2. “I have not held my breath
so that I might hear the breathing of God,
or tamed my heartbeat with an exercise,
or starved for visions.
[…]
I have not been unhappy for ten thousand years.
During the day I laugh and during the night I sleep.
My favourite cooks prepare my meals,
My body cleans and repairs itself,
And all my works goes well.”
- excerpted from Cohen’s “I Have Not Lingered in European Monasteries
In the poem of which “I have not lingered in European monasteries,” Cohen uses that “I have not been unhappy for ten thousand years” (23) and “During the day I laugh and during the night I sleep” (24) to emphasize theme of challenging the traditional religions. Even though I does not pray each day, my life is normal as same as someone who prays frequently. That “My favourite cooks prepare my meals” (25) and “my body cleans and repairs itself” (26) totally describe Cohen’s attitude to religions and people’s lives. According to his point of view, he rejects religions and gives some thing positive to his daily life. He tames his heartbeat with an exercise, so his body can repair itself. There sentences are logical and make sense to everyone in the world, not only himself. In his home page, he said, “A saint does not dissolve the chaos”. A woman, Suzanne Vaillancourt, leads him a very orderly life. Here Cohen uses a manner of hyperbole “ten thousand years” (23) to reinforce to challenge the conventional religions.
