“Where Are the Arms for Manon Uphoff?”

This article is based on this Dutch article of Martijn Benders

What preceded: A misplaced neocon in the Literature Fund pontificates that the Jewish refugee Adorno had no right to criticize America since he should have been grateful for being able to flee.

The Grateful Refugee is, of course, an archetypal right-wing theme. First, you flatten their cities with your cynical war games, and then the refugee must express gratitude and, preferably, get lost as soon as possible. Or better yet, accommodate them in the region.

But in the same spirit, you could argue that Jesus Christ should have shown gratitude on the cross. Why the long face? At least you were allowed to hang here, right?

And since we are already engaged in sacrilege, let’s rearrange the palette of the old masters. If Jesus, instead of the traditional pale canvas, had a more bronzed complexion, how would the devotion of the white crowd hold up? Would their reverence ripple like a pond into which a stone has been thrown, their faces twisted into a grimace of cultural dissonance?

Let us conduct a thorough examination of the crucifixion to see what exactly was going on. We begin with this magnificent painting by Garafano, whose real name was Benvenuto Tisi. Allegedly a devout Christian, but since the Church was pretty much the sole financier for artists at the time (along with banking), the motive to be Christian is somewhat forcefully present. So let’s look at the work: do we see anything that didn’t fit the public image?

What stands out when we analyze this painting?

Why would Jesus place his hand in such a way on a chopped-down tree, as if he wants to bless the tree? Not just a tree, there are also two mushroom-like growths at the tree’s base. Saint Veronica is holding a cloth on which Jesus’ face has left a spore print. What exactly is the Lord Jesus trying to tell us here? He is in the midst of a heavy crusade but apparently deemed it necessary to pause by this chopped-down tree (to leave a spore print?). Again, we see the dominant colors red and white. It’s a remarkable little tableau.

About the author

Martijn Benders has published twenty-six books, eighteen of which are in Dutch. Critics such as Komrij and Gerbrandy have hailed him as one of the greatest talents of his time. He has also written three philosophical works, one of which is in English and focuses on the Amanita Muscaria, the Fly Agaric. Publishing on the international platform of The Philosophical Salon, he has also gained international recognition as one of the most remarkable thinkers from the Netherlands.

Books

There exists a considerable group of leftist individuals who vigorously opposed the prevailing coronavirus narrative, including some of the world’s leading philosophers, such as Agamben and Kacem. However, this stance was heavily censored and vilified by what is referred to as ‘neocon-left’ or ‘woke-left’, as something associated solely with what they deem ‘far-right’. In my book, I discuss the reasons behind these actions, the underlying motives, and how this is emblematic of a new form of fascism aimed at seizing power permanently.

The middle section of the book is dedicated to poetry. It features a beautiful selection of poems from the Mediterranean region, by poets from Turkey and Greece, who have been imprisoned and tortured by the regime.

The final part of my book is a manifesto against literary nihilism, as manifested in the Literature Fund. It reveals how this fund is dominated by a group of Christians and ‘wokies’, which is undesirable in a free society.

Amanita Muscaria – The Book of the Empress is an exceptional work that sets a new benchmark in the realm of mycophilosophy. While one might be tempted to classify the book within the domain of Art History, such a categorization would fail to capture its true essence.

Amanita Muscaria – The Book of the Empress – De Kaneelfabriek, 2023

You don’t have time to read this, but that’s because you are no longer human. If anything remained of the original person within you, the old mycelia of childhood, you would learn a great deal from this book. In fact, its magical knowledge might become your most valuable possession. This is a book about human imagination and how it fell into the iron grip of transdimensional cockroaches. Additionally, it offers magical tips to significantly improve your life and time acceleration. M.H.H. Benders also takes a light-hearted yet scathing look at the entirety of Dutch literature. What more could you want?