January 16, 2005
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Death and the
Spirit, Part II
ReadingsAre you a lucky little lady
in The City of Light
Or just another lost angel…
City of Night
– Jim Morrison, L.A. Woman
Fourmillante cité,
cité pleine de rêves,
Où le spectre en plein jour
raccroche le passant– Baudelaire,
Les Fleurs du Mal,
and
T. S. Eliot,
Notes to The Waste Land
“When you got the mojo, brother –
when you’re on the inside –
the world is fantastic.”– Pablo Tabor in Robert Stone’s
A Flag for Sunrise,
Knopf, 1981, p. 428Now it was Avril’s turn to understand and he was frightened out of his wits. “The Science of Luck,” he said cautiously. “You watch, do you? That takes a lot of self-discipline.”
“Of course it does, but it’s worth it. I watch everything, all
the time. I’m one of the lucky ones. I’ve got the
gift. I knew it when I was a kid, but I didn’t grasp it.”
The murmur had intensified. “This last time, when I was alone so
long, I got it right. I watch for every opportunity and I never
do the soft thing. That’s why I succeed.”Avril was silent for a long time. “It is the fashion,” he said at
last. “You’ve been reading the Frenchmen, I suppose? Or no,
no, perhaps you haven’t. How absurd of me.”“Don’t blether.” The voice, stripped of all its disguises, was
harsh and naive. “You always blethered. You never said
anything straight. What do you know about the Science of
Luck? Go on, tell me. You’re the only one who’s understood
at all. Have you ever heard of it before?”“Not under that name.”
“I don’t suppose you have. That’s my name for it. What’s its real name?”
“The Pursuit of Death.”
Anagrams
In memory of Danny Sugerman,
late manager of The Doors:
Danny Sugerman
Photo by
Frank Alan Bella, 2002“Mr Mojo Risin” = “Jim Morrison.”
“Audible Era” = “Baudelaire.”
“Bad Rumi” = “Rimbaud.”From the dark jungle
as a tiger bright,
Form from the viewless Spirit
leaps to light.– Rumi,
“Reality and Appearance,”
translated by R. A. Nicholson(See also Death and the Spirit
from Twelfth Night, 2005, the date
of Danny Sugerman’s death.)
