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قايين
يا لتعاستك يا حواء، بداية سيئة تبدئين، ومصيرًا حزينًا ستلقين، كان عليك أن تفكري في الأمر قبل الإقدام عليه، أما أنت يا آدم، فالأرض ملعونة بسببك.
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وعلى الرغم من كل شيء، فإن هذا الإنسان المطارد الهائم على وجهه، الملاحق بخطواته نفسها، هذا الملعون، قاتل الأخ، كانت لديه مبادئ طيبة لا تتوافر إلا لقليلين.
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بعد خمسين سنة ويوم واحد من تلك المداخلة الجراحية الموفقة التي بدأت معها حقبة جديدة من جمالية الجسد البشري تحت الشعار المتساهل بأن كل شيء فيه قابل للتحسين، وقعت الكارثة.
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وعلى الرغم من كل شيء، فإن هذا الإنسان المطارد الهائم على وجهه، الملاحق بخطواته نفسها، هذا الملعون، قاتل الأخ، كانت لديه مبادئ طيبة لا تتوافر إلا لقليلين.
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بعد خمسين سنة ويوم واحد من تلك المداخلة الجراحية الموفقة التي بدأت معها حقبة جديدة من جمالية الجسد البشري تحت الشعار المتساهل بأن كل شيء فيه قابل للتحسين، وقعت الكارثة.
187 pages, Paperback
First published October 18, 2009
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About the author
José Saramago
281books15.8kfollowersJosé de Sousa Saramago (16 November 1922 � 18 June 2010) was a Portuguese novelist and recipient of the 1998 Nobel Prize in Literature, for his "parables sustained by imagination, compassion and irony [with which he] continually enables us once again to apprehend an elusory reality." His works, some of which have been seen as allegories, commonly present subversive perspectives on historic events, emphasizing the theopoetic. In 2003 Harold Bloom described Saramago as "the most gifted novelist alive in the world today."
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September 10, 2024
"إذا كان الكتاب الذي نقرؤه لا يوقظنا بخبطة علي جمجتنا ..فلماذا نقرؤه اذن؟ "
دايماً الكتاب المريح والسهل و التقليدي مهماً كان ممتع لا يمكن مقارنته أبداً بالكتاب اللي بيخليك تفكر وتدور وتتلخبط وتخاف وتسأل غيرك وتسأل حتي نفسك..
أعشق الكتب اللي بتعرف تِخبَط مش بس دماغي في الحيط ولكن بتعرف كمان تخبَّط في معتقداتي!
ولمثل هذه الكتب ..أنا أقرأ😍
بياخدنا ساراماغو في هذا الكتاب في رحلة ممتعة وقراءة مختلفة للعهد القديم من وجهة نظره..
يجعل قابيل بعد قتله لاخيه يسافر في الزمن مرة إلي الأمام ومرة إلي الخلف ليري العديد من الأنبياء والأحداث التي عايشوها مثل ذبح إبراهيم لإبنه و سفينة نوح ..قوم لوط.. أحداث برج بابل وحتي موسي عند جبل سيناء..
طبعاً خلال زيارات قابيل لهذه المحطات تجري حوارات علي لسانه سواء مع الأنبياء وأحياناً أخري مع الاله أو السيد كما يسميه ساراماغو ممكن تكون غير مقبولة تماماً عند الكثير من الناس..
الغريبة إن الناس بتنتقد ساراماغو علي هذا الكاتب عشان هو ملحد!! وهو من إمتي إحنا بنحكم علي أي عمل أدبي بسبب ديانة كاتبه!!!
ده لو علي كدة بقي ،إحنا نبطل قراية أحسن ونكتفي بقراءة الصحف اليومية...
الكتاب بالنسبة لي من أمتع الكتب اللي قريتها السنة دي بلا منازع وفكرني كتير بأولاد حارتنا لنجيب محفوظ حتي يوجد جملة في أولاد حارتنا علي الجبلاوي و كتبها ساراماغو هنا بنفس المعني تقريباً..
"من الواضح أن السيد قد تخلي عنا ولم يعد يريد أن يعرف شيئاً عن شعبه.."!
بس طبعاً هنا ساراماغو كان أعمق وأحلي وأمتع وأجرأ من أولاد حارتنا بمراحل ..(معلش بقي يا عم نجيب :) )
يقول هاروكي موراكامي إذا كنت تقرأ فقط الكتب التي يقرأها الجميع ستفكر فقط كما يفكر الجميع..
والله يا موراكامي أنا عارفة إن حبي ليك مجاش من فراغ؛)
دايماً الكتاب المريح والسهل و التقليدي مهماً كان ممتع لا يمكن مقارنته أبداً بالكتاب اللي بيخليك تفكر وتدور وتتلخبط وتخاف وتسأل غيرك وتسأل حتي نفسك..
أعشق الكتب اللي بتعرف تِخبَط مش بس دماغي في الحيط ولكن بتعرف كمان تخبَّط في معتقداتي!
ولمثل هذه الكتب ..أنا أقرأ😍
بياخدنا ساراماغو في هذا الكتاب في رحلة ممتعة وقراءة مختلفة للعهد القديم من وجهة نظره..
يجعل قابيل بعد قتله لاخيه يسافر في الزمن مرة إلي الأمام ومرة إلي الخلف ليري العديد من الأنبياء والأحداث التي عايشوها مثل ذبح إبراهيم لإبنه و سفينة نوح ..قوم لوط.. أحداث برج بابل وحتي موسي عند جبل سيناء..
طبعاً خلال زيارات قابيل لهذه المحطات تجري حوارات علي لسانه سواء مع الأنبياء وأحياناً أخري مع الاله أو السيد كما يسميه ساراماغو ممكن تكون غير مقبولة تماماً عند الكثير من الناس..
الغريبة إن الناس بتنتقد ساراماغو علي هذا الكاتب عشان هو ملحد!! وهو من إمتي إحنا بنحكم علي أي عمل أدبي بسبب ديانة كاتبه!!!
ده لو علي كدة بقي ،إحنا نبطل قراية أحسن ونكتفي بقراءة الصحف اليومية...
الكتاب بالنسبة لي من أمتع الكتب اللي قريتها السنة دي بلا منازع وفكرني كتير بأولاد حارتنا لنجيب محفوظ حتي يوجد جملة في أولاد حارتنا علي الجبلاوي و كتبها ساراماغو هنا بنفس المعني تقريباً..
"من الواضح أن السيد قد تخلي عنا ولم يعد يريد أن يعرف شيئاً عن شعبه.."!
بس طبعاً هنا ساراماغو كان أعمق وأحلي وأمتع وأجرأ من أولاد حارتنا بمراحل ..(معلش بقي يا عم نجيب :) )
يقول هاروكي موراكامي إذا كنت تقرأ فقط الكتب التي يقرأها الجميع ستفكر فقط كما يفكر الجميع..
والله يا موراكامي أنا عارفة إن حبي ليك مجاش من فراغ؛)
August 7, 2018
Another great book from the Nobel-prize-winning (1998) Portuguese author. It’s a re-imagining of the Old Testament (which the author has called the Book of Nonsense) in the way that the author’s “The Gospel According to Jesus Christ� re-imagined the New. (In the book, the author does not capitalize proper names but I did so because it looks odd otherwise.)
Cain slays his brother, Abel, and then travels through various times and places of the Old Testament. In his wanderings he stumbles across Abraham ready to sacrifice his son Isaac. He watches the Tower of Babel being constructed. He’s a laborer for Job and watches his sufferings. Cain works on the construction of Noah’s ark. He sees Lot’s wife turn to salt. He becomes a paramour of Lilith and even has a son by her. Cain watches folks worship the golden calf and he see the walls of Jericho tumble.
Cain is quite a kibitzer. During his travels he argues with various angels and occasionally with God. Why did you make me slay my brother? I had no choice. Why did you kill all those innocent children when you destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah? Why in the world would you ask Abraham to kill his son? What did Job ever do to you that you made him suffer so?
Some samples:
“But why put to the test the very thing you yourself created?
“Poor me, said Eve, what a bad beginning, and what a sad fate will be mine.�
“You gods should still take the blame for all the crimes committed in your name or because of you…�
“…the lord is not a person to be trusted.�
“It is quite possible that the pact that some say exists between god and men contains only two articles, namely, you scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours.�
“…but I have learned one thing…that our god, the creator of heaven and earth, is completely mad…�
“…the lord isn’t listening, he’s deaf, everywhere the poor, unfortunate and wretched cry out to him for help…and the lord turns his back on them…�
“it seems likely that satan is just another instrument of the lord, the one who does the dirty work to which god prefers not to put his name.�
“The history of mankind is the history of our misunderstandings with god, for he doesn’t understand us, and we don’t understand him.�
Original, thought-provoking, and a quick read.
Top image: Lot's Wife by Shawna Atkins from shawnaatkinsart.blogspot.com
Bottom image: Walls of Jericho from gettyimages.com
Cain slays his brother, Abel, and then travels through various times and places of the Old Testament. In his wanderings he stumbles across Abraham ready to sacrifice his son Isaac. He watches the Tower of Babel being constructed. He’s a laborer for Job and watches his sufferings. Cain works on the construction of Noah’s ark. He sees Lot’s wife turn to salt. He becomes a paramour of Lilith and even has a son by her. Cain watches folks worship the golden calf and he see the walls of Jericho tumble.
Cain is quite a kibitzer. During his travels he argues with various angels and occasionally with God. Why did you make me slay my brother? I had no choice. Why did you kill all those innocent children when you destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah? Why in the world would you ask Abraham to kill his son? What did Job ever do to you that you made him suffer so?
Some samples:
“But why put to the test the very thing you yourself created?
“Poor me, said Eve, what a bad beginning, and what a sad fate will be mine.�
“You gods should still take the blame for all the crimes committed in your name or because of you…�
“…the lord is not a person to be trusted.�
“It is quite possible that the pact that some say exists between god and men contains only two articles, namely, you scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours.�
“…but I have learned one thing…that our god, the creator of heaven and earth, is completely mad…�
“…the lord isn’t listening, he’s deaf, everywhere the poor, unfortunate and wretched cry out to him for help…and the lord turns his back on them…�
“it seems likely that satan is just another instrument of the lord, the one who does the dirty work to which god prefers not to put his name.�
“The history of mankind is the history of our misunderstandings with god, for he doesn’t understand us, and we don’t understand him.�
Original, thought-provoking, and a quick read.
Top image: Lot's Wife by Shawna Atkins from shawnaatkinsart.blogspot.com
Bottom image: Walls of Jericho from gettyimages.com
December 21, 2023
- لا ادري اذا كان مصطلح "الغنوصية الحديثة" يلائم لوصف هذه الرواية الرائعة لساراماغو! لكن في جميع الأحوال فقد قدّم نظرة الغنوصيين بشكل ما، هذه النظرة التي دأب "العالم" على خنقها ولكنها عادت للوجود بأثرها الحقيقي بعد اكتشافات نجع حمادي في مصر. لم يقدم ساراماغو هذه النظرة كباحث بل كروائي بأسلوب فذّ وساخر.
- يأخذ ساراماغو شخصية "قابيل" ويبدأ بنقله بين محطات من العهد القديم مقتبساً ما جرى معلقاً على ما يجري. فتراه بعد مقتل هابيل ثم في سدوم مروراً بجبل سيناء وخراب اريحا وصولا الى الطوفان كأحداث مفترضة في العهد القديم.
- من يعرف مصدر الاساطير لن يتفاجأ بما كتب في هذه الرواية من ناحية الافكار والتساؤلات.اما الاسلوب في التنقل بين الازمنة فلم يكن مبتكراً فقد استعمله العديد من الكتاب سابقاً (بولغاكوف على سبيل المثال في المعلم ومارغريتا) لكن ساراماغو كان لديه رسالة واضحة من اول سطر الى آخر سطر، وهذا سأدعه لمن يقرأ الرواية.
- من المؤكد ان سارماغو سيتهم بأنه معاد للسامية بعد هذه الرواية، ومن الممتع الاطلاع على ردود الفعل تجاه هذه الرواية بالذات (سأقوم بذلك لاحقاً).
- الترجمة كانت جيدة، لكن من غير المفهوم لماذا يستخدم المترجم "جوب" بدل "ايوب"!!!
- هناك الكثير ليقال في هذه الرواية...
- يأخذ ساراماغو شخصية "قابيل" ويبدأ بنقله بين محطات من العهد القديم مقتبساً ما جرى معلقاً على ما يجري. فتراه بعد مقتل هابيل ثم في سدوم مروراً بجبل سيناء وخراب اريحا وصولا الى الطوفان كأحداث مفترضة في العهد القديم.
- من يعرف مصدر الاساطير لن يتفاجأ بما كتب في هذه الرواية من ناحية الافكار والتساؤلات.اما الاسلوب في التنقل بين الازمنة فلم يكن مبتكراً فقد استعمله العديد من الكتاب سابقاً (بولغاكوف على سبيل المثال في المعلم ومارغريتا) لكن ساراماغو كان لديه رسالة واضحة من اول سطر الى آخر سطر، وهذا سأدعه لمن يقرأ الرواية.
- من المؤكد ان سارماغو سيتهم بأنه معاد للسامية بعد هذه الرواية، ومن الممتع الاطلاع على ردود الفعل تجاه هذه الرواية بالذات (سأقوم بذلك لاحقاً).
- الترجمة كانت جيدة، لكن من غير المفهوم لماذا يستخدم المترجم "جوب" بدل "ايوب"!!!
- هناك الكثير ليقال في هذه الرواية...
حتى اكثر العقول بدائية لن تجد صعوبة في ادراك انها حين تبلغ بصورة مناسبة بخصوص شيء ما هو شيء افضل على الدوام من ان تكون جاهلة
November 30, 2023
Following humanity's (biblical) first murderer in an epic through the places of the Old Testament, what more could you ask? Saramago settles his accounts with a god he considers monstrous through the mouth of Cain, who serves as an incredulous witness to all the horrors of the god of death he meets. The central thesis: the reasons for the Lord should not be impenetrable.
The dialogues are tasty; the resentment is natural; the end stands out as the most perfect of obviousness. Because if Cain killed his brother, it is because he could not kill the god who refused (for no apparent reason) his offerings. But there might be other ways to kill a God.
The dialogues are tasty; the resentment is natural; the end stands out as the most perfect of obviousness. Because if Cain killed his brother, it is because he could not kill the god who refused (for no apparent reason) his offerings. But there might be other ways to kill a God.
October 26, 2022
شرعت في كتابة مراجعة لهذه الرواية العجيبة ثم تذكرت قول أبي العلاء المعري:
أتى عيسى فبطّل شرع موسىو حينها قررت الاكتفاء بالاقتباسات التي استوقفتني أثناء القراءة.
و جاء محمدٌ بصلاة خمسِ
و قالوا لا نبى بعد هذا
فضل القوم بين غد و أمسِ
و مهما عشت في دنياك هذى
فما تخليك من قمر و شمسِ
إذا قلت المحال رفعت صوتى
و ان قلت الصحيح أطلت همسى
01
إن تاريخ البشر هو تاريخ خلافاتهم مع الإله. فلا هو يفهمنا و لا نحن نفهمه
02
هل ستُهلك البررة مع الخاطئين؟ حاشا أن تفعل شيئا كهذا أيها السيد. أن تحكم بالموت على البريء مع المذنب. فبهذه الطريقة و أمام أعين الناس سيبدو سيّان أن يكون المرء بريئا أو مذنبا.
03
لم يستطع قايين أن يصدق ما يراه بأم عينيه. لم يكن كافيا تدمير سدوم و عمورة بالنار. فهنا. على سفح جبل سيناء. ظهر الدليل الواضح الذي لا يدحض على عمق خبث السيد. ثلاثة آلاف رجل ماتو لمجرد غضبه من اختراع منافس مزعوم على هيئة عجل. أنا لم أفعل أكثر من قتل أخي. فعاقبني السيد. و أريد أن أرى من سيعاقب الآن السيد عن هؤلاء الموتى. ثم واصل قائلا: لقد كان الشيطان لوسيفر يعرف جيدا ما الذي يفعله عندما تمرد ضد الإله. هناك من يقول أنه فعل ذلك بدافع الحسد. و ليس هذا صحيحا. و كل ما هنالك أنه كان يعرف الطبيعة الخبيثة لذلك الشخص.
04
حدّث قايين ليليث عن الرجل المدعو أبراهام الذي أمره السيد أن يقدم إليه ابنه قربانا. و بعد ذلك عن برج عظيم أراد به البشر الوصول إلى السماء فقوضه السيد بنفخة واحدة. ثم حدثها عن مدينة يفضل الرجال فيها مضاجعة رجال آخرين و عقوبة النار و الكبريت التي صبها السيد عليها. دون أن ينجو حتى الأطفال الذين لا يعرفون بعد ما سيرغبون فيه في المستقبل. و أتبع ذلك باجتماع ضخم لأناس عند سفح جبل يسمونه جبل سيناء. و عن صنع عجل ذهبي عبدوه. و بسبب ذلك مات كثيرون. و عن مدينة مديان التي تجرأت على قتل ستة و ثلاثين جنديا من جيش يسمى بني إسرائيل فأبيد أهلوها حتى أخر طفل منهم. و عن مدينة أخرى تدعى أريحا. تهدّم سورها بدويّ أبواق من قرون الكباش. ثم أُهلك كل من فيها من رجال و نساء. شباب و شيوخ. و كذلك الأبقار و الأغنام و الحمير.
05
لطالما سمعت من الأقدمين القول إن نزوات الشيطان تظل عاجزة أمام مشيئة الإله. و لكنني صرت أشك الآن في أن تكون الأمور بهذه البساطة. فمن المؤكد أن الشيطان ليس سوى أداة من أدوات الرب. إنه المكلف بإنجاز الأعمال القذرة التي لا يستطيع الإله توقيعها بإسمه.
06
لم يكن سماع جواب الإله ممكنا. و ضاع كذلك ما قاله قايين. من المنطقي أن يكون كل منهما قد أظهر حججه للآخر مرة و مرات كثيرة. و إن يكن الشيء الوحيد المعروف بصورة يقينية هو أنهما واصلا الجدال و ما زالا يتجادلان إلى الآن.
January 31, 2019
The God of the New Testament is a much more murderous god than that of the Old. In the Old, Abraham is asked to sacrifice Isaac, but God stops him from doing so. In the New, God has Jesus killed in a slow, painful, tortuous death. What kind of god thinks a blood sacrifice to the death makes up for anything?
I listened to this book rather than read it because I can't stand Saramago's idiosyncratic punctuation (or lack of it, more like). But the voice of both the narrator and the author, the smarminess, the all-knowingness (which was part of the book) just irritated me. I have loved almost all Saramago books I've read, but not this one. I got within spitting distance of the end, but dnf'd it, just had enough and so I'm out of step with almost everyone else who loved the book.
I listened to this book rather than read it because I can't stand Saramago's idiosyncratic punctuation (or lack of it, more like). But the voice of both the narrator and the author, the smarminess, the all-knowingness (which was part of the book) just irritated me. I have loved almost all Saramago books I've read, but not this one. I got within spitting distance of the end, but dnf'd it, just had enough and so I'm out of step with almost everyone else who loved the book.
September 8, 2020
A Portuguese Midrash
Saramago’s Cain is a traditional Midrash, a meditative, speculative commentary on the Torah, the first five books of the Jewish and Christian bibles. Despite its often comedic, mostly polemic assessment of the God of the Torah, conventionally ascribed to Moses, Saramago isn’t the first or the most strident critic to take seriously the personality of Yahweh and what it might imply for humanity and the rest of creation.
The most remarkable aspect of the work isn’t its content but its use of a time-travelling Cain who can peek in on various biblical episodes from Abraham’s preparation to murder his son Isaac, to the annihilation of the residents, children included, of Sodom and Gomorrah, to Joshua’s divinely sanctioned genocide of the Midianites and their neighbours, to the pointless torture of Job, to all of the gore and dispossession in between. Cain therefore has a sort of synoptic view, to anticipate the New Testament term, from which he reports the violence, irritability, irrationality, ruthlessness, injustice and simply arbitrary imposition of misery on the world by the Lord.
The character of the God of the Torah has been problematic since at least the time of Christ. For Christians, because the intellectual and moral chasm between the perpetually vengeful Yahweh and the perpetually loving Father of Jesus appears to be unbridgeable. For Jews, because by the time of Christ the rabbinate was preaching a sermon of love and forgiveness almost indistinguishable from the gospels of Jesus.
From time to time, theologians have attempted to square this divine circle by claiming mitigating circumstances - the distinctly illiberal caste of ancient cultures, for example, or the possible inability of human minds to deal with the full monty of revelation all at once. None of these rationalisations work out terribly well, mostly they just open the way for a free for all interpretation of ‘inerrant� scripture and further heresy; or they promote the equally worrisome idea of ‘continuing revelation� which neither dogmatic Jews or Christians - with the exception of the Mormons - can tolerate.
The second century heretic Marcion took some understandable action - not long after the publication of the love-imbued (and anti-semitic) Gospel of John - by simply rejecting the Jewish scriptures in their entirety. The Protestant reformer, John Calvin, took the opposite tack and preached the justified vengeance of a wilful and arbitrary God on a sin-infected, unworthy creation.
The only time the controversy subsides is when believers simply choose to ignore the all too obvious contradictions. Catholics do this as a matter of principle, accepting both divine love and vengeance as a ‘mystery�, thus putting the problem beyond recognition much less discussion. Liberal rabbis generally grab for the nearest shibboleth on the inscrutability of the divine mind.
And this equivocation is something Saramago will not tolerate. The God of the Torah is clearly insane. This would be only a dogmatic issue of sectarian importance if it weren’t for the fact that this God has been a perennial role model of leadership from Joshua to Donald Trump - you’re with me or against me; there is no qualified loyalty; nothing stands in the way of achieving one’s personal objectives; ruthless persistence at any cost is a virtue, etc. This is a God who justifies violence and deceit and patent injustice as a matter of divine right. Cain summarises the situation:
This is the God of War and very little else. Saramago wants us to remember this.
Saramago’s Cain is a traditional Midrash, a meditative, speculative commentary on the Torah, the first five books of the Jewish and Christian bibles. Despite its often comedic, mostly polemic assessment of the God of the Torah, conventionally ascribed to Moses, Saramago isn’t the first or the most strident critic to take seriously the personality of Yahweh and what it might imply for humanity and the rest of creation.
The most remarkable aspect of the work isn’t its content but its use of a time-travelling Cain who can peek in on various biblical episodes from Abraham’s preparation to murder his son Isaac, to the annihilation of the residents, children included, of Sodom and Gomorrah, to Joshua’s divinely sanctioned genocide of the Midianites and their neighbours, to the pointless torture of Job, to all of the gore and dispossession in between. Cain therefore has a sort of synoptic view, to anticipate the New Testament term, from which he reports the violence, irritability, irrationality, ruthlessness, injustice and simply arbitrary imposition of misery on the world by the Lord.
The character of the God of the Torah has been problematic since at least the time of Christ. For Christians, because the intellectual and moral chasm between the perpetually vengeful Yahweh and the perpetually loving Father of Jesus appears to be unbridgeable. For Jews, because by the time of Christ the rabbinate was preaching a sermon of love and forgiveness almost indistinguishable from the gospels of Jesus.
From time to time, theologians have attempted to square this divine circle by claiming mitigating circumstances - the distinctly illiberal caste of ancient cultures, for example, or the possible inability of human minds to deal with the full monty of revelation all at once. None of these rationalisations work out terribly well, mostly they just open the way for a free for all interpretation of ‘inerrant� scripture and further heresy; or they promote the equally worrisome idea of ‘continuing revelation� which neither dogmatic Jews or Christians - with the exception of the Mormons - can tolerate.
The second century heretic Marcion took some understandable action - not long after the publication of the love-imbued (and anti-semitic) Gospel of John - by simply rejecting the Jewish scriptures in their entirety. The Protestant reformer, John Calvin, took the opposite tack and preached the justified vengeance of a wilful and arbitrary God on a sin-infected, unworthy creation.
The only time the controversy subsides is when believers simply choose to ignore the all too obvious contradictions. Catholics do this as a matter of principle, accepting both divine love and vengeance as a ‘mystery�, thus putting the problem beyond recognition much less discussion. Liberal rabbis generally grab for the nearest shibboleth on the inscrutability of the divine mind.
And this equivocation is something Saramago will not tolerate. The God of the Torah is clearly insane. This would be only a dogmatic issue of sectarian importance if it weren’t for the fact that this God has been a perennial role model of leadership from Joshua to Donald Trump - you’re with me or against me; there is no qualified loyalty; nothing stands in the way of achieving one’s personal objectives; ruthless persistence at any cost is a virtue, etc. This is a God who justifies violence and deceit and patent injustice as a matter of divine right. Cain summarises the situation:
“Burning sodom and gomorrah to the ground had evidently not been enough for the lord, for here, at the foot of mt sinai, was clear, irrefutable proof of his wickedness, three thousand men killed simply because he was angered by the creation of a supposed rival in the form of a golden calf. I killed one brother and the lord punished me, who, I would like to know, is going to punish the lord for all these deaths, thought cain, lucifer was quite right when he rebelled against god, and those who say he did so out of envy are wrong, he simply recognised god's evil nature.�
This is the God of War and very little else. Saramago wants us to remember this.
September 27, 2020
I get Saramago's genius finally. Way late*, yeah, but I FINALLY get it...!!
(cue to me running barefoot downhill, waving arms, surrendering to literary genius at long last)
Sacrilegious, funny--the prose finally twines itself with my alert reader's sensitivity... the cascade of commas, the deficit of paragraphs, capitalizations, periods: all the magician's tricks finally seem to me to be EARNED. Previously, I've been uninspired by "The History of the Siege of Lisbon" and "The Double": the acrobatics leading to nothing but small stories with tiny miracles in 'em. But, at last, the subject seems to fit the writer's own predilections: of making long streaming sentences (a trick of Garcia Marquez as well) build entire tableaus in the roving mind.
And the tableaus here range from ghastly to heavenly, as god and satan himself (notice the lack of capitalization, as if everything, EVERYTHING biblical has a shadiness of apocrypha) battle it out. This one reminds me of "Memnoch the Devil" by Anne Rice (indeed, her newer "Angel Time" also deals with "alternative presents": the various adventures that Cain, not the killer of society but the independent hero, experiences). Finally, the hokeyness of Saramago (a.k.a. time travel of biblical figures) is minimized to more accessible levels. Ironically, writing about these grand themes finally becomes his most personal & worthwhile work.
*CAIN's his final novel
(cue to me running barefoot downhill, waving arms, surrendering to literary genius at long last)
Sacrilegious, funny--the prose finally twines itself with my alert reader's sensitivity... the cascade of commas, the deficit of paragraphs, capitalizations, periods: all the magician's tricks finally seem to me to be EARNED. Previously, I've been uninspired by "The History of the Siege of Lisbon" and "The Double": the acrobatics leading to nothing but small stories with tiny miracles in 'em. But, at last, the subject seems to fit the writer's own predilections: of making long streaming sentences (a trick of Garcia Marquez as well) build entire tableaus in the roving mind.
And the tableaus here range from ghastly to heavenly, as god and satan himself (notice the lack of capitalization, as if everything, EVERYTHING biblical has a shadiness of apocrypha) battle it out. This one reminds me of "Memnoch the Devil" by Anne Rice (indeed, her newer "Angel Time" also deals with "alternative presents": the various adventures that Cain, not the killer of society but the independent hero, experiences). Finally, the hokeyness of Saramago (a.k.a. time travel of biblical figures) is minimized to more accessible levels. Ironically, writing about these grand themes finally becomes his most personal & worthwhile work.
*CAIN's his final novel
February 7, 2017
The lord, also known as god, created adam and eve, but due to tiredness of the act of creation or perhaps other minor distractions forgot to bestow them with the gift of speech, so to remedy that just stuck unceremoniously his tongue into them. However it seemed bizarre it worked excessively well but what adam did with his new art, Let’s go to bed, he said to eve. Typical. Ok, ok he probably couldn’t say how lovely dressed you are since they were naked, but still, though they hadn’t bed too, I guess. Anyway, they went to bed and had children: cain, abel and set, though about the latter we mention only from chronicler duty since he is neither here nor there in that story.
And Cain killed Abel what is commonly known even to these one not familiar with Genesis and what is not known is the way Saramago retold the story of hapless Cain, the first assassin in world history. According to Saramago Cain was condemned to wander for ever about the world and due to that could participate in stories described in Old Testament and see with own eyes burning of Sodoma and Gomora, for what he did hate the Lord wholeheartedly, destroying the Babel Tower, sacrificing Isaac by Abraham or trials of Job to finish his journey on the Noah's Ark. And all the way he would challenge and undermine God's authority and his decisions.
The history of mankind is the history of our misunderstandings with god, for he doesn’t understand us, and we don’t understand him.
Novel, written in typical for Saramago style with long digressive sentences without punctuation and unconventional approach to the subject is witty, wonderfully quizzical, filled with blasphemous statements. And though that looks like some light reading nonetheless it leaves us with some uncomfortable questions and unwanted truths. It challenges us to consider nature of good and evil, free will, morality, determinism and responsibility for own deeds. God from Old Testament is neither kind-hearted nor forgiving old fellow. He is demanding and punishing, vengeful and unjust. Given the terrible lot of Sodoma and Gomora, burnt to the ground, did Lord find women guilty too, and if so, what about the children, Cain would ask.
Your mistake is to assume that guilt is understood in the same way by god and by men.
If God is that omniscient how is it even possible the world is as it is, we could ask. Are we only a plaything in his hands, a wager in his neverending struggle with Satan ?
the innocent are now accustomed to paying for the sinners, The lord seems to have a very strange idea of justice.
July 19, 2016
The life of a god isn’t as easy as you think, said God to Cain.
When Cain meets an angel and enters into an argument about the oblation god has ordered Abraham to make of his own son, the angel, feeling trapped, mutters under his breath, Oh no, a rationalist, and tries to sneak away to complete the divine mission with which he’s charged. The angel might have turned a deaf ear to Cain’s cold logic, but you, the angelic reader, have no recourse but to subject yourself to his grilling.
The hero or anti-hero of this story, depending on one’s point of view, is none but Cain, Adam’s other son, the first murderer, the embodiment of evil, transformed for the purpose into the author’s rationalist alter ego, shredding to bits the moral fabric Biblical history is made of, with the confidence of a devil and the precision of an infallible angel.
Saramago’s purpose here is not to tell us something new; we have heard all that before. Nor is there an attempt to engage the rationalist and the religionist on a profounder philosophical level. Instead, he takes to task the sacred and the revered through the felicitous agency of satire, just that this time it is caustic, hilarious, direct, with no attempt at subtlety, with a delicious tongue-smacking of an irreverent blasphemer, the title he earned for writing this story. In any case, it’s guaranteed to amuse you or enrage you, depending, again, on your point of view!
As I read on I couldn’t help recalling Voltaire’s Candide in which chance compels a young and intelligent man to traverse the earth in search of some universal dicta that would help him answer questions about life. Likewise our protagonist Cain, carrying a curse by god as punishment for unjustly killing his brother, is condemned to travel between places and ages, and like Machado de Assis� Brás Cubas, he goes beyond the confines of human time to meet various Biblical characters and sees the history, as crystallised in the Old Testament, unfold before his sinful eyes.
Be it Moses� genocidal campaigns on god’s behest or the gambler’s wager between god and satan for Job’s test of patience, whether it’s the total annihilation of Sodom & Gomorrah for � guess what � homosexuality or the essentially immoral tale of god, like an insane ruler, ordering Abraham to put to sword his own son as a “test� of his faith, the more Cain goes around the more evidence he sees of god’s wickedness and irrationality, amazed at the games he plays with humans he created to prove his superiority and uniqueness, perhaps in a bawdy attempt to escape his own ennui or to placate his inflated divine ego. On the last stop in Cain’s journey before the curtain falls he meets Noah and hears of god’s grand plan to destroy all of humanity except Noah’s family and those who manage to clamber upon the ark. Turning over in his head the mountain of evidence of god’s evil ways Cain tells Noah:
All in all, there are lots of chuckles and gasps to be had here, in signature Saramago style.
August 2015
When Cain meets an angel and enters into an argument about the oblation god has ordered Abraham to make of his own son, the angel, feeling trapped, mutters under his breath, Oh no, a rationalist, and tries to sneak away to complete the divine mission with which he’s charged. The angel might have turned a deaf ear to Cain’s cold logic, but you, the angelic reader, have no recourse but to subject yourself to his grilling.
The hero or anti-hero of this story, depending on one’s point of view, is none but Cain, Adam’s other son, the first murderer, the embodiment of evil, transformed for the purpose into the author’s rationalist alter ego, shredding to bits the moral fabric Biblical history is made of, with the confidence of a devil and the precision of an infallible angel.
Saramago’s purpose here is not to tell us something new; we have heard all that before. Nor is there an attempt to engage the rationalist and the religionist on a profounder philosophical level. Instead, he takes to task the sacred and the revered through the felicitous agency of satire, just that this time it is caustic, hilarious, direct, with no attempt at subtlety, with a delicious tongue-smacking of an irreverent blasphemer, the title he earned for writing this story. In any case, it’s guaranteed to amuse you or enrage you, depending, again, on your point of view!
As I read on I couldn’t help recalling Voltaire’s Candide in which chance compels a young and intelligent man to traverse the earth in search of some universal dicta that would help him answer questions about life. Likewise our protagonist Cain, carrying a curse by god as punishment for unjustly killing his brother, is condemned to travel between places and ages, and like Machado de Assis� Brás Cubas, he goes beyond the confines of human time to meet various Biblical characters and sees the history, as crystallised in the Old Testament, unfold before his sinful eyes.
Be it Moses� genocidal campaigns on god’s behest or the gambler’s wager between god and satan for Job’s test of patience, whether it’s the total annihilation of Sodom & Gomorrah for � guess what � homosexuality or the essentially immoral tale of god, like an insane ruler, ordering Abraham to put to sword his own son as a “test� of his faith, the more Cain goes around the more evidence he sees of god’s wickedness and irrationality, amazed at the games he plays with humans he created to prove his superiority and uniqueness, perhaps in a bawdy attempt to escape his own ennui or to placate his inflated divine ego. On the last stop in Cain’s journey before the curtain falls he meets Noah and hears of god’s grand plan to destroy all of humanity except Noah’s family and those who manage to clamber upon the ark. Turning over in his head the mountain of evidence of god’s evil ways Cain tells Noah:
“I have learned one thing, What’s that, That our god, the creator of heaven and earth, is completely mad, …innocent are now accustomed to paying for the sinners, the lord seems to have a very strange idea of justice, the idea of someone who hasn’t the slightest notion of what human justice might be.�
All in all, there are lots of chuckles and gasps to be had here, in signature Saramago style.
August 2015
April 15, 2017
Το πιο απολαυστικό βιβλίο που έχω διαβάσει εδώ και καιρό. Ο Saramago είναι ιδιοφυής, με υψηλό επίπεδο χιούμορ. Μέσα από τους διαλόγους των ηρώων θέτει με ιδιαίτερη μαεστρία διλήμματα περί θρησκείας και γενικότερα πολύ τροφή για σκέψη.
Κάποιος θρησκευόμενος μπορεί να τον βρει προκλητικό ή ασεβή, κάτι με το οποίο διαφωνώ 100%, γιατί ο σκοπός του δεν είναι ένας μύθος σε άλλη εκδοχή. Είναι κάτι που μόνο ο ίδιος θα μπορούσε να καταφέρει. Το θεωρώ κορυφαίο μαζί με το περί τυφλότητος και ανώτερο και σίγουρα πιο ευχάριστο από το κατά Ιησούν.
Κάποιος θρησκευόμενος μπορεί να τον βρει προκλητικό ή ασεβή, κάτι με το οποίο διαφωνώ 100%, γιατί ο σκοπός του δεν είναι ένας μύθος σε άλλη εκδοχή. Είναι κάτι που μόνο ο ίδιος θα μπορούσε να καταφέρει. Το θεωρώ κορυφαίο μαζί με το περί τυφλότητος και ανώτερο και σίγουρα πιο ευχάριστο από το κατά Ιησούν.
March 31, 2015
Ukoliko razmišljate u dogmatskim okvirima, ova knjiga nije za vas, i bolje je nemojte čitati nego da joj dajete jednu ili dve zvezdice... Ako i pročitate poželećete da spalite ovu knjigu ili da vidite njenog autora na lomači... Zaobiđite je i zanemarite ove silne zvezdice - ova knjiga nije za vas...
Kao što napisah u jednom usputnom komentaru ova knjiga je brutalna, otrovna, ironična, satirična... Saramago kao da se kroz ovo satirično sagledavanje Starog zaveta pita da li čovečanstvo, od samog svog postanka, pogrešno tumači ili shvata boga (ali ne samo boga već i one koji se ponašaju kao bogovi - Saramago je bio veoma politički angažovan). Ide li čovečanstvo stranputicom koja se čini poput puta zato što ju je neko proširio da bi ličila na put koji vodi u sigurnost, a koji zapravo vodi u propast... Saramago poručuje da je budućnost napisana, ali da je čovečanstvo previše slepo i ograničeno da bi umelo da je pročita.
„Kain� je Saramagov šamar svima onima koji misle da život ne može bez ustaljenih normi, principa, slepog verovanja, krutih šablona i da se svaki korak mora napraviti na utabanoj stazi koju su napravili oni koji možda i nisu pametniji od nas.
Kao što napisah u jednom usputnom komentaru ova knjiga je brutalna, otrovna, ironična, satirična... Saramago kao da se kroz ovo satirično sagledavanje Starog zaveta pita da li čovečanstvo, od samog svog postanka, pogrešno tumači ili shvata boga (ali ne samo boga već i one koji se ponašaju kao bogovi - Saramago je bio veoma politički angažovan). Ide li čovečanstvo stranputicom koja se čini poput puta zato što ju je neko proširio da bi ličila na put koji vodi u sigurnost, a koji zapravo vodi u propast... Saramago poručuje da je budućnost napisana, ali da je čovečanstvo previše slepo i ograničeno da bi umelo da je pročita.
„Kain� je Saramagov šamar svima onima koji misle da život ne može bez ustaljenih normi, principa, slepog verovanja, krutih šablona i da se svaki korak mora napraviti na utabanoj stazi koju su napravili oni koji možda i nisu pametniji od nas.
December 17, 2015
The Mark of.CAINSaramago.
I enjoyed revisiting Genesis accompanying Saramago’s Cain.
With this rebellious murderer who, after all, is a man who seeks justice, we are offered to time-travel with him through that first Book of Everything. We jump forwards and jump backwards in the genesis narrative, and every time there is a change in gear the reader is given a jolt. And a new breath and freshness sweeps over this reverted genesis.
Saramago’s Cain is a disappointed man. And it is his disappointment that has created all his troubles. Granted, there was jealousy in the deed for which he is known. But at the root of the jealousy there was a drive towards god. And there lies the disappointment. The story then becomes a quixotic quest (for there is always an explicit quixotic element in Saramago’s characters � part of Saramago’s mark) as Cain searches through the holy book for the presence of the love and justice that he expects out of his god. And the search turns out to be quixotic indeed.
Saramago’s mark can also be felt in one’s ribs (not the one from which Cain’s mother originated), but because humour and laughter always spring out of his writing.
Read
August 10, 2015José Saramago is certainly not the first writer to question the logic of the old testament, the legitimacy of the Lord's pronouncements, and the merits of the prophets who interpreted those pronouncements for the benefit of the descendants of Adam and Eve, and sometime later, for the benefit of descendants of the very small gene pool of Noah’s family who survived the Flood and repopulated the earth when everyone else was drowned, but Saramago is possibly one of the most creative and original to treat the subject in his very distinctive style which, in this case, is very averse to the use of conventions like the full stop or quotation marks as if they might have been ordained for our use by the Lord and therefore may not be used in this piece of writing which, after all, is a challenge to all the laws laid down to regulate the lives of the chosen people, but oddly enough, he, Saramago, that is, and not the Lord, has retained the use of the humble comma which he uses well and often so that once we have accepted this, the narrative of Cain’s wanderings over the ancient world and across the centuries of the Old Testament, interfering here and there with the Lord’s decisions while also keeping an eye on the Devil’s activities and generally applying Saramago’s brand of no-nonsense reasoning to the various episodes he encounters in his peregrinations, all of which are entertaining in an odd way even while they underline the shaky foundations of Old Testament wisdom, leads the reader entertainingly and finally to a full stop.
October 6, 2020
«Ο Κάιν σκότωσε τον Άβελ επειδή δεν μπορούσε να σκοτώσει τον Θεό». Ο Κάιν γίνεται γρήγορα ένα αρχέτυπο για την υπαρξιακή κατάσταση της ανθρωπότητας, καθώς μαρτυρεί τη μία φρικαλεότητα μετά την επόμενη αιματοχυσία αθώων πλασμάτων - δημιουργημάτων του Θεού -κάτω από τα μάτια ενός φερόμενου σοφού και ενδιαφερόμενου δημιουργού. Βλέπουμε με την ψυχή μας, το μυαλό τόσο του ανθρώπου όσο και της θεότητας στο μυθιστόρημα και καταλαβαίνουμε ποιος στέκεται σε ηθικό υψηλό έδαφος, ατελής αν και η ηθική μπορεί να είναι ωμά όνειρα ενός είδους που έχει εμμονή με το εξωτερικό νόημα, πρόθυμο να επιδοθεί, με τα λόγια του Φρόυντ, «σε κάθε είδους πνευματική ανεντιμότητα »σε σχέση με τη θρησκευτική τους σκέψη.
Ο Κάιν και ο Γκουρού Σαραμάγκου θα έπρεπε να εισέλθουν στις ιδέες των γραφών των Προφητών
και της Σοφίας της Βίβλου για να αποκτήσουν και να παρουσιάσουν μια πιο ειλικρινή συνομιλία με τον Θεό και τους αναγνώστες/ πιστούς / άπιστους.
Ένας κυνικός περίπατος στη Γένεση με όλες τις παγίδες της κυριολεκτικής λήψης των Γραφών, ειδικά των απεικονίσεων του Θεού. Ωστόσο, υπάρχουν μερικές πολύ ειρωνικά αστείες ιδέες.
Ακόμα και οι ευσεβείς θα πρέπει να παραδώσουν τη Βίβλο στο μυθικό αέτωμα των ναών του πραγματικού χρόνου που ταξιδεύει ο Κάιν και να επιστρέψουν στον άθεο θεό Σαραμάγκου και σε κάποιους από τους παραλογισμούς του καθώς ο χαρακτήρας του Κάιν ταξιδεύει μέσα από ένα είδος στρέβλωσης χρόνου για να συναντήσει τον Αβραάμ, τον Λωτ, τον Νώε και άλλους, προκαλώντας μια θεότητα που επιτρέπει στο κακό να συνυπάρχει με το καλό.
Αυτό το βιβλίο παρέχει μια εναλλακτική προοπτική για τα βιβλικά γεγονότα της προ-πλημμύρας εποχής.
σε κάποιους από τους παραλογισμούς.
Ο δυτικός άνθρωπος και ο Ιουδαϊκός-Χριστιανός Θεός.
Ο τίτλος προσδιορίζει τον πρωταγωνιστή: Κάιν, ο οποίος δολοφόνησε τον αδερφό του Άβελ, και καταδικάστηκε από τον Θεό ως «φυγάς και περιπλανώμενος».
Το μυθιστόρημα εντοπίζει τις περιπλανήσεις του, μέσα από το τοπίο (χρονικό αλλά και φυσικό) της Τορά. Ο Κάιν είναι παρών στην καταστροφή του Πύργου της Βαβέλ, στη λατρεία του Χρυσού Μοσχαριού, στην εξάλειψη των ανθρώπων με φρικτή βία απο τα Σόδομα και τα Γόμορρα
Ο Θεός δεν βγαίνει ιδιαίτερα ανθρωπιστής σε αυτές τις καταστάσεις που παρουσιάζονται διεξοδικώς στην Βίβλο, ενώ ο Κάιν μοιάζει με τον Προμηθέα, υποστηρικτή της ανθρώπινης συμπεριφοράς
εκ μέρους του θείου που ακόμα δεν έχει προσδιοριστεί.
Μια ανατρεπτική αναδιατύπωση της Παλαιάς Διαθήκης, μια σοκαριστική αναζωογόνηση απο αυτήν την ανατρεπτική γραφή που θα μιλάει πάντα για το μετά,
για το ύστερα, για το μέλλον, μέσα απο ένα πολυδιάστατο παρόν και ένα ασαφές παρελθόν.
🦋
💎
Καλή ανάγνωση.
Πολλούς ασπασμούς.
Ο Κάιν και ο Γκουρού Σαραμάγκου θα έπρεπε να εισέλθουν στις ιδέες των γραφών των Προφητών
και της Σοφίας της Βίβλου για να αποκτήσουν και να παρουσιάσουν μια πιο ειλικρινή συνομιλία με τον Θεό και τους αναγνώστες/ πιστούς / άπιστους.
Ένας κυνικός περίπατος στη Γένεση με όλες τις παγίδες της κυριολεκτικής λήψης των Γραφών, ειδικά των απεικονίσεων του Θεού. Ωστόσο, υπάρχουν μερικές πολύ ειρωνικά αστείες ιδέες.
Ακόμα και οι ευσεβείς θα πρέπει να παραδώσουν τη Βίβλο στο μυθικό αέτωμα των ναών του πραγματικού χρόνου που ταξιδεύει ο Κάιν και να επιστρέψουν στον άθεο θεό Σαραμάγκου και σε κάποιους από τους παραλογισμούς του καθώς ο χαρακτήρας του Κάιν ταξιδεύει μέσα από ένα είδος στρέβλωσης χρόνου για να συναντήσει τον Αβραάμ, τον Λωτ, τον Νώε και άλλους, προκαλώντας μια θεότητα που επιτρέπει στο κακό να συνυπάρχει με το καλό.
Αυτό το βιβλίο παρέχει μια εναλλακτική προοπτική για τα βιβλικά γεγονότα της προ-πλημμύρας εποχής.
σε κάποιους από τους παραλογισμούς.
Ο δυτικός άνθρωπος και ο Ιουδαϊκός-Χριστιανός Θεός.
Ο τίτλος προσδιορίζει τον πρωταγωνιστή: Κάιν, ο οποίος δολοφόνησε τον αδερφό του Άβελ, και καταδικάστηκε από τον Θεό ως «φυγάς και περιπλανώμενος».
Το μυθιστόρημα εντοπίζει τις περιπλανήσεις του, μέσα από το τοπίο (χρονικό αλλά και φυσικό) της Τορά. Ο Κάιν είναι παρών στην καταστροφή του Πύργου της Βαβέλ, στη λατρεία του Χρυσού Μοσχαριού, στην εξάλειψη των ανθρώπων με φρικτή βία απο τα Σόδομα και τα Γόμορρα
Ο Θεός δεν βγαίνει ιδιαίτερα ανθρωπιστής σε αυτές τις καταστάσεις που παρουσιάζονται διεξοδικώς στην Βίβλο, ενώ ο Κάιν μοιάζει με τον Προμηθέα, υποστηρικτή της ανθρώπινης συμπεριφοράς
εκ μέρους του θείου που ακόμα δεν έχει προσδιοριστεί.
Μια ανατρεπτική αναδιατύπωση της Παλαιάς Διαθήκης, μια σοκαριστική αναζωογόνηση απο αυτήν την ανατρεπτική γραφή που θα μιλάει πάντα για το μετά,
για το ύστερα, για το μέλλον, μέσα απο ένα πολυδιάστατο παρόν και ένα ασαφές παρελθόν.
🦋
💎
Καλή ανάγνωση.
Πολλούς ασπασμούς.
May 29, 2018
In 'Cain', published just a few months before Saramago’s death, the author gets to argue with God one last time. On this occasion his jibes are aimed at the god of the Old Testament, who, as we all know, is an easy target. This god is cruel, proud, jealous, vindictive, inconsistent and often simply petty.
Saramago hires Cain to call out god on all his sins and errors beginning with Cain’s own sorry story which made him go down in history as the first murderer of the worst kind. But weren’t there any extenuations? After all, it’s god who started it. He was the one that created that unhealthy sibling rivalry between Abel and Cain by asking them for offerings and judging them. Abel, who took care of livestock brought a nice juicy lamb, and Cain who was a farmer brought god veggies. Sadly, god was not a vegetarian so he snubbed Cain’s offering each and every time. OK, so Cain overreacted. Murder is never the answer. But maybe god should take some of the responsibility, too?
This is the question that is being asked many times throughout this little book. Cain, condemned to endless wandering, appears whenever and wherever god’s actions are questionable. What sort of god asks someone to kill their beloved son to prove some stupid point? And isn’t killing against god’s very own commandments? Saramago reveals that it was actually Cain himself who stopped Abraham from killing Isaac as the angel sent on that mission was running late. Back when I was a good church going little girl I remember that story scared me the most. I was surprised it was never mentioned how Isaac felt about the fact that his dad just tried to kill him. Here is how it went according to Saramago:
“Isaac asked, Father, whatever did I do to you that would make you want to kill me, your only son, You did nothing wrong, Isaac, So why did you want to cut my throat as if I were a lamb, asked the boy, if that man, may the lord’s blessings be upon him, hadn’t come and grabbed your arm, you would now be carrying home a corpse, It was lord’s idea, he meant it as a test, A test of what, Of my faith and my obedience, What kind of lord would order a father to kill his own son, He’s the only lord we have, the lord of our ancestors, the lord who was here when we were born, And if that lord had a son, would he ordered him to be killed as well, asked Isaac, Time will tell.�
And what about the children of Sodom and Gomorrah? Surely they were innocent, weren’t they? And that whole Job business, that really was unnecessarily cruel. If any human were to test anybody’s love that way they would’ve been deemed psychopathic. Not to mention that replacing all the children of Job whom god killed with new children does not actually make it ok.
And so it goes, whenever god acts up comes Cain to ask the uncomfortable questions. Sometimes they are big things like just why exactly would god help certain tribes in their battles by killing thousands of people? Sounds rather bloodthirsty. Other times they are just minor inconsistencies � if Lot was so drunk that he passed out and had no idea his daughters were having sex with him, how did he manage to get it up?
Throughout the book Cain gets angrier and angrier with god, until he finally finds himself on the Ark with Noah and decides it’s time for revenge which is where the story ends.
'Cain' is a funny little allegory but I couldn’t help but be saddened a little by how disappointed Saramago seemed to be with both god and the humankind. Nonetheless, it’s hard to disagree with him even if his jokes seem almost juvenile occasionally. I came to similar conclusions when I was nine and they explained to me that we must worship god all the time, otherwise he would get angry and send us to hell. I thought: what a drama queen!
Saramago hires Cain to call out god on all his sins and errors beginning with Cain’s own sorry story which made him go down in history as the first murderer of the worst kind. But weren’t there any extenuations? After all, it’s god who started it. He was the one that created that unhealthy sibling rivalry between Abel and Cain by asking them for offerings and judging them. Abel, who took care of livestock brought a nice juicy lamb, and Cain who was a farmer brought god veggies. Sadly, god was not a vegetarian so he snubbed Cain’s offering each and every time. OK, so Cain overreacted. Murder is never the answer. But maybe god should take some of the responsibility, too?
This is the question that is being asked many times throughout this little book. Cain, condemned to endless wandering, appears whenever and wherever god’s actions are questionable. What sort of god asks someone to kill their beloved son to prove some stupid point? And isn’t killing against god’s very own commandments? Saramago reveals that it was actually Cain himself who stopped Abraham from killing Isaac as the angel sent on that mission was running late. Back when I was a good church going little girl I remember that story scared me the most. I was surprised it was never mentioned how Isaac felt about the fact that his dad just tried to kill him. Here is how it went according to Saramago:
“Isaac asked, Father, whatever did I do to you that would make you want to kill me, your only son, You did nothing wrong, Isaac, So why did you want to cut my throat as if I were a lamb, asked the boy, if that man, may the lord’s blessings be upon him, hadn’t come and grabbed your arm, you would now be carrying home a corpse, It was lord’s idea, he meant it as a test, A test of what, Of my faith and my obedience, What kind of lord would order a father to kill his own son, He’s the only lord we have, the lord of our ancestors, the lord who was here when we were born, And if that lord had a son, would he ordered him to be killed as well, asked Isaac, Time will tell.�
And what about the children of Sodom and Gomorrah? Surely they were innocent, weren’t they? And that whole Job business, that really was unnecessarily cruel. If any human were to test anybody’s love that way they would’ve been deemed psychopathic. Not to mention that replacing all the children of Job whom god killed with new children does not actually make it ok.
And so it goes, whenever god acts up comes Cain to ask the uncomfortable questions. Sometimes they are big things like just why exactly would god help certain tribes in their battles by killing thousands of people? Sounds rather bloodthirsty. Other times they are just minor inconsistencies � if Lot was so drunk that he passed out and had no idea his daughters were having sex with him, how did he manage to get it up?
Throughout the book Cain gets angrier and angrier with god, until he finally finds himself on the Ark with Noah and decides it’s time for revenge which is where the story ends.
'Cain' is a funny little allegory but I couldn’t help but be saddened a little by how disappointed Saramago seemed to be with both god and the humankind. Nonetheless, it’s hard to disagree with him even if his jokes seem almost juvenile occasionally. I came to similar conclusions when I was nine and they explained to me that we must worship god all the time, otherwise he would get angry and send us to hell. I thought: what a drama queen!
July 29, 2016
مقاصد الآلهة عميقة الغور!
أرى بها "أولاد حارتنا" أخرى، لكن هذه أقوى وأعمق بالطبع والفرق كبير.
أرى بها "أولاد حارتنا" أخرى، لكن هذه أقوى وأعمق بالطبع والفرق كبير.
Read
December 11, 2020Asking questions,and drawing attention to inconsistencies in sacred texts, is not exactly compatible with a good believer. Fortunately, a writer does not have to folow such rules. At will, he can take any character from the Bible, and put it in all possible contexts.
I discovered, with pleasure, that Saramago's last novel - "Cain" - does just that : he plays, irreverently, with well- known characters from the Bible, and dismantles all conventions, paving the way for many questions concerning man's relationship with divinity.
An incomprehensible and unjust Cain, and a tyrannical and capricious God ( yes, you read that right ) - constantly subject to mistakes, that's exactly how I imagined the relationship between the two. But in Saramago's "Cain" - the one pushed to murder because of a mocking deity, makes a pact not with the Devil, but with God : Acknowledging that he was wrong, God makes a sign on Cain's forehead, for be protected, and let him roam free. So free, that he walks where he wants, including some of the most famous stories :
in the episode with Iov, with Abraham, with Lilith, and finally - in the episode with Noah's Ark.
"Cain" - is a book written as if to revolt those with limited vision, a comic and a humour doubled by the finest irony. It is, at the same time, a philosophical one, which invites an analysis that would shed a new light on some common points in the Bible. For example, the much- promoted goodness of God, which - on simple analysis, we see to be at least questionable.
Saramago displays a note of astonishment not so much at the commandments of God, as at the obedience of man. The whole episode slides into a pantagruelic irony . Cain's discussions with different characters aim to demonstrate an idea, in principle the same : the hypocrisy and wickedness of the Creator are more terrible than any human weakness, his great flow being, above all - envy, and selfishness surpasses even his intelligence :
" Instead of being proud of the sons he has, he prefers envy, it is clear that God cannot bear to see anyone happy " - a perfectly explicable situation, as long as " the history of men is the history of their misunderstandings with God, neither does he understand us , nor do we understand him ".
Saramago has no shyness in saying things by name, the episode with Iov leading to the harshest considerations in this book.
The coup de grâce is given by Cain to God, when he ascends Noah's Ark, and kills, one by one, all those who were to be the first humans, again.
"Cain" - is a kind of testament of the author, is a book that invites a critical return on some points that are delivered to us, without right of replay. I'm sure there will be a lot of controversy over this book, but I hope that a voice like Saramago's will be greeted with the openness it deserves.
I discovered, with pleasure, that Saramago's last novel - "Cain" - does just that : he plays, irreverently, with well- known characters from the Bible, and dismantles all conventions, paving the way for many questions concerning man's relationship with divinity.
An incomprehensible and unjust Cain, and a tyrannical and capricious God ( yes, you read that right ) - constantly subject to mistakes, that's exactly how I imagined the relationship between the two. But in Saramago's "Cain" - the one pushed to murder because of a mocking deity, makes a pact not with the Devil, but with God : Acknowledging that he was wrong, God makes a sign on Cain's forehead, for be protected, and let him roam free. So free, that he walks where he wants, including some of the most famous stories :
in the episode with Iov, with Abraham, with Lilith, and finally - in the episode with Noah's Ark.
"Cain" - is a book written as if to revolt those with limited vision, a comic and a humour doubled by the finest irony. It is, at the same time, a philosophical one, which invites an analysis that would shed a new light on some common points in the Bible. For example, the much- promoted goodness of God, which - on simple analysis, we see to be at least questionable.
Saramago displays a note of astonishment not so much at the commandments of God, as at the obedience of man. The whole episode slides into a pantagruelic irony . Cain's discussions with different characters aim to demonstrate an idea, in principle the same : the hypocrisy and wickedness of the Creator are more terrible than any human weakness, his great flow being, above all - envy, and selfishness surpasses even his intelligence :
" Instead of being proud of the sons he has, he prefers envy, it is clear that God cannot bear to see anyone happy " - a perfectly explicable situation, as long as " the history of men is the history of their misunderstandings with God, neither does he understand us , nor do we understand him ".
Saramago has no shyness in saying things by name, the episode with Iov leading to the harshest considerations in this book.
The coup de grâce is given by Cain to God, when he ascends Noah's Ark, and kills, one by one, all those who were to be the first humans, again.
"Cain" - is a kind of testament of the author, is a book that invites a critical return on some points that are delivered to us, without right of replay. I'm sure there will be a lot of controversy over this book, but I hope that a voice like Saramago's will be greeted with the openness it deserves.
February 13, 2023
Caim caiu nas minhas boas graças. Não é dos livros mais aclamados de Saramago, mas encontrei nele uma crítica tão acutilante e um humor tão mordaz que justificam a minha nota máxima.
"Tirando os inevitáveis e já monótonos mortos e feridos, tirando as costumadas destruições e os costumadíssimos incêndios, a história é bonita, demonstrativa do poder de um deus ao qual, pelos vistos, nada seria impossível."
Saramago leva Caim pela mão numa viagem a alguns dos trechos bíblicos (do Velho Testamento) mais emblemáticos e, simultaneamente, mais terríveis, por revelarem um deus irado, iníquo e vingativo.
Quando eu era criança, olhava com esse mesmo espanto para o que os padres pregavam sobre deus, para o sangue derramado e a miséria semeada, e não queria acreditar no que ouvia. Na altura, julgo que pensava algo como o Caim desta obra:
"Vou-me embora, disse, já não suporto ver tantos mortos à minha volta, tanto sangue derramado, tantos choros e tantos gritos, devolve-me o meu burro, preciso dele para o caminho."
E o que viu Caim?
"Não me disseste que vieste aqui fazer, disse deus, Nada de especial, senhor, aliás não vim, encontrei-me cá, Da mesma maneira que te encontraste em sodoma ou nas terras de us, E também no monte sinai, e em jericó, e na torre de babel, e nas terras de nod, e no sacrifício de isaac, Tens viajado muito, pelos vistos, Assim é, senhor".
Caim é um questionamento constante de um escritor que põe o dedo em algumas das feridas da fé cristã.
Graças a Deus que Saramago existiu.
"Tirando os inevitáveis e já monótonos mortos e feridos, tirando as costumadas destruições e os costumadíssimos incêndios, a história é bonita, demonstrativa do poder de um deus ao qual, pelos vistos, nada seria impossível."
Saramago leva Caim pela mão numa viagem a alguns dos trechos bíblicos (do Velho Testamento) mais emblemáticos e, simultaneamente, mais terríveis, por revelarem um deus irado, iníquo e vingativo.
Quando eu era criança, olhava com esse mesmo espanto para o que os padres pregavam sobre deus, para o sangue derramado e a miséria semeada, e não queria acreditar no que ouvia. Na altura, julgo que pensava algo como o Caim desta obra:
"Vou-me embora, disse, já não suporto ver tantos mortos à minha volta, tanto sangue derramado, tantos choros e tantos gritos, devolve-me o meu burro, preciso dele para o caminho."
E o que viu Caim?
"Não me disseste que vieste aqui fazer, disse deus, Nada de especial, senhor, aliás não vim, encontrei-me cá, Da mesma maneira que te encontraste em sodoma ou nas terras de us, E também no monte sinai, e em jericó, e na torre de babel, e nas terras de nod, e no sacrifício de isaac, Tens viajado muito, pelos vistos, Assim é, senhor".
Caim é um questionamento constante de um escritor que põe o dedo em algumas das feridas da fé cristã.
Graças a Deus que Saramago existiu.
February 1, 2013
يقول ساراماغو في حوار معه إن الكتاب المقدس ما هو إلا دليل للقسوة البشرية ويقول أيضا أن العالم سيكون أكثر سلاما لو كنا جميعا من الملحدين .. ويزيد على ذلك أنا ملحد ولكني لستُ غبيا ..
وعلى أساس هذا النكران للأديان جاءت هذه الرواية ورواية الأنجيل يرويه المسيح والتي كتب فيها ساراماغو رؤية أخرى مغايرة للأنجيل على لسان المسيح ..وهاتين الروايتين لقيتا إستياءا كبيرا من الكنيسة الكاثوليكية ومن اليمين المتطرف لكن ساراماغو الذي لا يكتب لأجل إستياء أو إرضاء أحد لم يلقى بالا لكل الإنتقادات الواسعة التي شملت الروايتين ..
قايين هي رواية الهرطقات العقلية يظهر قايين بمظهر المتحدى للإله فهو لا يتقبل فكرة قبول الإله لقربان أخيه واستبعاده وهو الذي حرث وزرع وعمل بإخلاص لكي ينال رضا الرب وحين تستبد به الغيرة يقتل هابيل ليصبح بذلك أول قاتل في تاريخ البشرية قاتل مطارد بلعنة الرب موسوما بوسم العصيان على الجبهة ليبدأ بذلك رحلة عبر الأزمان تبدأ بالإلتقاء بلليث ليبذر مولوده الأول بعد ليالي حافلة بالجنس ..
يتابع قايين الرحلة فيبدو كأنه يعبر من زمن لآخر من خلال آلة للزمن غير مرئية وفي مشاهد متتابعة فيمر على أزمنة مختلفة للأنبياء مراقبا للمحن التي تعرضوا لها مغتاظا من قسوة الرب وتحميله اللوم لكل عذابات البشرية
لغة الرواية تسود فيها السخرية من الدين ومن القصص الدينية ممتلئة بشعور غاضب تجاه فكرة وجود إله يدين إليه البشر بالعبودية المحضة على الرغم من كل المآسي التي تعرضوا لها عبر التاريخ .. في الرواية يطيح ساراماغو أرضا بالتابو الديني ويكسر كل الأعراف مغامرا بجرأة بطرح الأسئلة الحرجة متمسكا بفكرة التواطىء بين الرب والشيطان ضد الإنسان وهي الفكرة الصادمة التي آلت إليها نهاية روايته الأنجيل يرويه المسيح
يبدو ساراماغو محبطا من الإله ومن الدين ومن البشرية جمعاء
فالإله كما يبدو في الرواية هو مرادف للشر وهو إله لا يمكن الثقة به فهو لا يهتم بالعواقب وقد بلغت الرواية ذروة سخريتها في أنسنة الإله وفي مشهد الملاك الذي أرسله الإله لينقذ ابن إبراهيم من الذبح غير أن الملاك يصل متأخرا فيضطر قايين ليتدخل وينقذه من يد أبيه .. حوار عاتب وساخط بين الملاك وقايين المتمرد بالغ الطرافة في حين يظهر إبراهيم ككل الأنبياء مستسلما لسلطة الإله
ورغباته الغير منطقية في عرف كاتب الرواية
لا أتفق مع ساراماغو في تحميل الأديان عذابات البشر أعتقد أن البشر لديهم هذه النزعة للإختلاف ، وأظن إن العالم لو كان كله ملحدا كما يود الكاتب فإنه سيجد شيئا آخر ليختلف ويتصارع حوله
رواية مشاكسة جدا
February 7, 2012
Tenho andado a ler os livros que me restam a conta-gotas, tenho pavor de chegar ao fim sabendo que quem escreveu estes não estará por cá para escrever novos. Que falta me fará.
Não há desculpas para não ler Saramago "porque é difícil", estes romances mais recentes "As intermitências da morte", "A viagem do elefante", "Caim", são tão fáceis de ler como andar de bicicleta. É preciso aprender mas depois não custa nada e nunca mais se esquece. Caim não é o meu preferido, mas é com certeza irmão de todos os outros.
Em Saramago não interessa de onde se parte ou onde se vai ter, o mais importante são as vistas durante o percurso. Este homem transformaria o relato de um jogo de críquete numa obra-prima.
Passagens como a que descreve a criação do umbigo ou os motivos porque o anjo chegou atrasado ao sacrifício de Isaac fazem-me soltar gargalhadas sinceras e deixam-me a pensar que nunca mais ninguém escreverá assim. Que saudades dos livros que não tiveram tempo de ser escritos.
Não há desculpas para não ler Saramago "porque é difícil", estes romances mais recentes "As intermitências da morte", "A viagem do elefante", "Caim", são tão fáceis de ler como andar de bicicleta. É preciso aprender mas depois não custa nada e nunca mais se esquece. Caim não é o meu preferido, mas é com certeza irmão de todos os outros.
Em Saramago não interessa de onde se parte ou onde se vai ter, o mais importante são as vistas durante o percurso. Este homem transformaria o relato de um jogo de críquete numa obra-prima.
Passagens como a que descreve a criação do umbigo ou os motivos porque o anjo chegou atrasado ao sacrifício de Isaac fazem-me soltar gargalhadas sinceras e deixam-me a pensar que nunca mais ninguém escreverá assim. Que saudades dos livros que não tiveram tempo de ser escritos.
June 18, 2017
Πρωτη επαφη με τον Σαραμαγκου κ προφανως δε θα ειναι η τελευταια. Τι να πω;;; Ο ανθρωπος παιζει σε αλλα μηκη.. εξαιρετικη και ευφυεστατη γραφη. Μου αρεσε που ειχε κ μια δοση χιουμορ. Δε θα αναφερθω στο θρησκευτικο κομματι. Σε καμια περιπτωση δε με ενοχλησε η αλλοιωση κ εκμοντερνευση της ιστοριας.
RESPECT!!!
RESPECT!!!
September 25, 2021
Όποτε πιάνω τον εαυτό μου να δυσκολεύεται να συγκεντρωθεί στο διάβασμα, δύο τρόπους έχω βρει για να βγαίνω από το αδιέξοδο: τα αστυνομικά και τον Σαραμάγκου. Ο πρώτος συνήθως πιάνει, ο δεύτερος δε με απογοητεύει ποτέ. Προφανώς δε μιλάμε για το καλύτερο έργο του, αλλά για μένα είναι πάντα μια εγγύηση ότι θα διαβάσω κάτι καλό.
May 7, 2019
“Hikaye bitti, anlatacak başka bir şey olmayacak.�
�
�
May 12, 2013
We all know that Cain was the firstborn of Adam and Eve. He was a farmer and he killed Abel, the first human to die, because of jealousy due to later being more favored by God. That made him the first human murderer and he was condemned by God and made him roam the earth forever. This book, the last book completed by Nobel laureate Jose de Suosa Saramago (1922-2010) before his death, Cain is about him and his journey after the killing. Like Forrest Gump, the wandering Cain of Saramago witnessed the important events during his lifetime that seemed to be forever. Well, some people in the Old Testament lived almost a thousand years. Cain here was there during the attempted killing of Isaac by his father Abraham, the trials of Job, Moses finding his people worshiping Baal, the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the Great Flood, etc.
Just like Saramago's earlier work (3 stars), this book takes Saramago's no-holds-barred interpretations of biblical stories that we are all familiar with. Unlike the type of interpretations that are supposed to inspire you to being better human beings, Saramago's works make you think and smile. Think because Saramago pries into the bible-truths that we thought we should not question when we were young because those were how your catechists told you to interpret them. Think because if you apply common sense, probably if you are not a biblical scholar like me, chances are, you would be amazed on how Saramago thought of those spins and twists. Also, his works make you smile because some of his dialogues, particularly those arguments between God and Cain are outright funny because after Cain was cursed by God, Cain felt that he was God's equal and he could say what he wanted to say to Him. The result is like God and Cain arguing endlessly like two eager-beaver college debaters.
Highly recommended to all Saramago's fans.
Just like Saramago's earlier work (3 stars), this book takes Saramago's no-holds-barred interpretations of biblical stories that we are all familiar with. Unlike the type of interpretations that are supposed to inspire you to being better human beings, Saramago's works make you think and smile. Think because Saramago pries into the bible-truths that we thought we should not question when we were young because those were how your catechists told you to interpret them. Think because if you apply common sense, probably if you are not a biblical scholar like me, chances are, you would be amazed on how Saramago thought of those spins and twists. Also, his works make you smile because some of his dialogues, particularly those arguments between God and Cain are outright funny because after Cain was cursed by God, Cain felt that he was God's equal and he could say what he wanted to say to Him. The result is like God and Cain arguing endlessly like two eager-beaver college debaters.
Highly recommended to all Saramago's fans.
December 19, 2017
Saramago, Kabil'de yine en iyi yaptığı şeyi yapıyor ve herkesin bildiği hikayeleri ters düz edip önümüze koyuyor. Ona göre Tanrı fazlasıyla kusurlu ve insanlarla oynuyor. Yazar bunu göstermek için, kutsal kitaplardaki belli başlı olaylara Kabil'le birlikte tanıklık etmek üzere bir yolculuğa çıkarıyor bizi. Zaman zaman bizi metne yabancılaştırmak ve bunun bir kurgu olduğunu hatırlatmak için ilginç yöntemler kullanıyor, meleklerin kanatlarının arıza yaptığını ve sağa çektiğini anlatıyor mesela. Yazarın kendine özgü anlatımına ikinci sayfadan itibaren alışıyoruz. Kadim metinlere ilgi duyanlar veya bildiklerine başka bir açıdan bakmak isteyenler zevkle okuyacaklardır diye düşünüyorum.
March 5, 2016
منذ انتهائي من تك الرواية وبالتحديد منذ نصف ساعة فقط وأنا جالسة لا أعلم ما سأكتبه في المراجعة الخاصة بها ، فهناك بعض الأعمال التي لا يمكن التعليق عليها بشيء بعد الانتهاء من قراءتها خاصة عندما يكون بها كل هذا الكم من الجنون والسخرية ..
حسناً .. واضح من عنوان الرواية أنها تتحدث عن قابيل ، ولكن لا تقع عزيزي القاريء في نفس الخطأ الذي وقعت فيه عندما تبادر إلى ذهني قبل القراءة أن تلك الرواية تدور بأكملها حول قابيل وما اقترفه من ذنب تجاه أخيه ، هذا الحدث موجود بالفعل داخل الرواية ولكنه لا يتعدى الصفحتين فقط ..
فعن ماذا تدور الرواية ؟ حسناً ..ساراماغو يسعى من خلال تلك الرواية إلى إظهار عدم منطقية بعض الأحداث التي وقعت في زمن الأنبياء والأسلاف ، وأن يبين لنا كيف أن تلك الأحداث تعد دليلاً على عدم وجود عدالة لدى الإله وأن الأخير يسعى إلى مصالحه الشخصية فقط دون أي اعتبار للبشر الذي خلقهم بنفسه ..
قد تتفاجيء عزيزي القاريء من تلك الفكرة ولكن ساراماغو ملحد ومن ثم لا توجد لديه أي موانع في تحويل تلك الفكرة إلى رواية ذات طابع جنوني مثل " قايين " ..
قايين الذي يتنقل من زمن إلى آخر وكأنه في آلة الزمن ويقابل وجهاً لوجه عدة أنبياء ويشاهد ما حدث لهم كما ورد في الأديان ولكن بطريقة مغايرة لما علمناه ، وكأنه يريد سرد ما يحدث وراء الكواليس ..
هنا لن أقيم الجانب الديني لأنني لست مخولة بذلك ، فأنا لا اقرأ عمل ديني بحت حتى أقيمه من هذه الناحية ولكنني اقرأ عمل أدبي تناول زاوية دينية بأسلوب أدبي جنوني ..
لا يمكن انكار موهبة ساراماغو في جذب انتباه القاريء وإثارته سواء بالسلب أو بالإيجاب ، ولا يمكن انكار أن لديه قدرات أدبية تجعله قادر بسهولة على تشكيل أي فكرة بطريقة رائعة ، هذا ما تحقق هنا ، فالأسلوب وطريقة المعالجة والقالب الذي قدمت من خلاله الفكرة ك��ن متميزاً للغاية ..
نضيف إلى ذلك النهاية المجنونة غير المتوقعة لهذا العمل ، وكأنه يريد أن يقول لنا أن الصراع سيظل دائراً بين الإله والإنسان دون حل لذلك ..
ملحوظة : لا أستطيع انكار أن بعض ما جاء داخل الرواية دار في ذهني سابقاً بشأن العدالة الألهية وغير ذلك ، وربما كان ذلك سبباً في انبهاري بتلك الرواية إلى جانب اسم ساراماغو نفسه وأسلوبه ..
حسناً .. واضح من عنوان الرواية أنها تتحدث عن قابيل ، ولكن لا تقع عزيزي القاريء في نفس الخطأ الذي وقعت فيه عندما تبادر إلى ذهني قبل القراءة أن تلك الرواية تدور بأكملها حول قابيل وما اقترفه من ذنب تجاه أخيه ، هذا الحدث موجود بالفعل داخل الرواية ولكنه لا يتعدى الصفحتين فقط ..
فعن ماذا تدور الرواية ؟ حسناً ..ساراماغو يسعى من خلال تلك الرواية إلى إظهار عدم منطقية بعض الأحداث التي وقعت في زمن الأنبياء والأسلاف ، وأن يبين لنا كيف أن تلك الأحداث تعد دليلاً على عدم وجود عدالة لدى الإله وأن الأخير يسعى إلى مصالحه الشخصية فقط دون أي اعتبار للبشر الذي خلقهم بنفسه ..
قد تتفاجيء عزيزي القاريء من تلك الفكرة ولكن ساراماغو ملحد ومن ثم لا توجد لديه أي موانع في تحويل تلك الفكرة إلى رواية ذات طابع جنوني مثل " قايين " ..
قايين الذي يتنقل من زمن إلى آخر وكأنه في آلة الزمن ويقابل وجهاً لوجه عدة أنبياء ويشاهد ما حدث لهم كما ورد في الأديان ولكن بطريقة مغايرة لما علمناه ، وكأنه يريد سرد ما يحدث وراء الكواليس ..
هنا لن أقيم الجانب الديني لأنني لست مخولة بذلك ، فأنا لا اقرأ عمل ديني بحت حتى أقيمه من هذه الناحية ولكنني اقرأ عمل أدبي تناول زاوية دينية بأسلوب أدبي جنوني ..
لا يمكن انكار موهبة ساراماغو في جذب انتباه القاريء وإثارته سواء بالسلب أو بالإيجاب ، ولا يمكن انكار أن لديه قدرات أدبية تجعله قادر بسهولة على تشكيل أي فكرة بطريقة رائعة ، هذا ما تحقق هنا ، فالأسلوب وطريقة المعالجة والقالب الذي قدمت من خلاله الفكرة ك��ن متميزاً للغاية ..
نضيف إلى ذلك النهاية المجنونة غير المتوقعة لهذا العمل ، وكأنه يريد أن يقول لنا أن الصراع سيظل دائراً بين الإله والإنسان دون حل لذلك ..
ملحوظة : لا أستطيع انكار أن بعض ما جاء داخل الرواية دار في ذهني سابقاً بشأن العدالة الألهية وغير ذلك ، وربما كان ذلك سبباً في انبهاري بتلك الرواية إلى جانب اسم ساراماغو نفسه وأسلوبه ..
November 6, 2016
O primeiro livro de Saramago que consegui ler na integra! E que estreia foi esta.
Consigo perceber o porque deste livro ser tão polémico. Saramago parte de um personagem que, como todos sabemos matou o seu irmão, mas em vez de seguir o percurso ditado no evangelho ele vai pôr Caim a deambular entre passado, presente e futuro ou vários presentes como ele lhes chama e vai testemunhar eventos e fazer uma reflexão: qual é o papel de Deus para a Humanidade?
Deus é-nos apresentado pela Igreja como um Deus de amor, compreensão, humildade, amor ao próximo, mas as ameaças do Inferno são muito mais poderosas do que estas mensagens de amor e tolerância. Põe-se os fieis na ordem com chacinas, mortandades que não escolhem inocentes de culpados. Eu tenho a minha própria visão de Deus onde há benevolência e compreensão sem necessidade de recorrer á palmatoria , como antes se fazia aos alunos mal comportados. Mas isto sou eu e a minha visão pessoal. Acho que a ideia de manter pessoas na linha pelo medo só trás coisas más, pois existe sempre o gosto pela transgressão, a semente da revolta.
Não digo que concordo com tudo o que ele disse, mas dá que pensar.
Eu não sou católica e sei muito pouco da Bíblia, mas sinto que ter mais alguns conhecimentos acerca dos eventos descritos ter-me-ia proporcionado uma outra experiencia de leitura e de reflexão interior, pois ao não conhecer os originais não sei bem onde é que a ironia e sarcasmo de Saramago encaixa, onde distorce. Mas mesmo assim não me estragou a experiencia de leitura - apenas penso que teria uma outra visão do livro.
Recomendo este livro a quem queira dar umas braçadas na "piscina" que é Saramago e sair de lá com muita matéria para pensar.
Consigo perceber o porque deste livro ser tão polémico. Saramago parte de um personagem que, como todos sabemos matou o seu irmão, mas em vez de seguir o percurso ditado no evangelho ele vai pôr Caim a deambular entre passado, presente e futuro ou vários presentes como ele lhes chama e vai testemunhar eventos e fazer uma reflexão: qual é o papel de Deus para a Humanidade?
Deus é-nos apresentado pela Igreja como um Deus de amor, compreensão, humildade, amor ao próximo, mas as ameaças do Inferno são muito mais poderosas do que estas mensagens de amor e tolerância. Põe-se os fieis na ordem com chacinas, mortandades que não escolhem inocentes de culpados. Eu tenho a minha própria visão de Deus onde há benevolência e compreensão sem necessidade de recorrer á palmatoria , como antes se fazia aos alunos mal comportados. Mas isto sou eu e a minha visão pessoal. Acho que a ideia de manter pessoas na linha pelo medo só trás coisas más, pois existe sempre o gosto pela transgressão, a semente da revolta.
Não digo que concordo com tudo o que ele disse, mas dá que pensar.
Eu não sou católica e sei muito pouco da Bíblia, mas sinto que ter mais alguns conhecimentos acerca dos eventos descritos ter-me-ia proporcionado uma outra experiencia de leitura e de reflexão interior, pois ao não conhecer os originais não sei bem onde é que a ironia e sarcasmo de Saramago encaixa, onde distorce. Mas mesmo assim não me estragou a experiencia de leitura - apenas penso que teria uma outra visão do livro.
Recomendo este livro a quem queira dar umas braçadas na "piscina" que é Saramago e sair de lá com muita matéria para pensar.
December 8, 2015
مش ممكن خالص والله!
May 19, 2021
انها القصة القديمة المغرقة في القدم ، التي يعرفها الجميع سواء آمن بها او لا ، التي كتبتها وروتها كل الاديان باختلافات بسيطة احيانا و اخرى جوهرية و عميقة عمق الرؤية و الزمن و نفس الانسان ، العهد القديم هو المادة الخام لتلك الرواية التى اعاد سارماغو تشكيلها وتركيبها وخلط ازمنتها وجعل قايين صاحب الدم الاول شاهدا عليها وصاحب الكلمة الاخيرة والنهاية التى ربما ود الكثيرون لو انها كانت تلك ،، وهي ان لا يكونوا ،،عندما تتخطى الصدمة الاولى و ربما الثانية او الثالثة وانت تقرأ تلك الرواية و تبدأ في غض البصر عن الاحداث الظاهرية والتجديفات باعتبارها رواية خيالية مستوحاة من التوراه ، تتقافز في رأسك الاسئلة التي تطرحها كلمات ساراماغو سواء تلك التي القاها مباشرة او تلك التي اخفاها بعناية بين السطور وخلفها لتكتشفها وحدك ، تلك اسئلة لم تسأل للمرة الاولى ولكن سألها كثيرون ، بعضهم بصوت واخرون بصمت وكما انه من المؤكد ان البعض لم يسأل فمن المؤكد ايضا ان السؤال دائما هو حق مشروع ، اما الاجابة فهي شئ اخر
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