By Denja Abdullahi
THE world poetry day of 2023 was celebrated with fanfare and aplomb almost everywhere literature is regarded, practiced and recognized. The social media brought to notice, the diversity of the celebration in the multiplicity of events held all over the world.
Poetry certainly has ceased to be the “esoteric whisper” and mere assemblage of highfalutin words in rhyme and rhythm that we have long associated with poetry. Poetry has taken up its multilayered garb and is walking tall in the streets. It is walking tall in performance poetry arenas and the spoken word poetry slams. It is asserting its utility in the world of advertising, street protest , advocacy of all sorts and decorating the social media fluid spaces.
Poetry suddenly has become the darling discipline of the humanities where one can pursue an MFA or a doctoral degree in it. We now have special prizes for poetry and poets across the world are united in standing for acclaims.Cities have poets laureates not writers laureates to emphasize the importance of poets to cities .Poetry is connecting humanity across the world and it is apparent that it is only in poetry that humanity speaks the same language devoid of bigotry, prejudice, parochialism and narrow-mindedness. The world is currently enmeshed in the effluence of poetry and it is the art that brings light to dark places. Poetry is so important and it is already established as the primal art of all arts and literary forms and has for centuries being the carrier of all sorts of knowledge known to man. Poetry is the language of all sacred religions and esoteric thoughts. Poetry is the language of philosophy, tragedy and satirical comedy. Poetry is at the centre of the love for a man, woman and the land. Poetry is the language of sacrifice and it is the colour in which patriotism is adorned.
On the day set aside to celebrate poetry and on all days , we should remember to explore what is poetry and what can be poetry in every available language and mother tongue in the world. Poetry is the highest of all verbal art forms and in writing, speaking and listening to it in the babel of tongues the almighty has blessed the world with, we may begin to retrieve the beauty and the wisdom that are gradually slipping away from our machine- governed world. Poetry is the link to the past, the present and the future.