Kofi Awoonor Poem by Bijay Kant Dubey

Kofi Awoonor
The Ghanaian poet
From Wheta, Volta Region,
How to understand his base,
The base of the Ewe people,
The oral and folk traditions of it?

A poet mythical, symbolical,
He is of old glory,
Old song
That he seeks to derive
And draw from,
Delve deep and dwell far.

Awoonor the African poet,
The Ghanaian poet
Of the Ewe people and songs
Singing the folk song
Embroidered with motifs
And beliefs,
Myths and legends.

Night of My Blood,
The masterpiece poetical work,
The magnum opus
Tells of the neglect
Of the old gods,
A dirge commemorating
Their burial.

How to resurrect, rejuvenate,
Reorient the tales,
Tales of Africa,
The Dark Continent
So vibrant with myth and mysticism
Of darkness?

The poet whistling
The narratives of the forefathers,
The African ancestors,
Piping and gliding down,
Telling of the drum beats
Into the hamlet homes or on farms.