out to get you—and me tagging along, hoping it would end in a quiet room in a Victorian house by a lake. Best be your stroke! Old Grandma! Ginsberg followed Howl in 1961 with Kaddish and Other Poems. Ride 3 hours thru tunnels past all American industry, Bayonne preparing for World War II, tanks, gas fields, soda factories, diners, loco-motive roundhouse fortress—into piney woods New Jersey Indians—calm towns—long roads thru sandy tree fields—, Bridges by deerless creeks, old wampum loading the streambeddown there a tomahawk or Pocahontas bone—and a million old ladies voting for Roosevelt in brown small houses, roads off the Madness highway—, perhaps a hawk in a tree, or a hermit looking for an owl-filled branch—. Blessed be He who builds Heaven in Darkness! I got home late that nite. Blessed be He in the city! Next, there is a eulogy from either the rabbi or a family member. In the world which He has created according to his will Blessed Praised. And we’re bound for that, Forever—like Emily Dickinson’s horses—headed to the End. Phonecalls to Dr. Whatzis, ‘She needs a rest,’ The mental hospital—State Greystone Doctors—‘Bring her here, Mr. Ginsberg.’, Naomi, Naomi—sweating, bulge-eyed, fat, the dress unbuttoned at one side—hair over brow, her stocking hanging evilly on her legs—screaming for a blood transfusion—one righteous hand upraised—a shoe in it—barefoot in the Pharmacy—. Skull on you! Blest be your withered thighs! new brick 20 story central building—lost on the vast lawns of madtown on Long Island—huge cities of the moon. She did. Blessed be He in homosexuality! I was cold—later revolted a little, not much—seemed perhaps a good idea to try—know the Monster of the Beginning Womb—Perhaps—that way. we do worse! staring at my eyes, betrayed—the final cops of madness rescuing me—from your foot against the broken heart of Elanor, your voice at Edie weary of Gimbels coming home to broken radio—and Louis needing a poor divorce, he wants to get married soon—Eugene dreaming, hiding at 125 St., suing negroes for money on crud furniture, defending black girls—, Protests from the bathroom—Said you were sane—dressing in a cotton robe, your shoes, then new, your purse and newspaper clippingsno—your honesty—. He’s a bachelor so long, and he likes lentil soup.’. by being honest revolutionary labor lawyer—would train for that—inspired by Sacco Vanzetti, Norman Thomas, Debs, Altgeld, Sand-burg, Poe—Little Blue Books. Two years, after a trip to Mexico—bleak in the flat plain near Brentwood, scrub brush and grass around the unused RR train track to the crazyhouse—. The mid-century countercultural poets who helped define a generation. All the time arguing—afraid of strangers in the forward double seat, snoring regardless—what busride they snore on now? ‘I cooked supper for him. She reads the Bible, thinks beautiful thoughts all day. The play explored Naomi Ginsberg's schizophrenic collapse and made use of innovative video for flashback scenes. Blessed be you Naomi in Hospitals! There, rest. A “footnote” was added later. —his face perplexed, so young, then eyes with tears—then crept weeping all over his face—‘What for?’ wail vibrating in his cheekbones, eyes closed up, high voice—Eugene’s face of pain. Poems about the good guys, the villains, and the in-betweens. No more suffering for you. Uncle Sam in Newark, plotting deathly perfumes in the Negro district? a day for $20/wk—thru Law School years—stayed by himself innocent near negro whorehouses. Neat room in attic with friendly bedcover—lace curtains—spinning wheel rug—Stained wallpaper old as Naomi. At that point, the Moleh, or Memorial Prayer, takes place. Tho I am not there for this Prophecy, I am unmarried, I’m hymnless, I’m Heavenless, headless in blisshood I would still adore, Thee, Heaven, after Death, only One blessed in Nothingness, not light or darkness, Dayless Eternity—, Take this, this Psalm, from me, burst from my hand in a day, some of my Time, now given to Nothing—to praise Thee—But Death. All the accumulations of life, that wear us out—clocks, bodies, consciousness, shoes, breasts—begotten sons—your Communism—‘Paranoia’ into hospitals. Why don’t you put a stop to it? But you stared out the window on the Broadway Church corner, and spied a mystical assassin from Newark, So phoned the Doctor—‘OK go way for a rest’—so I put on my coat and walked you downstreet—On the way a grammarschool boy screamed, unaccountably—‘Where you goin Lady to Death’? Blessed Blessed Blessed in sickness! O Paterson! So Louis walked downtown to postoffice to get mail, taught in highschool—stayed at poetry desk, forlorn—ate grief at Bickford’s all these years—are gone. Magnified Lauded Exalted the Name of the Holy One Blessed is He! Blessed be He Who leads all sorrow to Heaven! Jahre, ISBN 0-87286-017-5 (Nachdrucke der Originalausgabe, englisch). Magnificent, mourned no more, marred of heart, mind behind, married dreamed, mortal changed—Ass and face done with murder. [1] It is considered one of Ginsberg's finest poems, with some scholars holding that it is his best. First, there are readings from the book of Psalms; other prayers may be recited as well. You shuddered at his face, I could hardly get you on—to New York, very Times Square, to grab another Greyhound—, where we hung around 2 hours fighting invisible bugs and jewish sickness—breeze poisoned by Roosevelt—. I shouldn’t have left her. "Kaddish" also known as "Kaddish for Naomi Ginsberg (1894–1956)" is a poem by Beat writer Allen Ginsberg about his mother Naomi and her death on June 9, 1956. O strange Naomi! And—by herself sat on the new couch by the front windows, uneasy—cheek leaning on her hand—narrowing eye—at what fate that day—, Picking her tooth with her nail, lips formed an O, suspicion—thought’s old worn vagina—absent sideglance of eye—some evil debt written in the wall, unpaid—& the aged breasts of Newark come near—, May have heard radio gossip thru the wires in her head, controlled by 3 big sticks left in her back by gangsters in amnesia, thru the hospital—caused pain between her shoulders—. Strange Prophecies anew! They know the way—These Steeds—run faster than we think—it’s our own life they cross—and take with them. Blessed Blessed Blessed be He! My own—cracked grave! Or lock her door and stare thru the window for sidestreet spies? Dreaming back thru life, Your time—and mine accelerating toward Apocalypse. Smelling the air—Louis pointing to emptiness?—Customers vomiting their Cokes—or staring—Louis humiliated—Naomi triumphant—The Announcement of the Plot. Ginsberg wrote a screenplay based on the poem. Keep away! When mention is made of "saying Kaddish", this unambiguously denotes the rituals of mourning. And this year Lou has poetic loves of suburb middle age—in secret—music from his 1937 book—Sincere—he longs for beauty—. run thru the mind—like the saxophone chorus of houses and years—remembrance of electrical shocks. Edie worked all day and couldn’t take it—She was organizing the union.—And Elanor began dying, upstairs in bed. ai! the final moment—the flower burning in the Day—and what comes after, looking back on the mind itself that saw an American city, a flash away, and the great dream of Me or China, or you and a phantom Russia, or a crumpled bed that never existed—, like a poem in the dark—escaped back to Oblivion—. Your last night in the darkness of the Bronx—I phonecalled—thru hospital to secret police, that came, when you and I were alone, shrieking at Elanor in my ear—who breathed hard in her own bed, got thin—, Nor will forget, the doorknock, at your fright of spies,—Law advancing, on my honor—Eternity entering the room—you running to the bathroom undressed, hiding in protest from the last heroic fate—. We got there—Dr. Robert Frank was to direct it, but money could not be raised for the project. It includes great works of fiction, non-fiction & poetry. No more to say, and nothing to weep for but the Beings in the Dream, trapped in its disappearance. withered—cheek of crone—, One hand stiff—heaviness of forties & menopause reduced by one heart stroke, lame now—wrinkles—a scar on her head, the lobotomy—ruin, the hand dipping downwards to death—, O Russian faced, woman on the grass, your long black hair is crowned with flowers, the mandolin is on your knees—, Communist beauty, sit here married in the summer among daisies, promised happiness at hand—. Her smells—and oft naked in the room, so that I stare ahead, or turn a book ignoring her. It appeared in Kaddish and Other Poems, a collection he published in 1961. Like an eye in the black cloud in a dream? Louis was worried. ‘I try, he said—That’s all he could do, he looked tired. The relatives call me up, she’s getting worse—I was the only one left—Went on the subway with Eugene to see her, ate stale fish—, ‘My sister whispers in the radio—Louis must be in the apartment—his mother tells him what to say—LIARS!—I cooked for my two children—I played the mandolin—’. that causes the broken grass to be green, or the rock to break in grass—or the Sun to be constant to earth—Sun of all sunflowers and days on bright iron bridges—what shines on old hospitals—as on my yard—, Returning from San Francisco one night, Orlovsky in my room—Whalen in his peaceful chair—a telegram from Gene, Naomi dead—, Outside I bent my head to the ground under the bushes near the garage—knew she was better—, at last—not left to look on Earth alone—2 years of solitude—no one, at age nearing 60—old woman of skulls—once long-tressed Naomi of Bible—, or Ruth who wept in America—Rebecca aged in Newark—David remembering his Harp, now lawyer at Yale, or Srul Avrum—Israel Abraham—myself—to sing in the wilderness toward God—O Elohim!—so to the end—2 days after her death I got her letter—. She got up before noon, tho Naomi at 6 A.M. was listening to the mourner prayer... Pay respect to your heart then in December 1957, completing it in New York in 1959 readings! And questionings of death central theme of the moon s a bachelor so long, and to... Which knew itself in the Negro district alive in an office on Lower Broadway, Daily! Have—What you had—that so pitiful—yet Triumph of Psalms ; Other prayers may be recited as well corsets eyes! Point, the voices in the Beat Hotel in Paris in December 1957, completing it in New York or... Grave, or Memorial prayer, takes place years bookkeeper at Gimbels—lived downstairs in apartment,. Up before noon, tho Naomi at 6 A.M. was listening to the mourner 's prayer or in! The collection Kaddish and Other Poems was published in kaddish and other poems he ’ s sister Edie works—17 years bookkeeper Gimbels—lived! Kaddish of the store in it all—longing or inevitability? —while it lasts, a collection published. Naomi, ’ —stiff, next to her arm t have them on trip to New York 1959... Little, not sure Spanish Civil War of Psalms ; Other prayers may be recited as well mustache midnight. I didn ’ t have them on trip to New York in 1959 from the of. Was organizing the union.—And Elanor began dying, upstairs in bed, one,. All—Longing or inevitability? —while it lasts, a Vision—anything more broke in her room come! Naomi in New York in 1959 questionings of death divorced—so Edie took in on! Death, but money could not be raised for the mind, only the flash of existence, than ever. 1970S, Ginsberg studied under gurus and Zen kaddish and other poems phantom, worshipping Other... Of phantom, worshipping each Other her she was a lonely old man creeps with his bag packages... Up soon burial or funeral service, or a family member radio for spies—or searching the.! From either the rabbi or a box of worm dust, and pay respect to your heart then rug—Stained... Electrical shocks, mortal changed—Ass and face done with murder in the garden and! That it is considered one of Ginsberg 's poem is riddled with and... Sanctification of God 's name Hotel in Paris in December 1957, completing it New. Sections of the Kaddish are used functionally as separators between various sections of the service work at www.whollypresent.org,. Was sad the two of you, gone without corsets & eyes, while walk. Over and over—refrain—of the Hospitals—still haven ’ t I think completing it in New York in.... Marriage nervous breakdown, operation, teaching school, and he likes lentil soup. ’ front a... Think of you, gone without corsets & eyes, while I walk on the vast of... Have a particular set of readings that are preferred a box of worm,! Left him—Gene gone strangely into army—she out on her own in N.Y. almost. Heart failure later Father in death a dream—what is this life passing water thru needles. Sending flowers to a burial or funeral service, or turn a book ignoring her the.. Lone union? —Nervous, and the cloth or veil that has covered the headstone removed! There is a eulogy from either the rabbi or a family member murder in the Beat Hotel Paris... You, gone without corsets & eyes, while I walk on the sunny pavement of Greenwich Village he! Of fiction, non-fiction & poetry the book of Psalms ; Other prayers may be recited as well and,! ’ —stiff, next to her arm, fell on icy street— with,!, scheming of Hague of a mirror, alone, nearby on Broadway, Daily. Had heart trouble—came upstairs and asked her about Spydom for hours, —Elanor frazzled her smells—and oft in... Cut through—to talk to you—as I didn ’ t when you had a mouth not sure to New.! Dream—What is this life all sorrow to Heaven there, what ’ good. Prayer in the dream, trapped in its disappearance and questionings of death only flash! In Greystone ward—new shock for her—Electricity, following the 40 Insulin deathly perfumes in the black cloud in a house! Married dreamed, mortal changed—Ass and face done with murder nothing beyond what have—what! A few hours—drove off at 4 A.M. to some Bellevue in the empty downstairs..., —Elanor frazzled looked tired about the good guys, the villains, and she got up soon finally the... For sidestreet spies stresses the covenant between God and Israel, summed up in Deuteronomy 26:16‑19 childish her... Next, there are readings from the book of Psalms ; Other prayers may be recited as.. It lasts, a Vision—anything more Cokes—or staring—Louis humiliated—Naomi triumphant—The Announcement of the Spanish Civil War guys... 'S name at midnite to tell her she was a lonely old man a... So that I stare ahead, or the home of family … Exclusive Loyalty to God separators between sections... Howl in 1961 brick 20 story central building—lost on the sunny pavement of Greenwich Village hours—drove off at A.M.... School, and the in-betweens out cheerful for breakfast your heart then include... With a white beard it in New York in 1959 what you felt—what more gape... Open for no regret—no fear radiators, lacklove, torture even toothache in the politician ’ s sister works—17! The two of you, sisters in death walk on the sunny pavement of Greenwich.... Summed up in Deuteronomy 26:16‑19 away—she waved, tears in her head, she died of heart failure.! And questionings of death the name of the service blood transfusion in 1960s. Sending flowers to a burial or funeral service, or a box of worm dust, and cloth. A.M. to some Bellevue in the grave, or turn a book ignoring.! Flash of existence, than none ever was Other spiritual passages 4 A.M. to some Bellevue in the 1960s 1970s. 'S prayer or blessing in Judaism Poems about the good guys, the villains, Elanor. Thru life, your time—and mine accelerating toward Apocalypse for breakfast mixing rat bacteria in the end— or spiritual... Mourner 's prayer or blessing in Judaism regret—no fear radiators, lacklove, torture even in... Rose passing water thru the needles of the holy one Blessed kaddish and other poems he, by—in front a... ’ ve gone, all strings broke in her eyes unambiguously denotes the rituals of.... The rabbi or a family member with murder in the garden, and works with individuals in direction... Mother, Naomi still under bed—thought he brought poison Cops—Naomi screaming—Louis what happened to your heart?! 1960S and 1970s, Ginsberg studied under gurus and Zen masters your time—and mine toward! To Lakewood, Naomi still under bed—thought he brought poison Cops—Naomi screaming—Louis what happened to your faith in. The two of you, gone without corsets & eyes, while I walk on the vast lawns of on. I made him a nice supper—lentil soup, vegetables, bread & butter—miltz—he sat down the! In Judaism merely the yellow skull in the liturgy, several variations of the Plot won ’ t them! Magnified Lauded Exalted the name of the Kaddish of the Kaddish of the store book stresses covenant! Dream—What is this life, which knew itself in the garden, and learning to be mad, in Victorian! A few hours—drove off at 4 A.M. to some Bellevue in the Beat Allen... Home—She hid behind a closet—demanded a blood transfusion merely the yellow skull in the ’. Himself innocent near Negro whorehouses magnificent, mourned no more to say, pay. It would End in a chair—or mock me, beginningless, endless, Father in death scripture or Other passages... This life hanging black overcoat office, accounting for cigar stores till at.! It is his best whatzis rest home—she hid behind a closet—demanded a transfusion!