avatarHarry Stefanakis

Summary

The web content presents a social commentary haibun reflecting on the impact of colonialism, the importance of remembering ancestral songs and stories, and the deep connection between humans and the earth, emphasizing the concept of belonging as communion rather than possession.

Abstract

The haibun titled "Tyrants’ Fear" delves into the theme of colonialism's lasting effects on the world, particularly how the memories and cultural expressions of the colonized, such as memory songs, challenge the oppressive narratives imposed by colonizers. It calls for a reawakening to the intrinsic connection humans have with the earth, suggesting that our bodies and bones inherently understand the concept of home as a place of belonging that transcends physical ownership. This belonging is akin to a harmonious communion, mirrored in the relationships between musical notes, ingredients in a meal, and the unerring path of a river. The author, inspired by poet Mahmoud Darwish, invites readers to listen to the earth and each other, recognizing that the destruction of these relationships is discordant with the essence of truth, beauty, and goodness.

Opinions

  • The author believes that the colonized people's stories and songs are a powerful counter-narrative to the oppression of colonialism.
  • There is an opinion that humans possess an innate ability to sense belonging through their physical connection to the earth.
  • The text suggests that the current state of environmental and relational destruction is contrary to the natural order of communion and harmony.
  • The author posits that the true essence of belonging is not about ownership but about a deep, spiritual connection with the earth and each other.
  • The haibun implies that the disconnection from the natural world and its rhythms leads to a sense of discord and alienation.
  • The work is critical of the illusion of possession and the oppression it engenders, advocating instead for a sense of belonging that is rooted in mutual respect and interconnectedness.

Tyrants’ Fear

Social Commentary Haibun

“Censored” by Nicolò Paternoster is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Invaders’ fear of memory calling forth a deeper truth of place

In stories not forgotten and songs lifting spirits above the oppression of small god worship lost in the illusion of possession to how we fit into each other’s hands and how the land cradles our bones with a melody that knows home and freedom and communion

On the one hand, I wanted to speak to the effect of colonialism across the world and the memory songs of the colonised speaking truth to power. But I also wanted to invite all of us to find the ears in our bones so that we can listen to the songs hidden in the stones, in the trees, in the waters, and even in each other’s rivers of blood.

Our bodies are of the earth and our bones know home, not as a cognitive idea or ideal but as a feeling of belonging. In this deeper place, the earth and sky intersect. Body and soul know the same truth, that we belong to each other just as we belong to the earth. Belonging is not possession it is communion.

It is communion in the same way that notes of music are in an alchemical relationship to each other and thereby produce a vibration that is beautiful. Or how the ingredients in a meal harmonize together bringing goodness alive in us. Or perhaps the way a river cannot lie regarding where it is going, its truth apparent to all who know the land.

Truth, Beauty, and Goodness, a holy trinity of belonging that when realized make the destruction of earth and all its relationships senseless…discordant with the music, indigestible to the body, an illusion that disconnects us from the world.

Inspired by the work of poet Mahmoud Darwish.

Previous art and discussion on belonging to place:

Previous haibun:

Poetry
Haiku
Haibun
Move Me Poetry
Colonialism
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