Re: IVIV (2) Hope…and Hallelujah!

[Robin Landseadel]

On Sep 9, 2009, at 6:56 AM, Doug Millison wrote:

> It's no more or less complicated than watching another old artist  
> keeping that hope alive and doing what he can to make it real:   
> Leonard Cohen, at his age, singing Hallelujah!

I guess it all depends on the sorts of ears you bring to Cohen's  
"Hallelujah", whether you find it cold and broken or if you find that  
it doesn't matter if it's holy or broken, it's still a "Hallelujah".

At the bottom of what been sussing out in all this "Family" talk  
appears a troll seeking a fight. This is a novel, not Howard Zinn. Any  
intelligent reading of Pynchon has to factor in three things that  
separate Pynchon from the pack, three constants that must be plugged  
into the equation: His humor, his gamesmanship and his knowledge of—or  
if you prefer, his "take" on—magic . The first is Pynchon's most  
redeeming quality, the last usually points towards the conventions of  
"Magical Realism."

Pynchon's always got a bit of the Dickens in his naming conventions  
and the Harligans are no exception. We've got Hope, who looks hopeful,  
we've got Coy kinda sitting on the fence, roped into a settlement he  
doesn't like but—"Quit Show Business?" Fuggetaboudit!

As for Amethyst, this info is from the sort of book that would be on  
the shelf of any self-respecting Hippie/Neo-Pagan invested in Lemuria  
and its atolls* :

Amethyst

Crystal system :Trigonal
Chemistry : Si02 Silicon dioxide with iron
Hardness : 7
Source : Worldwide
Chakra : Third eye, soma, crown and higher crown
Number : 3
Zodiac sign : Aquarius, Pisces
Planet :  Jupiter, Neptune

Beneficial for : Physical, emotional, and psychological pain;  
decisionmaking; recurrent nightmares; geopathic stress; protection  
against thieves; anger; rage; fear; anxiety; grief; neural  
transmission; dreams; alcoholism; hormone production; endocrine  
system; metabolism; cleansing and eliminating organs; immune system;  
blood; headache; bruises; injuries; swellings; burns; hearing  
disorders; lungs; respiratory tract; skin complaints; cellular  
disorders; digestive tract; regulating flora; removing parasites;  
reabsorption of water; insomnia; psychiatric conditions other than  
paranoia or schizophrenia.

Amethyst derives from the Greek for "to be intoxicated" and was worn  
to prevent drunkenness. Promoting love of the divine, Amethyst  
encourages selflessness and spiritual wisdom. Opening multidimensional  
awareness, it enhances metaphysical abilities and is an excellent  
stone for meditation and scrying. Sleeping with Amethyst facilitates  
out-of-body experiences, helps dream recall, and assists  
visualization. It guards against psychic attack, transmuting it into  
love. A natural tranquilizer, Amethyst blocks geopathic stress and  
negative environmental energies. Harmonizing the physical, mental, and  
emotional bodies and linking them to the spiritual, it purifies the  
aura. Amethyst is helpful for people about to make the transition  
through death and supports coming to terms with loss.

This stone has a sobering effect on overindulgence and overcomes  
addictions. Beneficial to the mind, it calms or stimulates as  
appropriate, helping to feel more focused, assisting assimilation of  
new ideas, and connecting cause with effect. Amethyst enhances memory  
and improves motivation. This stone balances emotional highs and lows.

Judi Hall: The Encyclopedia of Crystals, page 168

* http://www.amazon.com/Encyclopedia-Crystals-Judy-Hall/dp/1592332668

In any case there are multiple genre conventions on display here—in  
order for our knight errant to fulfill the implicit literary contract  
within a Noir Mystery [is that like pizza pie?] someone has to be  
saved. Magically speaking Amethyst is always there as a ward and  
shield, verbally speaking there's always Hope and let's not get Coy  
about it, but Doc's gotta save somebody in order to be at least a half- 
way decent P.I. Genre conventions have to be fulfilled. Being as this  
is—didn't somebody recently point this out?—a Pynchon novel, we can  
expect these conventions to be worked out in as convoluted a manner as  
conceivable. And for whatever reason, crappy surf music seems to be  
terribly important to Pynchon, right up there with universal binding  
ingredients and animated cartoons.