Funeral at the edge of a cliff: Israel bids farewell to David Ben-Gurion
2012; Routledge; Volume: 31; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1080/13531042.2012.710773
ISSN1744-0548
Autores Tópico(s)Memory, Trauma, and Commemoration
ResumoAbstract David Ben-Gurion, Israel's first Prime Minister, passed away on 1 December 1973, weeks after the Yom Kippur War. His funeral reflected his unique political and symbolic standing as the "father of the nation," as well as his wish to express national pioneering values. Buried on the cliff overlooking Wadi Zin, near his kibbutz home in the Negev desert, Ben-Gurion "forced" the Israeli leadership to follow a ritualistic pilgrimage path leading from Jerusalem to Sde Boker, similar to the one he had advocated and attempted himself. The article discusses how this watershed historical event was conceived, planned and carried out. Keywords: David Ben-Gurionpioneeringnational funeralleadershipcollective memory Acknowledgment This study was undertaken with the assistance of the Israel Science Foundation. We thank Moriel Ram, Rhona Seidelman, and Amir Peleg for their help. The article first appeared in Hebrew in Israel, no. 17 (2010): 25–57. Notes 1 Bracha Kopstein, "Ha-derekh ha-aharonah" (The last journey), Al ha-Mishmar, 2 January 1974. 2 Ronnie Hadar, "Shakhahtem et abba" (You've forgotten Dad), Yed'iot Aharonot, "7 Days" supplement, 24 September 2004. 3 Some of the major biographies and monographs written about Ben-Gurion include: CitationTeveth, Kinat David; CitationBar-Zohar, Ben-Gurion; CitationAvizohar, Be-re'i saduk; CitationAharonson, David Ben-Gurion; CitationFriling, Hetz ba-arafel; CitationOhana, Meshihiyut u-mamlakhtiyut. 4 For civil religion, see CitationLiebman and Don-Yehiya, Civil Religion in Israel. 5 For state ceremonies see CitationAzaryahu, Pulhanei ha-medinah; CitationDonner, "Shkifut ha-koah ha-nireh." 6 For a discussion of the influence of the past on the present, and of the present on the past, see, for example, CitationSchudson, "The Present in the Past"; CitationOlick and Robbins, "Social Memory Studies." The field of collective memory in general has developed from the groundbreaking work of Morris CitationHalbwachs, The Collective Memory. 7 See, for example, CitationTzahor, "Ben-Gurion ke-me'atzev mitos"; CitationBarell, "Mada ve-tekhnologiyah," chap. 1. 8 CitationJelinek, "Yomanei Ben-Gurion"; CitationAvizohar, "Al derekh ha-arikhah." See also the debate between Tzahor and Yehuda Erez in issues 1–4 of the journal Keshet, 1974–75. 9 Among the historical books written by CitationBen-Gurion are Medinat Yisrael ha-mehudeshet; Zikhronot; Citation Be-ma'arakhah . 10 The importance of molding a picture of the past for the purposes of national consolidation was addressed by CitationAnderson in his classic work, Imagined Communities. His principle critic, CitationAnthony D. Smith, The Nation in History, agreed at least on the importance of images of the past in molding modern nationalism. 11 See, for example, Ohana and Westreich, Mitos ve-zikaron; CitationShapira, Yehudim hadashim, yehudim yeshanim; CitationMaizel and Shamir, Defusim shel hantzahah; CitationFeige and Shiloni, Kardom lahpor bo; CitationZerubavel, Recovered Roots; CitationBen-Yehuda, The Masada Myth. 12 See, for example, CitationKeren, Ben-Gurion veha-intelektu'alim; Tzachor, He-hazon veha-heshbon. In general, few studies have been devoted to the memorialization of Israeli leaders. For Menachem Begin, see CitationBilu and Levy, "The Elusive Sanctification of Menachem Begin." Much has been written about the memorialization of Yitzhak Rabin, owing to the circumstances of his death. See, for example, CitationGreenberg, Zikaron be-mahloket; CitationVinitzky-Saroussi, "Commemorating a Difficult Past." 13 Some of the institutions established in his memory are: Yad Ben-Gurion organization; Ben-Gurion Institutes at the Ben-Gurion College in the Negev, Ben-Gurion House in Tel Aviv, and the hut in Kibbutz Sde Boker. In addition, the university in Beer Sheva, Israel's international airport, and the government compound are named after him. Statues and pictures of Ben-Gurion are to be found in many places throughout the country. 14 See, for example, CitationSchwartz, George Washington; idem, Citation Abraham Lincoln and the Forge of National Memory ; idem, Citation Abraham Lincoln in the Post-Heroic Era . 15 CitationSchwartz, "The Social Context of Commemoration," contrasts this situation with the USSR, where a new leader replaces the gallery of those who preceded him. 16 CitationTumarkin, Lenin Lives! 17 Cited in CitationCrozier, De Gaulle, 659. 18 CitationBen-Amos, "Lenatzeah et ha-mavet." 19 CitationMann, "Veha-yishuv halakh aharei ha-kvarim." 20 Shapira, Berl, 708. Shapira cites Bar-Zohar, Ben-Gurion, 1:484. 21 CitationKatz, Jabo, 1160–61; CitationAronoff, "Establishing Authority." 22 Yoram Bilu, "Pa'amei tzadikim be-sidkei ha-etos ha-tziyoni" (Footsteps of the righteous in the cracks of the Zionist ethos), Ha'aretz, 23 April 1996; CitationBar-Gal and Azaryahu, "Jewish Tradition and National Cemeteries." 23 CitationChouraqui, Herzl, 249. 24 CitationEilon, Herzl, 439–41. 25 CitationBen-Gurion, Zikhronot, 1:15. 26 Divrei ha-Knesset (Knesset records), 2:1359–60, 16 September 1949. 27 Divrei ha-Knesset (Knesset records), 16 September 1949, 2:1359–60 For Ben-Gurion and Herzl, see CitationOhana, "Ha-prometa'im ha-yehudim." 28 On Nietzsche and pioneering, see, for example, CitationOhana, "Zarathustra be-Yerushalayim." On Turner's thesis, see CitationArieli, "Mashma'ut ha-'sfar.'" 29 For the pioneering ethos, see CitationEisenstadt, Ha-hevrah ha-yisre'elit; CitationNear, "Ke-khol ha-goyim"; CitationNeuman, Teshukat he-halutzim. On the development of the ethos and its decline, see CitationRoniger and Feige, "Tarbut ha-freier." 30 For more on this topic, see CitationFeige, Settling in the Hearts. 31 See CitationDon-Yehiya, "Mamlakhtiyut ve-yahadut," 51–88; Keidar, Mamlakhtiyut. 32 Divrei ha-Knesset, 68:4750, 10 December 1973. 33 Mordekhai Artzieli, "Metah Paula Ben-Gurion" (Paula Ben-Gurion has died), Ha'aretz, 30 January 1968. 34 Entry from Ben-Gurion's diary, 30 January 1968, cited in Bar-Zohar, Ben-Gurion, 3:1601. 35 Nissim Taito, "Lekhtekh aharai ba-midbar, lakhash BG al mitat Paula" (Thou wentest after me in the wilderness, whispered B.-G. by Paula's bed), Yedi'ot Aharonot, 30 January 1968. 36 Interview with Avraham Tzivyon, 13 December 2006. 37 Aside from Sharett and Begin, there were other leaders who chose not to be buried on Mount Herzl, despite their formal right to a burial place there, such as President Yitzhak Ben-Zvi and Knesset speaker and head of the Jewish AgencyYosef Almogi. 38 See CitationBenvenisti, Sacred Landscape. 39 On the liminality of the desert in Zionist thought, see CitationZerubavel, "Ha-midbar." 40 Shabtai Teveth, "Melekh ha-midbar" (King of the desert), Ha'aretz, 5 December 1973. 41 Bar-Zohar, Ben-Gurion, 3:1604–5. 42 Artzieli, "Metah Paula Ben-Gurion." 43 Artzieli, "Metah Paula Ben-Gurion." 44 In view of the complex relations between David Ben-Gurion and his wife, Ze'ev Tzahor, who was Ben-Gurion's secretary in his later years, wrote: "A situation was created whereby their graves, seemingly adjacent, are separated by a 17-meter difference in height. To my mind, this is significant." Amira Lamm, "Malkhut David" (David's kingdom), Yed'iot Aharonot, "7 Days" supplement, 2 May 2008, 28. 45 CitationSheleg, Ruah ha-midbar, 222. 46 For example, a letter by 6th–9th grade students from Kvutzat Yavneh complained: "Unfortunately we were all dismayed by the extensive neglect around the grave… We permit ourselves to defend the man's dignity, and we expect that the surroundings will be cleaned up and will be worthy of him." Kibbutz Sde Boker Archive (hereafter SBA), box 232, 28 December 1973. Another visitor complained about "trampled, dry grass and a fence with torn ropes." He also commented, "This shows contempt for fundamental values and for the honor [due] to the memory of leaders who contributed so much to Israel's revival." Letter, 18 April 1974, Ben-Gurion Archive, Sde Boker (herafter BGA), c6465/21. 47 "Program – a public competition to design the burial estate of David and Paula Ben-Gurion, of blessed memory, 13 May 1974," SBA, file 2; CitationPalmah, Gormim ve-tahalikhim. For the burial estate and other structures at the Midrasha, see CitationCohen and Meir, Bonim ba-midbar. 48 Danny Kipper, "Matzevet B.G.: Gan poreah be-lev ha-midbar" (B.G.'s grave: A flowering garden in the heart of the desert), Yedi'ot Aharonot, 24 November 1982. 49 The committee of judges to select the planners included Prof. Yigal Yadin; Ya'akov Yanai, chairman of the National Parks Authority; architect Aryeh Elhanani; director of the National Parks Authority Ehud Avriel; Ben-Gurion's son, Amos Ben-Gurion; Mordechai Bar-On, member of the directorate of the Jewish Agency; writer Yizhar Smilansky; Yehoshua Cohen, representative of Kibbutz Sde Boker; Yosef Yaakobson, chairman of the Negev Foundation; architect Alfred Mansfeld; Teddy Kollek, mayor of Jerusalem; and architects Ya'akov Rechter and Aryeh Sharon. 50 Letter from Yanai to the government secretariat, 6 January 1974, BGA, c6465/21. 51 Kipper, "Matzevet B.G." 52 Kipper, "Matzevet B.G." Architect Lippa Yahalom expressed similar sentiments: "The path that passes through landscape designed like a cleft area is the obstacle course leading to the open space, surrounded by greenery, vegetation, and flowers. What else but these elements could express the legacy of Ben-Gurion?" Ibid. 53 Bar-Zohar, Ben-Gurion, 3:1603, citing Ma'ariv, 25 November 1973. 54 Ha'aretz, 3 December 1973. 55 Menahem Talmi, "Agadah mufla'ah she-le'olam lo tamut" (A wondrous legend that will never die), Ma'ariv, 2 December 1973. 56 "Yoman Ma'ariv" (Ma'ariv diary), Ma'ariv, 2 December 1973. 57 Yehonatan Gefen, "Ha-tzad ha-revi'i shel ha-milhamah: Ken la-zaken" (The fourth side of the war: Yes to the Old Man), Ma'ariv, 7 December 1973. 58 Ma'ariv, 3 December 1973. 59 Richard Nixon, "Statement on the Death of David Ben-Gurion," 1 December 1973, online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project. http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid = 4057 (accessed 20 May 2012). At the same time, for reasons related to the war that had just ended, world leaders did not attend the funeral. A reporter for Al ha-Mishmar commented: "Missing from the funeral were the most senior-level delegations from overseas. The man who was the recognized personal symbol of the revival of Israel and the Jewish redemption deserved to have world leaders pay their last respects. He was their equal and even rose above them, thereby exalting them. They missed an opportunity to demonstrate solidarity, honor, and support for a fellow leader and to be praised for their very presence at the parting from him, just as they gathered around the caskets of Kennedy, de Gaulle, Adenauer…. They showed that even as leaders they remain politicians, and that even amongst the 'professional association' of leaders there are serious differences in rank." Aryeh Palgi, "Manhig basar va-dam" (A flesh and blood leader), Al ha-Mishmar, 5 December 1973. 60 BGA, c6471/20. 61 Yehoshua Gilboa, "Agadah ba-hayim" (A legend in his lifetime), Ma'ariv, 2 December 1973. 62 "Hoda'ot evel al mot David Ben-Gurion" (Obituaries for David Ben-Gurion). Davar, 2 December 1973. 63 Uri Kaisari, "Ha-kever ba-midrashah" (The grave at the Midrasha), Ma'ariv, 7 December 1973. 64 Shamir, "Sof ha-tza'adah – reshit ha-derekh" (End of the march – beginning of the road), Ma'ariv, 2 December 1973. 65 Oved Ben-Ami, "Agadat Ben-Gurion," Ma'ariv, 3 December 1973. 66 From the report in Ma'ariv, 2 December 1973. 67 Al ha-Mishmar, 2 December 1973. 68 Natan Ribon, "Liku'im be-masa ha-levayah" (Defects in the funeral procession), Ha'aretz, 3 March 1969. 69 Telegram – 1541 urgent, 1 December 1973, Israel State Archives, Jerusalem (hereafter ISA), file 143. 70 Telegram – 1334 immediate, 1 December 1973, ISA, file 143. 71 Behind the "Havatzelet" plan there lay a great social and political drama, with some elements of gossip: who would take part in this formative historical event – the burial of the father of the new nation – and who would receive approval to stand where during the ceremony. The responsibility in this regard was entrusted to Ben-Gurion's loyal assistant Hayim Yisraeli, who defined the ranks using notes of different shapes and colors. We were told this by people we interviewed, but we have found no archival documents concerning these decision processes. 72 For invented tradition, see CitationHobsbawm and Ranger, eds., The Invention of Tradition. 73 Dov Goldstein, "Darko ha-aharonah" (His last journey). Ma'ariv, 4 December 1973. 74 "Reva milyon avru al pnei aron Ben-Gurion" (A quarter of a million pay last respects to Ben-Gurion), Davar, 3 December 1973. 75 "Zerem bilti posek shel nahalei-adam ba lehipared mi-David Ben-Gurion" (An unceasing stream of humanity comes to bid farewell to David Ben-Gurion), Ma'ariv, 3 December 1973. 76 Teveth, "Melekh ha-midbar." 77 Goldstein, "Darko ha-aharonah." 78 Yedi'ot Aharonot ended up without a representative. Years later, Eitan Haber recounted how, as the newspaper's representative to the ceremony, he had missed the event, and his report had been based on what he had heard on the radio. According to this report, only 120 people participated. Eitan Haber, "Eikh fisfasti et Ben-Gurion" (How I missed Ben-Gurion), Yedi'ot Aharonot, "7 Days" supplement, 11 April 2008. 79 Palgi, Manhig basar va-dam. 80 Letter, 2 December 1973, BGA, c6471/20. 81 Letter, 2 December 1973, BGA, c6471/20 82 Letter from Federman to Almog, 2 December 1973, BGA, c6471/20. 83 For Ben-Gurion and religion see, for example, CitationTzameret, "Ben-Gurion"; Don-Yehiya, "Mamlakhtiyut"; CitationOhana, "Meshihiyut hilonit"; CitationCohen, Ha-talit veha-degel. 84 For religion as an inherent component of Zionism, see, for example, CitationRavitzky, Ha-ketz ha-meguleh; CitationKimmerling, "Dat, le'umiyut ve-demokratiyah." 85 Bar-Zohar, Ben-Gurion, 3:1604. 86 Goldstein, "Darko ha-aharonah." 87 BGA, c6471/20. 88 BGA, c6471/20 89 Yehoshua Bitzur, "Bi-tefilah nifredah ir David mi-Ben-Gurion," Ma'ariv, 4 December 1973. 90 At the funeral ceremony Ben-Gurion was appropriated by Religious Zionism, but he has been reappropriated since then in the annual memorial ceremonies held at Midreshet Ben-Gurion. Here the ban on eulogies is removed, and readings are introduced, along with songs performed by the IDF choir. This serves to mold a national figure that overshadows the religious expressions, which have been reduced in these annual ceremonies; all that remains of them is the Kaddish and "El male rahamim." 91 Goldstein, "Darko ha-aharonah." 92 The same inscriptions appear on Paula's grave, and we have no way of knowing whether this was according to her wishes. 93 CitationShapira, Berl, 11. 94 Uri Binder, "Ha-kol politi" (Everything is politics), Zman ha-Negev, 8 December 2000; Oded Bar-Meir and Gal Levinson, "Alenu lidbok be-darko" (We must adhere to his path), Kol ha-Negev, 8 December 2000. 95 In this article we have not sought to examine the dynamics of Ben-Gurion's place in the public consciousness. In that context, it is interesting to note the increasing legitimacy of Ben-Gurion amongst the right-wing camp, as expressed in Begin's speech at the ceremony of the founding of the Likud Party in September 1973, in which he spoke of "the disciples of Ben-Gurion and the disciples of Jabotinsky." 96 Shlomo Giv'on, "Menahem Begin bi-Sde Boker: Ma'aleh zikhro shel Ben-Gurion" (Menahem Begin at Sde Boker: Remembering Ben-Gurion), Ma'ariv, 17 November 1977.
Referência(s)