 |
| Wole Soyinka |
I think it rains
I think it rains
That tongues may loosen from the parch
Uncleave roof-tops of
the mouth, hang
Heavy with knowledge
I saw it raise
The sudden cloud, from ashes.
Settling
They joined in a ring of
grey; within,
The circling spirit.
O it must rain
These closures on the mind, blinding us
In strange despairs, teaching
Purity of sadness.
And how it beats
Skeined transparencies on wings
Of our desires, searing dark longings
In cruel baptisms.
Rain-reeds, practised in
The grace of yielding, yet unbending
From afar, this, your conjugation with my earth
Bares crounching rocks.
That tongues may loosen from the parch
Uncleave roof-tops of
the mouth, hang
Heavy with knowledge
I saw it raise
The sudden cloud, from ashes.
Settling
They joined in a ring of
grey; within,
The circling spirit.
O it must rain
These closures on the mind, blinding us
In strange despairs, teaching
Purity of sadness.
And how it beats
Skeined transparencies on wings
Of our desires, searing dark longings
In cruel baptisms.
Rain-reeds, practised in
The grace of yielding, yet unbending
From afar, this, your conjugation with my earth
Bares crounching rocks.
By Wole Soyinka
What makes this poem difficult is that the poet explores a state of mind by using rain as a symbolic image. We must be able to see the quick parallels and associations which the poet draws. Rain is used in this poem as a bringer of relief and as an agent of good. Through the symbolic image of the rain, the poet narrates the burdensome thoughts that are stifling him and causing him so much despair and sadness. But circumstances dictates that he must keep his peace.
No comments:
Post a Comment