21239 views
The one and only Tchocolatl flamed up the discussion, and stayed on for a while before disappearing off the radar (I see that she still appears occasionally on the Forum). This was also the time when things were turning ugly, and old resentments suddenly surfaced in our discussion as elsewhere on the Forum. For the naively uninitiated it was a big shock. What you see out there is only the tip of the iceberg; acrimonious PM’s were flying in all directions, some ugly, some uglier. For a while it looked like all was lost. JiminiC summed it up adequately with a post that read only: “oh boy.” Somehow, we managed to pull through and carry on, and there were some interesting discussions eventually, of sin and shame, for example (very adequately).

Part 3
BoM #8-10: begun 2007.1.8; 15 pages; 214 postings; 32046 views
This was the time when the discussion was probably at its peak, with postings coming thick and fast. It even branched out into a parallel thread on “Love” (on the “Everything Else” section, from January 15, 2007), that carried on for several intensive weeks. Those were the days… Some great stuff by Tom, Simon, Diane, Mat and others. Tchocolatl’s Christian perspective. Some discussion of “exile” (not enough). The Fall (and some Satanic verses). The Star of David. Oral sex. And on P. 12 you’ll find an enigmatic, empty posting by BoHo; for me it was a great moment when the incomparable Judith Fitzgerald started making her unique contributions to our discussion; unfortunately, a while later, and after coming under some ugly attacks elsewhere on the Forum, she demanded that all her postings will be erased. It’s very sad seeing all those empty posts now, once filled with witty observations.

Part 4
BoM #11-15: begun 2007.1.23; 22 pages; 319 postings; 44055 views
We were still going strong on a daily basis. Joe was back from an eye operation, Lizzytish was there regularly, and a few fresh faces appeared, including Manna, who stayed on for a long time. On p. 12, Greg first appeared, and his long, unique postings were coming in regularly for some time. All the founding fathers were still there too. Several pages had nothing to do with BoM, but then on P. 20 Simon came up with another beautiful one.

Part 5
BoM #16-19: begun 2007.4.4; 9 pages; 134 postings; 20050 views
Again a few irrelevant pages, but then some great stuff by Simon, Joe and Diane. Also by Judith, but that’s all gone now. This was another bumpy period for the Forum, when Jarkko threatened to shut it down, and LC had to send in his “Seal of the Blessing to End Disunity” (May 8, 2007, on the “News” section), but we survived that too. Among the new joiners was Blonde Madonna. Steven was actively participating again, but Simon and Tom started to drift away, unfortunately. That was the time when the whole project was beginning to lose steam, but I guess six months is a very long period for an Internet forum discussion to go on.

Part 6
BoM #20-24: begun 2007.6.23; 9 pages; 123 postings; 16902 views
The Tower of Babel, David and Bathsheba, and other biblical episodes were discussed. Several new people showed up for a while. Lizzytish and Blond Madonna were very active, but there were long lulls in the discussion (a big poetry competition was taking place elsewhere on the Forum), and not much enthusiasm.

Part 7
BoM #25-26: begun 2007.9.29; 3 pages; 45 postings; 8465 views
Greg was active here again, as well as the other usual suspects (at least those who hadn’t fled town yet). Still, I wondered at some point whether there is any sense in going on, and asked so on a thread titled “Book of Mercy discussion anniversary - thoughts on its future” (started November 24, 2007). There was an encouraging response, so we went on.

Part 8
BoM #27-28: begun 2007.11.28; 10 pages; 149 postings; 14772 views
This thread was started on the first anniversary of the discussion; we also crossed from Part I to Part II of the book. Exile was discussed again, and there were several interesting contributions by Joe. There was an incessant attempt to subvert the discussion into a political debate, but we survived that too, mercifully.

Part 9
BoM #29-40: begun 2008.1.3; 13 pages; 181 postings; 28161 views
Here the discussion was more focused once again, with several people participating regularly, including Cate, a relative newcomer. On p. 6 you’ll find Greg’s amazing contribution: an index of every word in BoM, which will be most helpful no anyone studying the book seriously. And on P. 7, there is his analysis of “The Old Revolution”, one of LC’s more mysterious songs. In spite of some very long lulls in the discussion (this thread was spread over a period of 14 months), this is one of the most interesting threads in the series, in my view.

Part 10
BoM #41-45: begun 2009.5.6; 8 pages; 112 postings; 7033 views
A new perspective was added to the discussion by the musical version for #41 by Peter Danielsen. Diane was back, with a discussion of depression, Greg was still there for a while before signing off for good, and several new people showed up. The pace was still very slow, but we kept at it, piece by piece.

Part 11
BoM #46-50: begun 2009.11.19; 6 pages; 82 postings; 2153 views
The final thread, with many interesting contributions by Mat, Diane, Steven and also Judy. Simon reappeared once, out of the blue, but did not stay on, and several other people showed up again for the final stretch. So, we finally reached the end of the book, but can hardly claim to have exhausted what it has to offer.

*
Total figures (as of 22 April, 2010):
11 threads
41 months
114 pages
Over 1,600 postings
Nearly 240,000 views
*

So what have we learned from this long discussion? I can’t presume to sum it up, not before I had read it all carefully again and devoted the necessary time to identifying the various points of view. Speaking for myself, I feel I’ve learned much. Just typing the prayers brought up myriad of thoughts, allusions, and pure pleasure far greater and varied than I first anticipated. Then there were the various points of view and insights contributed by many people from different backgrounds, all adding up to a wider and deeper picture of the book.

I’ll indicate just a few points out of the many that still need consideration and elaboration. My initial feeling was that BoM was LC’s most “Jewish” book since The Spice Box of Earth, and indeed in turned out that the book is saturated with allusions to Hebrew sources, and particularly the Prayer Book, as well as the Bible, the Kabbalah and Hassidic sources, even beyond my expectations. Simultaneously, the effect of other traditions is clearly felt, in particular Christianity and Zen Buddhism, and probably others. The interplay between those various traditions in the poet’s psyche - and Mat has been writing about this lately - is most complicated, and deserves a further study, but it is evident that his main drive was to reconcile himself with his own tradition and express himself from within it.

There are various types of pieces in the book, some very much like poems, some almost like short stories. Most, although perhaps not all, can be considered prayers. This literary aspect of the book, that for me is particularly fascinating and important, also requires further review and discussion.

Perhaps the most difficult question of all regarding this book is the speaker’s point of view, or the place where he stands and speaks from. Or to put it bluntly: what kind of faith does he have? And what are his expectations when speaking to “you”, when invoking the “name” and the “shield”? What can be expected from “mercy”? Mat and I often argued over this. Is he expressing, with an amount of assurance, a mystical union, or is he struggling in the darkness, crying for help? Does he wish to convey to his readers a certain knowledge, or only hope? In any case, although the book is often dark (but also occasionally humorous, as can be expected of its author), it does convey a certain reassurance in hope. It speaks of complex relationships, human and other, of painful struggles and uncertain heart, but it often evokes beauty in a unique and memorable way. I for one find this sufficient.

Thank you all for taking part.

[mat james]

I came to enjoy Leonard’s work because he speaks my native tongue, the language of mystery and allure, Divine Love, as Plato calls it.
This ‘Book of Mercy’ that we stumbled through was unknown to me before the advent of this thread and my knowledge of Leonard Cohen was limited to his music; and that I have had an affair with for thirty years.
So venturing into this thread was luck and good fortune for me. It gave me one verse at a time, a fresh glimpse into the mind of this exceptional artist and at the same time it also enabled me to converse with some talented people who were immersed in his tradition or simply lovers of his work.
For me, this was a labor of love. It was never once a chore but always a delight.
Thank you, Doron for being patient with me and encouraging all of us to have our say throughout the process. Thank you also for filling us in on the scriptural background to many of these B.O.M verses; I particularly enjoyed the moments with the seductive Bathsheba and the tortured King David; his dismal fall and his sad recognition of his human failings and his “broken hallelujah”. I thought you covered this beautifully – and you gave me a new understanding of what I’d call Leonard’s vision of redemption.
Doron has mentioned the names and thanked the major players in this little game and the many others who dropped in for a look around.
It was fun and you people, all of you made it fun for me. Thanks.

Mat James.

[blonde madonna]

Thank you Doron and Mat. I appreciated the thought and effort you put into all your posts on BoM.

I don't feel up to the task myself (you have set the bar so high DB) but I wish another project like this could be started on one of LC's other collections.

BM

[lizzytysh]

You are a true organizer, Doron. Amazing what you've done with this thread alone... based on all those others. I haven't been able to follow along as I'd wanted, but I will catch up with it all, and when Jarkko condenses this for the Files [with your assistance, nooo doubt, Doron], I hope these will remain in place, so we have the ability to read it all... all the diversions that were taken along the way. I, too, wish so much that ~greg was here for this. I've wished he was still here for many things, yet I know this would have been something he would have written a long, involved, and meaningful post to commemorate.

Doron and Mat... our rocks. Joe and those others who came and contributed until other things pulled you away. Everyone else ~ those who came and offered for awhile and left. As has already been said, you've helped in your ways to sustain this incredibly worthwhile project.

It's almost like 'old home week' seeing people comment here now.

Thanks for never losing heart enough to keep you away, Doron. Without you, it wouldn't have happened or be all it became. Mat, you're right there with him.


Love,
Lizzy

[DBCohen]

Mat, BM, Lizzy,

Thank you all for your kind words.

And regarding another discussion, well, I’m thinking about it…

[imaginary friend]

Hello,

Just in case any BOM devotees haven't already heard it, there's a link in the News section to an interview with Leonard (circa 1985), in which he discusses writing the Book of Mercy. It's well worth a listen...

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=21489

[Joe Way]

Dear Doron, Mat & all the others who have contributed and enjoyed this discussion.
Congratulations for your thoroughness and dedication. When I have time, I plan to read through the entire discussion again-though that may not be for several years. I enjoyed my rather few forays into the discussion, but appreciated even more the wonderful insights that all of the participants provided. Again I would like to especially thank Doron for his great knowledge and skill in Jewish/Hebrew tradition and applying it to this topic. And I would like to thank Mat for his unbridled enthusiasm and insights into all those things mystic. I think that Greg would be proud of you (and all of us).

Joe

[lizzytysh]

You have a way of always saying exactly the right things, Joe .

[lizzytysh]

I have a feeling that when I read through the whole series at once, I'll find that Steven, Diane, and Cate contributed more than you're thinking you did. I remember your input always been valuable, Steven, and that has to come from your contributions having been fairly substantial. I remember Diane being here more at some times than others, but always contributing relevantly and insightfully. I've been away too long to have a feeling for Cate's frequency since I left, but I'm confident her input was valuable.

[Steven]

Hi Lizzy,

Thanks. While I'm not sure how valuable/substantial my contributions were, I recall large gaps in my
responding (while often reading, considering and appreciating, when time allowed, the ongoing discussions).
Again, thanks for your comment and for your presence at this forum.

[DBCohen]

Dear friends,

Thank you all once again for your participation and for your comments here.

For those not aware of them yet, I’d like to draw your attention to two discussions going on now: the one on “The poetry of Ten New Songs” started by Mat James a while ago, and the one on “Lines From My Grandfather’s Journal” started recently by Joe Way. So all those in need of a fix are cordially invited to take part in both or either discussions of these two quite different, but always fascinating, pieces of work by LC.

All good things,

Doron

[Simon]

Thank you Doron for inventing this collective litarary space to dive in with our minds, our hearts and sometimes our guts. This adventure has made Book of Mercy a very unique and special book for me, a piece of work unlike any other. That is largely due to everyone’s contribution and insight and to your perseverance in keeping us in the game.

It was indeed a difficult decision for me to stop participating in the discussions. Other time consuming opportunities took me somewhere else. I had to go through a period of severage from the threads at first and came back at times to see where you guys were at. But I lost track totaly at one point.

Like Joe, I promess myself to sit down one day and read the threads from begining to end, and I will surely be interested in anything that you and Jarkko may produce from all this material.

Blessings to all,

Simon

[DBCohen]

Simon,

It’s so good hearing from you again. I’m glad that the BoM discussion was so meaningful to you, and I hope for your participation in future discussions of other texts.

All the best,

Doron

[david birkett]

A naive question from someone who finds blog - and most other forms of - navigation challenging. How do I look up these threads from the main page of the Forum?

Sheepish thanks.

David

[Judy]

Hi David,

First of all on the main page of the Forum, click on "Board Index", then on "The Poetry Place", then on "Leonard Cohen's poetry and novels".

The first part of the Book of Mercy Discussion ie Chapters 1-5 is on page 3. The second and third parts ie Chapters 6-7 and 8-10 are also on page 3.

You'll have to look down the list to find the remaining chapters.

Hope this helps.