The crucifix overburdened,
Death tolled,
Agony caressed your noble gird;
Rattling helplessly
Between the twine of the python;
In perfuse darkness,
From the windows of the mind
You stared:
The awry look on bloodshot eyes,
The palm-greases and
The robotic hangman;
They all conviction for truth lack –
Shepherds of vain shadows
And for all it cost?
The blessings of black gold
Baptize us
With blessings of brutish blunders;
Gruesomely impelled on the tragic exile,
Your etheric vapours
Of sublime crystals linger
Amidst the eclipse,
Amidst the entangled melodies of slit water-drums,
Slumber sprawls in the void
Broken canopies
Showers of tears invade,
And I mourn under the Oil-bean shadows
With a cypress stalk
I mourn. Pause. And I conjure
The vexed vortex, to come consume
In a swirl of fury –
The wary transgressors.
Broken canopies
Showers of tears invade
We mourn
Our tears flood the sprouting hope-seeds.
Deluge…
Ifeanyichukwu Avajah
Ifeanyi is a poet, artist and chartered chemical engineer. He has had several poems published in various anthologies: Night or Drift in Volcano of Voices; Sketch of Tomorrow (a prophetic poem written few days before the massacre at OAU) in Passport to the Future; Transit of the Martyr was also published in For Ken for Nigeria, Scattered Patches in Confluence; Message to Mama in Onomoresua, among others. Fragments is Ifeanyichukwu Avajah’s first published collection of poetry. His second work Collage: Poems and Painting would soon be available to the public. He is currently working on a third collection, Revolt of the Elements. He is also the co-founder of Teambooktu.com.
This is a metaphorical poem that captures the travails of man as represented by Ken Saro Wiwa. The poet persona takes us through the journey of life, depicting the agonizing, the heart break that comes with losing someone. He thus, prays that the perpetrators of the heinous crime should never go unpunished. Did they go unpunished? I think like a philosopher, and a prophet, a true poet always points the way forward.
We must learn from history or perish forever.
Great work!
Great wordplay
This poem delves into themes of suffering, exploitation, and a quest for justice, set against a backdrop of profound emotional and possibly socio-political turmoil. It opens with imagery of overwhelming pain and sacrifice, possibly critiquing the exploitation associated with natural resources like oil (“black gold”). Despite the darkness, there’s a transition to ethereal imagery, suggesting enduring purity amidst corruption. Cultural references add depth, indicating a specific regional context. The poem oscillates between mourning under the shadows of exploitation and a call for retribution against transgressors, weaving environmental overtones with complex emotions. This rich ambiguity allows for multiple interpretations, painting a landscape of despair intermingled with faint hope. Well done Ifeanyi.
Uwem Umana
This poem is a profound and evocative piece that grapples with themes of suffering, exploitation, and the search for redemption or justice in the face of overwhelming adversity. The imagery is rich and layered, suggesting a deep emotional and possibly socio-political commentary.
1. Imagery of Suffering and Despair: The poem opens with “The crucifix overburdened, Death tolled,” immediately setting a tone of suffering and sacrifice. The crucifix, a symbol of suffering and salvation in Christian iconography, being overburdened, suggests an overwhelming weight of pain or sin. “Agony caressed your noble gird” further intensifies this imagery of suffering, perhaps hinting at a noble figure or entity undergoing immense pain.
2. Symbolism of Exploitation and Corruption: The lines “The blessings of black gold / Baptize us / With blessings of brutish blunders” could be interpreted as a critique of the exploitation and negative consequences of natural resource extraction, such as oil (“black gold”). This exploitation leads not to prosperity but to “brutish blunders,” suggesting harm and mismanagement.
3. Ethereal Imagery and Hope: Despite the darkness, there’s a transition to more ethereal imagery with “Your etheric vapours / Of sublime crystals linger.” This could symbolize the enduring spirit or the lingering essence of something pure amidst corruption and decay.
4. Cultural References: The mention of “slit water-drums” and “Oil-bean shadows” might indicate specific cultural or regional references, possibly pointing to an African context. These elements add a layer of cultural richness and could hint at the poem’s socio-political undertones.
5. Themes of Mourning and Resistance: The recurring motif of mourning under “Oil-bean shadows” with a “cypress stalk” is powerful. Cypress trees are often associated with mourning, and this, combined with the act of mourning under the shadows of oil-beans (possibly symbolizing the natural wealth and its shadows), paints a picture of grief intertwined with the land’s exploitation. The poem closes with a call to action or a conjuring of a force (“The vexed vortex”) to consume the “wary transgressors,” suggesting a desire for retribution or a radical change.
6. Environmental Overtones: The imagery of broken canopies and tears flooding hope-seeds could also be interpreted as an environmental commentary. It speaks to the destruction of natural habitats (“broken canopies”) and the sorrow that ensues, yet there’s a hint of regeneration or rebirth in “tears flood the sprouting hope-seeds.”
7. Complex Emotions and Ambiguity: The poem is rich in ambiguity, leaving room for multiple interpretations. It oscillates between despair and hope, accusation and mourning, suggesting a complex emotional landscape.
In summary, this poem appears to be a poignant reflection on suffering, exploitation, and the quest for justice or redemption. It skillfully weaves together personal and collective grief, in the context of environmental and socio-political issues, leaving the reader with a sense of both despair and the faint glimmer of hope.
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History, like a mask dancing, implicates the artist depending on their angle of view/vision,warranting contentiously an imperializing ideology or viewpoint. Thus, like everything else, both historical events and their artistic commentaries are by nature contested and conflictual. In a metaphoric sense,too,one man’s activist is another’s terrorist. Who and what was/is Kenole Saro-Wiwa to the Idi-Igbo? Freedom fighter or terrorist/turncoat? What role did he play during the Civil War,siding as he did with the Federalists? How was he settled by the State and when did the love affair go awry, and things fall apart between him and his paymasters? How did his friendship with Sani Abacha,in particular,go sour, leading, ultimately, to the maximum ruler ordering his execution in a classic replay of the IBB-Vatsa saga? Questions, questions, and questions. Nice poem,though, drawing upon science jargon and woven adroitly around Okigboesque motifs and resonances. Cheers!
The wording is perfect for a rap song.