� the holy mount was looked upon as the center of the universe, the "navel of the earth, " the very axis mundsome notes i found particularly profound:
� the holy mount was looked upon as the center of the universe, the "navel of the earth, " the very axis mundi.�
� But this is one of those instances in which a Hebrew word cannot be adequately translated into another language. In the course of its linguistic metamorphosis the force of the original has become vitiated. The Hebrew root sa'aq/za'aq indicates the anguished cry of the oppressed, the agonized plea of the victim for help in some great injustice. A few examples of the Hebrew usage will suffice to illustrate the degree of poignancy and pathos, of moral outrage and soul-stirring passion that pervades the Hebrew word.�
� Be it coincidental or otherwise, one cannot fail to be impressed by the fact that it is this man who is the first person of whom it is expressly recorded in the Bible that he prayed for personal divine guidance at a critical moment of his life. We note that he did not ask for a miraculous intervention of God to designate the future bride of Isaac. On the contrary, he himself decided upon the criteria of suitability and choice. He prayed, rather, that his exercise of discretion might be in accordance with God's will. "... let the maiden to whom I say, 'Please lower your jar that I may drink,' and who replies, 'Drink, and I will also water your camels'—let her be the one whom you have decreed for your servant Isaac." (24:14)
“They are both nameless and characterless, vanishing as suddenly as they appear. The use of angelic imagery is not allowed to violate the non-mythological nature of the religion�...more
i became first familiar with tokarczuk because of her nobel prize acceptance speech back then in 2018: "have you ever wondered who the marvelous storyi became first familiar with tokarczuk because of her nobel prize acceptance speech back then in 2018: "have you ever wondered who the marvelous storyteller is in the Bible who calls out in a loud voice: “In the beginning was the word�? Who is the narrator who describes the creation of the world, its first day, when chaos was separated from order, who follows the serial about the origin of the universe, who knows the thoughts of God, is aware of his doubts, and with a steady hand sets down on paper the incredible sentence: “And God saw that it was good�? Who is this, who knows what God thought?"
that part of the speech always stuck with me, mostly because i was wrestling with the idea of the narrators in the bible - the hands that touched and shaped these narrative.
this book, however, falls on the spectrum of good enough. i love characters who sees and loves and takes care of the unthought: in this case, the animals. unthought creatures that the killing of them require no further reflection or hesitation. this book and wallace's consider the lobster essay is one that i think, is slightly similar, and worth examining again. ...more
gaston bachelard might be the most beautiful phenomenologist i know. speaking of inhabited, intimate spaces as if cloaked in the garments of personal gaston bachelard might be the most beautiful phenomenologist i know. speaking of inhabited, intimate spaces as if cloaked in the garments of personal memories - he dignifies oneiric and imaginative consciousness. by him, topoanalysis is made special, poetic, quasi-religious, to be almost sacred:
candle in the cellar, shut-in attic, huts of charcoal burners; labyrinths of corridors, rotundas and chapels as sanctuaries for secrets; nooks, nests, and corners as refuge for dreams.
bachelard, in his poetics of space, clothed spaces in a way that is maternal and womblike. it is sheltering. it is warm and fond and local.
he is exploring something very special when he wrote that poetic image lies at the origin of consciousness and of language. image is at the threshold of speech and thought. our subconscious is not a linguistic phenomenon.
sometimes, like recalling an image of childhood home, i dream of a certain pair of eyes - so kind and familiar. here bachelard’s thesis lies: the ontology of the poetic image exists outside the realms of psychology and psychoanalysis.
for rationalists - this is like a daily crisis. it’s foreign to its own causality. precedes language. abundant in silence.
it’s more like a ripple. or a hum that reverberates in the chest - mine or yours....more
This is probably the greatest book I’ve read in a long time. Truly a literary achievement. Flawless in execution, ambitious but doesn’t fall short. FrThis is probably the greatest book I’ve read in a long time. Truly a literary achievement. Flawless in execution, ambitious but doesn’t fall short. Franzen is truly a gifted writer....more
There is this part in the book where the character, Mr. S was waiting for the last streetcar when he saw a completely empty shop window and stared at There is this part in the book where the character, Mr. S was waiting for the last streetcar when he saw a completely empty shop window and stared at it, inside was only a single lightbulb hanging on a wire. As if in a trance of the scene before him, he stood and stared at that glowing electric bulb. Later we find out that as a child, when Mr. S� father received a honorarium from work, he would buy jam and butter after weeks of eating only potatoes. And then they would laugh and his father would pick him up and put him in his shoulders. They’d walk around the room and stop in the middle, and little S would look straight at the glowing filament of the bulb, which was at his eye level.
I had to pause when coming across this part, I think because of how painful it is to look at a memory with such warmth and detail that would otherwise slip away from us. I found that it is becoming much rare to be able to recall certain memories, but when it does come, like Mr. S staring at the lightbulb in an empty shop, they seep in, drop by drop - a sediment of other times.
Is the light still the same?
I’m not sure, I’m not sure.
“What decade would you choose - the sixties, the seventies, or the eighties?� “I’d like to be twelve years old in each of them.�*...more
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