Life and Death
Whence have thou been my dear
Within the palace of thy queen
Again; again have thou come
To repeat to me thy central rites
Will thou hurt the kindred spirit?
Will thou come to stay this time?
Oh you! From yonder to mimic the living
...departing from us yet again
Senseless seem your coming and going
Endless journey for this chosen one
Searching for a never ending end
In a never ebbing life
Scattered is the diviners cowries
Upturned to find your beloved mates
Appease; appease! He cries to me
Before the fullness of your brief stay
Will this be the last my dear
Or else will you still appear
In what form if I may ask?
Do remind my forgetfulness
Oh! My ageless one
Do bid my ways in gold
Confer your charm my love
And drench my folly when thou come
Too short is your pitiful stay
Yet so warm is your natures embrace
Beauty is what you are my dear
Obanje ! Obanje! We know your name
About this poem
Traditional misconception regarding the spirit of the dead occupying the body of the living in Igbo land. The believe in life after death is the motivation for this poem
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Written on November 06, 2019
Submitted by jajafrank on January 21, 2023
Modified on March 14, 2023
- 53 sec read
- 0 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | AXBC XXDX DEXX XXXF AAXC EXXB FXAX |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 889 |
Words | 178 |
Stanzas | 7 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
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"Life and Death" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 14 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/150609/life-and-death>.
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