Gedicht
Chris Magadza
ODE TO A STAR
ODE TO A STAR
ODE TO A STAR
Ere the Bethlehem star rose
To herald the new born State and
Hope and joy
To all citizens
Of this sacred land
This land promised
To us by our forefathers
This smiling land;
One lonely star,
Having traversed the troubled
Skies of Zimbabwe,
Set to rest.
Now darkness and gloom
Pervade this still born
Ill-fated nation.
Rest, troubled soul, Ndabaningi.
Rest Musharukwa, rest Chirandu
And know;
That the flame you kindled
Will perpetually burn
Like a lighthouse beacon,
For ever guiding
This floundering ship
To its destiny . . .
The beckoning shores
Of Zimbabwe.
And every child’s first utterance
Shall be
“We are our own liberators”
To herald the new born State and
Hope and joy
To all citizens
Of this sacred land
This land promised
To us by our forefathers
This smiling land;
One lonely star,
Having traversed the troubled
Skies of Zimbabwe,
Set to rest.
Now darkness and gloom
Pervade this still born
Ill-fated nation.
Rest, troubled soul, Ndabaningi.
Rest Musharukwa, rest Chirandu
And know;
That the flame you kindled
Will perpetually burn
Like a lighthouse beacon,
For ever guiding
This floundering ship
To its destiny . . .
The beckoning shores
Of Zimbabwe.
And every child’s first utterance
Shall be
“We are our own liberators”
© 2006, Chris Magadza
From: Father and other poems
Publisher: Poetry International Web,
From: Father and other poems
Publisher: Poetry International Web,
Harare, 2001
‘Ode to a Star’ was written in reminiscence of Ndabaningi Sithole, founder
of the Zimbabwe National Union (ZANU). The Shona people, in addition to
their family identity, have a clan identity : ‘mutupo’, often called a
totem by western anthropologists, who confuse this with the West African
carved idols associated with tribal affinity. Ndabaningi’s mutupo was
Chirandu. In essence, the idea of mutupo is to discourage inbreeding, as
it is normally prohibited to marry within the same clan. ‘Musharukwa’ is
the Ndau equivalent of the Swahili Mzee, meaning a wise old man. The
quotes are from a book by Sithole of that title. CM.
Gedichten
Gedichten van Chris Magadza
Close
ODE TO A STAR
Ere the Bethlehem star rose
To herald the new born State and
Hope and joy
To all citizens
Of this sacred land
This land promised
To us by our forefathers
This smiling land;
One lonely star,
Having traversed the troubled
Skies of Zimbabwe,
Set to rest.
Now darkness and gloom
Pervade this still born
Ill-fated nation.
Rest, troubled soul, Ndabaningi.
Rest Musharukwa, rest Chirandu
And know;
That the flame you kindled
Will perpetually burn
Like a lighthouse beacon,
For ever guiding
This floundering ship
To its destiny . . .
The beckoning shores
Of Zimbabwe.
And every child’s first utterance
Shall be
“We are our own liberators”
To herald the new born State and
Hope and joy
To all citizens
Of this sacred land
This land promised
To us by our forefathers
This smiling land;
One lonely star,
Having traversed the troubled
Skies of Zimbabwe,
Set to rest.
Now darkness and gloom
Pervade this still born
Ill-fated nation.
Rest, troubled soul, Ndabaningi.
Rest Musharukwa, rest Chirandu
And know;
That the flame you kindled
Will perpetually burn
Like a lighthouse beacon,
For ever guiding
This floundering ship
To its destiny . . .
The beckoning shores
Of Zimbabwe.
And every child’s first utterance
Shall be
“We are our own liberators”
From: Father and other poems
Harare, 2001
‘Ode to a Star’ was written in reminiscence of Ndabaningi Sithole, founder
of the Zimbabwe National Union (ZANU). The Shona people, in addition to
their family identity, have a clan identity : ‘mutupo’, often called a
totem by western anthropologists, who confuse this with the West African
carved idols associated with tribal affinity. Ndabaningi’s mutupo was
Chirandu. In essence, the idea of mutupo is to discourage inbreeding, as
it is normally prohibited to marry within the same clan. ‘Musharukwa’ is
the Ndau equivalent of the Swahili Mzee, meaning a wise old man. The
quotes are from a book by Sithole of that title. CM.
ODE TO A STAR
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