Ten years after Canadian poet and singer Leonard Cohen died on November 7, 2016, fans are still gathering to remember him. A religion scholar writing in The Conversation argues that Cohen's struggle with the divine may be his most lasting legacy. Tribute events include a sold-out evening in Toronto in October and a family concert tour by his son, Adam Cohen, which begins in Canada this month.

Psalms in Song and Verse

The scholar, Ryan Bennett-Hunter, points to Cohen's 1984 collection The Book of Mercy. It contains 50 short poems that the author calls "contemporary psalms." Like the biblical Psalms, they are numbered rather than titled, and they move between praise, doubt, sorrow and challenge toward God. Cohen said he meant the book for people who could use it at a particular time, as "a book of prayer."

Cohen's songs also borrow from Jewish worship. The writer notes that "If It Be Your Will" echoes the Friday evening service welcoming the Sabbath. "Who By Fire" closely follows the High Holy Day prayer "Unetaneh Tokef." Rabbi Mordecai Finley, who has read Cohen's poems aloud during the High Holy Days, said Cohen once told him he always felt he was writing liturgy, not only poetry.

In his final albums, the scholar argues, Cohen spoke to God more directly. In the song "You Want it Darker," he addresses God as "my lord" and draws on the Jewish mourners' prayer, the Kaddish.

Many Traditions, One Voice

Cohen drew on many faiths. A biographer, Harry Freedman, reports that Cohen studied in India, often referred to the Jewish mystical tradition of the Kabbalah, and knew the sayings of the early Christian Desert Mothers and Fathers. Cohen was also an ordained Rinzai Zen Buddhist monk. He grew up in Montreal and attended Mass as a child with his Irish nanny. The writer says Cohen always spoke from his Jewish roots while engaging other traditions.

The scholar says Cohen's mix of the sensual and the sacred let the same song speak to different listeners, or to the same listener at different stages of life. Cohen's song "Hallelujah" is a common sight in church services, even though its lyrics include earthy biblical imagery. The scholar's 2023 book, Prophets of Love, traces links between Cohen and the apostle Paul.

What to Watch

Adam Cohen's tour is set to reach Europe in winter 2027, pairing his father's music with archival photos and film. The scholar argues that Cohen's late work will likely be remembered most for how it wrestles with God. This is the author's view, not a finding of any group.