Zywa The alleged sacrifice

If it really could have been his son
how could God have been so mad
as to have him tortured to death?
Even worse than the madness
of Abraham who sacrificed Isaac?

Apparently, it was required
by the priests and theologians
for part 2 of the story:
Christianity after Judaism

With the nonsensical twist
that The Giver Makes A Sacrifice
to the superstitious

who want to receive heaven
and bow their heads once a year

at the words 'Have mercy'

Poem 5985
Amsterdam, 2026-04-05
Air No. 47, "Erbarme dich" ("Have mercy"), from the St Matthew Passion (1727, text Picander [Christian Friedrich Henrici], music Johann Sebastian Bach, BWV 244)
The passage Genesis 22:11-15 (an angel restrains Abraham from slaughtering his son) was added later to whitewash the atrocity
Collection: Secrets & Believers
Composer: Bach, Johann Sebastian 
 

Why are they walking

around in the faith that God --


will save only them?


Waarom lopen zeWarum laufen sie
rond in het geloof dat God --herum im Glauben, dass Gott --

juist hen wil redden?nur sie retten wird?

Poem S3098
Amsterdam, 2026-03-03
My struggle 4. Dancing in the Dark (Karl Ove Knausgård) - 2010
Autobiographical novel "Min Kamp. Fjerde bok" (translated 2015), part 5 - August 26th, 1985, Tveit (near Kristiansand)
Collection: Leaving
Tribute to: Knausgård, Karl Ove 
 

No Messiah yet,

since people still do not live --


sinfully enough.


Nog geen Messias:Noch kein Messias:
de mensen leven nog steeds --die Menschen leben ja noch --

niet zondig genoeg.nicht sündig genug.

Poem S2942
Amsterdam, 2025-09-01
Sacred Fire (Carl Friedman) - 1996
Story "Heilig vuur" (from the collection "De grauwe minnaar")
Collection: Here &Now&
Tribute to: Friedman, Carl 
 

Moses fervently

believed in the promise, oh --


the disappointment!


Mozes geloofdeMoses glaubte sehr
vurig in de belofte --stark an die Verheißung, oh --

O, ontgoocheling!welche Enttäuschung!

Poem S2814
Amsterdam, 2025-07-29
She had a soft spot for Moses (Frida Vogels) - 1994
Verse "Zij had een zwak voor Mozes", published in the collection "De harde kern 3" ("The hard core 3", part VII [Acquiescence]), and in "Diary 1964-1965" (2008) - December 2nd, 1964, Bologna
Collection: Self-portraits
Tribute to: Vogels, Frida 
 

Jews persevered for

centuries by believing --


in 'the Promised Land'.


Joden hielden vol,Juden hielten durch,
eeuwenlang, gelovend in --sie glaubten weiterhin an --

'het Beloofde Land'.'das Gelobte Land'.

Poem S2741
Amsterdam, 2025-07-02
In foreign parts - Chronicles (Frida Vogels) - 2024
Autobiography "In den vreemde - Kronieken", chapter 'De Zesdaagse Oorlog' (The Six-Day War) - June 1967, Bologna
Collection: Between us
Tribute to: Vogels, Frida 
 

Israel, the state

is not like other countries --


it is an old pain.


De staat IsraëlDer Staat Israel
is geen land als andere --ist kein Land wie andere --

het is oude pijn.er ist alter Schmerz.

Poem S2743
Amsterdam, 2025-07-02
In foreign parts - Chronicles (Frida Vogels) - 2024
Autobiography "In den vreemde - Kronieken", chapter 'De Zesdaagse Oorlog' (The Six-Day War) - June 1967, Bologna
Collection: Between us
Tribute to: Vogels, Frida 
 

I wander about,

wondering, did Jesus die --


for people like me?


Ik loop doelloos rond,Ich wandre, wundre,
zou Jezus gestorven zijn --wäre Jesus gestorben --

voor mensen als ik?für Menschen wie mich?

Poem S2578
Amsterdam, 2025-02-28
I wonder as I wander (John Niles / Benjamin Britten) - 1934
Song (1933, John Niles; 1934, arrangement Benjamin Britten), sung in 1967 by Barbra Streisand
Collection: No wonder
Tribute to: Niles, John; Streisand, Barbra 
Composer: Britten, Benjamin 
 

In our devoted

souls the Lord chooses to dwell --


with all His blessings!


In onze zielenIn uns hat der Herr
verkiest de Heer te wonen --seine Wohnsitze gewählt --

Wij zijn gezegend!Wir sind gesegnet!

Poem S2575
Amsterdam, 2025-02-24
Hail to you, you chosen souls (Johann Sebastian Bach) - 1727
Air "Wohl euch, ihr auserwählten Seelen" for alto, from the cantata "O, ewiges Feuer, o Ursprung der Liebe" ("O eternal fire, O origin of love", BWV 34) for Pentecost
Collection: Held True
Composer: Bach, Johann Sebastian 
 

The living dead are

free of Time, their sufferings --


baptise them in Love.


Levende dodenLebende Tote
zijn vrij van de tijd, hun pijn --sind frei von der Zeit, ihr Schmerz --

doopt hen in Liefde.tauft sie in Liebe.

Poem S2186
Amsterdam, 2024-05-17
Shalimar the Clown (Salman Rushdie) - 2005
Novel, chapter Shalimar the Clown, § 1
Collection: Sludge
Tribute to: Rushdie, Salman 
 

Would a soldier fight

harder for virgins than for --


reincarnation?


Vechten soldatenKämpfen Soldaten
harder voor maagden dan voor --härter für Huris als für --

reïncarnatie?Reinkarnation?

Poem S2066
Amsterdam, 2023-12-26
Midnight's Children (Salman Rushdie) - 1981
Muslims against Hindus
Novel, chapter 2-15 "How Saleem achieved purity"
Collection: Shadows
Tribute to: Rushdie, Salman 
 

Zywa Fight between the rivers

He is a dreamer, Dad
He is your younger self

Both of you want to move around
Both of you always want

new valleys
new views

Why do you want to look further
Why isn't it here

your Promised Land
your green pastures?

He is a dreamer, Dad
He is a phantom himself

     I followed him into the field
     I wrestled with him

     to talk about the promise
     to understand its meaning

     It was his intention, Dad
     It wasn't really an accident

     Why don't you believe that?
     Why are you packing up now?

Poem 5369
Amsterdam, 2023-11-08
Cain speaks to Adam
Study: "Words become Worlds" (1994, Ellen van Wolde); § 4 is the publication "The Study of Cain and Abel. A Narrative Study" (1991)
Collection: A Home
Tribute to: Van Wolde, Ellen 
 

Zywa Fight on the threshing floor

He was indeed fertile, together
with his second wife, but
Sarah, the first, was more important

As if going mad, he wrestled
with God and His promise
of a large posterity

And when Isaac finally arrived
the little one was pampered so much
that he was a disappointment, a softy

a little Abel, so different
from his big brother
He could not be suitable

for God's unfathomable plan
he knew God that well
So he contrived a sacrifice

But a man appeared
He had to be an angel
as God's disguise

and they fought over the knife
Abraham won, Isaac died, and Sarah
never spoke another word

Poem 5359
Amsterdam, 2023-11-06
2 Samuel 24:24 And the king [David] said unto Araunah, Nay; but I will surely buy it of thee at a price: neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing. So David bought the threshingfloor [that is one of the Moriah mountains, the later Temple Mount] and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.
Collection: A Home
 

Zywa Fight on the Blue River

Father
dreamed further than granddad
He dreamed high into heaven
But the thought of having to return
to the lowlands where he was not safe
from
his brother, drove him mad
No herd of gifts
would be large enough
to appease him
but
there was no alternative
He had to go there with his family
to show us, the grandchildren
to his parents
At night
a man appeared
with whom he wrestled
It must have been an angel
God in disguise
He fought
for His support
in resisting his brother
Father won, he took courage
despite the broken hip

Poem 5361
Amsterdam, 2023-11-06
Granddad = Abraham, brother = Ishma-El, "Canaan" = "Lowlands"
Jacob's byname is "Isra-El" = "Who contends with God"
Collection: A Home
 

Believing, living

in Ever Darkening Times --


until The New Day.


Geloven, levenGlauben, leben in
in De Donkere Tijden --Stetiger Verdunkelung --

tot De Nieuwe Dag.bis zum Neuen Tag.

Poem S1984
Amsterdam, 2023-10-28
Lighthousekeeping (Jeanette Winterson) - 2004
Novel, chapters: Known point in the darkness, and: New planet
Collection: Held True
Tribute to: Winterson, Jeanette 
 

Zywa Prosit (To Your Benefit)

Cheers to
paradise
my dad
his dream

Cheers to
the hills
and the asylum
during the famine

Cheers to
my beautiful wife
our children and
the distant future

Your blessings
are mine
forever
amen

Poem 3753
Amsterdam, 2021-04-26
Abraham (Genesis 12:1-2,6-7,10,14-16, 13:14-17, 15:1-5,12-21, 17:1-27, 20:11-12)
Collection: A Home
 

Zywa Teaching of the Eagle

The Old Man of the Mountain
teaches his wisdom
in the libraries

and the beautiful gardens
where, along wide paths
plants are always in bloom

At harvest time
the branches hang low
full of delicious fruits

Young women in light robes
tend the garden and the tables
where they serve the boys

with food, drink, and blissful kisses
all over their body, heavenly
as they say, it is there

as awaits them
if they follow the way, yes
they fancy they are there already

so spacious are their heads
from the resin in the biscuits
that death attracts them

Poem 3209
Amsterdam, 2020-10-15
Resin: hashish ("hashsha")
Assassins ("hash eaters") --> assassin (murderer)
Hassan-i-Sabbah (1034-1124), leader of the Assassins, residing in Alamut Castle ("Teaching of the Eagle", north-Iran) since 1090
Collection: The Praised One
 

Zywa Thus spoke in himself
the anointed, thus spoke in himself
the prophet too

I see people around me
doing evil deeds
even within families
not everyone takes good
care of each other

I learned it as a child
listening
to the old stories
that the elderly tell:
people think themselves bigger

then they are, unless
they are a servant
and make themselves small
to have a share
as once in the past

Yes, as in the past
it can now be again
It is up to me
to arrange that, establish
the authority of the Lord

in the city and the land
of my life
to risk my life
with word and sword
for everyone's prosperity

Poem 2365
Amsterdam, 2019-07-21
Collection: The Praised One
 

Zywa The light shines in darkness

We are expats, migrant workers
men who are stuck and dream
of a free life

as shepherds and cattle lords, a land
of our own, grassy meadows
milk and honey - the old promise

Here in the delta, we work
under foreign authority, longing
for the beautiful girls of the north

Only in the stories do we feel at home:
of the ancient god who created the world
with thoughts from his heart, living
words from his mouth, the Potter
who moulded man

Stories
that knead our souls, giving light
when it is dark in our hearts
full of old ashes, in which the fire
of the Destroyer still glows

Poem 2327
Amsterdam, 2019-07-01
Prince Djhut-mose / Thut-mose (the eldest son of Amen-hotep III) = "son of Djhut" / "Son of Thoth", abbreviated: Moses, high priest in the temple of Ptah at Memphis in the Nile Delta
The ancient god: Ptah = Maker (of the world)
El Shaddai = God the Destroyer
Collection: A Home
 

Zywa Foxes

No glowing storm from the desert
no seething wrath from heaven
no dawn in the east

only the mighty army
that kills us as rebels
and throws us with the bones

of criminals and losers in the pit
Has anyone prayed and begged
to spare a few righteous people?

Is the city spared for those few?
We who have escaped take shelter
in our right, where we weep
and honour the dead

whose trust has been betrayed. Why?
I cannot sleep, I breathe questions
but don't hear any answers

I listen, listen to me as well
be merciful and answer me
look for me as I am looking for You

do not hide, do not reject me
help me, do not turn me down
do not leave me, abide with me

Poem 2300
Amsterdam, 2019-06-24
High priest Simon 'Peter' (Jerusalem in the year 30 CE)
Lamentations 5:17-18, Jeremiah 4:11-13,26, Genesis 18:32, Job 34:5, Psalm 22:2, 27:7-9
Collection: The King
 

Zywa Father Of Many

O sweet promise! I am eternally
blessed, and threatened with the
extermination of my descendants
if they become disobedient
and retain their foreskin

In the darkest nights
of my doubts, I lie down
on a warm stone under the stars
to see how innumerable many
people will be born

I dream of a great family
a multitude of nations
even though my son is a wild ass
fighting against all
And all fight against him

Poem 2173
Amsterdam, 2019-03-22
Abram = Exalted father, High father
Abraham = Father of many
Ishmael was his only son for many years, growing up into a wild man (Genesis 16:12)
Collection: A Home
 

Zywa Believe, hope and pray

As a child I believed
in God and eternal life
but the adults were doubting

They believe and hope -
in full awareness
of their shortcomings -

and they pray
to be truthful -
from time to time afraid

that their good deeds are not
diamonds in God's omniscience
but stains of hypocrisy

on their finest clothes
for the royal wedding feast
to which they are bidden

like wanderers, without merit
anxious whether God will cover
their souls in grace in time

Poem 1891
Amsterdam, 2018-10-31
Collection: The King
 

Zywa Celestial Pieces

It was a day without a date
an ordinary day, as far as we know

no grand prince was born
no city perished or world empire collapsed

It is very long ago, that day
of the black stone rain

It may have been a harsh punishment
although no one knew what for

certainly not later, so what else
could it have been

but a heavenly gift?
The small stones fell apart

but a large one remains
as a reminder

of the regained island
without its walls lost

as paradise, but a promise
to the faithful: one day

another day without a date
will be the last and the first

Poem 1860
Amsterdam, 2018-10-02
The Black Stone (meteorite, cornerstone of the Kaabah)
Under Caliph Umar ibn al-Khatt?b "al-Farooq", al-Jaz?ra, "the Island", the area of paradise between the Tigris and the Euphrates, is taken AD 642
Collection: PumicePieces
 

Zywa The vow

In silence and darkness
we come together – solemnly

the vow is brought in
We solemnly light our candles

with the candles, we sing thanks, sing
for our ancestors, the panthers – solemnly

We praise the lion of reason
We feed the dove of peace

We ask the blessing of the phoenix that watches
over our children and grandchildren

We repeat the vow – solemnly

    Panterbe impartial
    Lionkill if necessary
    Dovedon’t betray anyone
    Phoenixtake care of everyone

We are the panther and the lion
we are the dove and the phoenix

that is our vow

to each other and to our children
hand in hand in hand – solemnly

Poem 1702
Amsterdam, 2018-03-17
Levi, the golden window (Marc Chagall) - 1961
Window in the Abbell synagogue in Jerusalem
Composition "Okna podle Marca Chagalla" ("Windows after Marc Chagall", 1976), performed in the Organpark on April 5th, 2014
Collection: ORG anp ark 
Tribute to: Chagall, Marc 
Composer: Eben, Petr 
 

Zywa Day of judgement

At night on the bald mountain
with the uneven steps
of narrow sectoral paths

I see witches dancing
between the names on the covers
of the knee-high graves

Bottle in hand
they lie down on the tombs
for some money

I live here with my husband
and four children, but untainted
stay the souls behind the wire

This afternoon, a Korean read
a poem by Zelda at her grave
in his language

He left a flower
I cook for the night men -
Soup with rat poison

Poem 1488
Amsterdam, 2017-08-04
Mountain (Yaelle Kayam) - 2016
Film "Ha'har"
Jerusalem, Mount of Olives
Poetess Zelda Schneurson
Collection: The Praised One
Tribute to: Kayam, Yaelle; Schneurson, Zelda 
 

Zywa Homo desens

A rebel or a promise?
Our eldest son failed
we do have to keep silent about him

Another hard lesson
the bosses of the soldiers
are our bosses

We will have to concede
no longer believe
that it will ever be all right

that there will ever be a House
indestructible, with in the corner
a rejected stone

We will not build that house
but perhaps we will become rich
enough to buy the weapons

with which we can conquer the land
as ruthless as the tribes
led by Joshua

Poem 1134
Amsterdam, 2017-03-05
Desens = failing, missing
Head of the corner: Psalm 118:22, Mark 12:10
Jesus Christ, the Jewish pretender to the throne
Jehoshua / Joshua / Jesus = JHWH is salvation
Collection: The King
 

Zywa Girl's dreams put down

With my sisters I imitated
mama and her friends
By paying attention to everything

from eyebrow to footstep
every muscle under his cloak
the menu and our clothes

we let Dad, who is king
do his important job

     For so long I'm living
     without friends, without child
     I'm not smoothing out sheets

     for my Achilles, the sensitive
     hero, his divine body
     On our wedding day

     the priest didn't sprinkle holy
     water on me, he besmirched me

          with glue from the golden vessel -
          a foul mix of blood, wine
          honey, and nobody dared

          to look - under the offering table
          next to the raging fire of the funeral
          pyre he kicked me: keep quiet!

          His knife shone, I saw him pull
          at the doe that took my place

Oh, what woman didn't and doesn't
suffer from beautiful girls' dreams
put down by sneaky plans


from which she has escaped half at the utmost?

Poem 901
Amsterdam, 2016-12-18
After: Iphigeneia
Collection: Bruises
Tribute to: Euripides 
 

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