Thursday, August 27, 2015

Carpe Diem My favorite haiku by ... #3 Adjei Agyei Baah "peak of Kilimanjaro"


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

"My favorite haiku by ..." is a wonderful feature here at CDHK and I am glad to present to you an all new episode of this feature.
Recently we had Adjei Agyei Baah, a haiku poet from Ghana, as our featured haiku poet  and I am still in contact with him. Not so long ago he emailed me a series of new haiku and I love to share a few of them here with you ... and I will tell you a little bit more about my favorite haiku written by Adjei.

one nature’s beauty
observed in a single look
peak of Kilimanjaro 

© Adjei Agyei Baah


Credits: Mount Kilimanjaro

Adjei has already shared beautiful haiku, or as he calls them, afriku, with us all at CDHK. I think that Adjei is a very talented haiku poet and I just had to bring him in here again.
Why is this one of my favorite haiku by Adjei? Well ... it's a magnificent scene as you look at the image of Kilimanjaro. This mountain is really beautiful with its peak covered with eternal snow rising above the green-yellow land of Africa. Adjei has caught that beauty in a great way ... it feels like a holy moment, here you can feel the greatness of the Creator.

Kilimanjaro, the name itself is a mystery wreathed in clouds. It might mean Mountain of Light, Mountain of Greatness or Mountain of Caravans. Or it might not. The local people, the Wachagga, don't even have a name for the whole massif, only Kipoo (now known as Kibo) for the familiar snowy peak that stands imperious, overseer of the continent, the summit of Africa.
Kilimanjaro, by any name, is a metaphor for the compelling beauty of East Africa. When you see it, you understand why. Not only is this the highest peak on the African continent; it is also the tallest free-standing mountain in the world, rising in breathtaking isolation from the surrounding coastal scrubland – elevation around 900 meters – to an imperious 5,895 meters (19,336 feet).


Credits: Mount Kilimanjaro (Mountain of Light)

How to catch the beauty of Kilimanjaro (or any other mountain) in a haiku? I really don't know. I have never seen it in real, but as I look at the images I am overwhelmed with emotions. Look at its beauty, its greatness ... it really is a Mountain of Light or as other sources call it Mountain of Greatness.

Adjei's haiku catches that beauty, that overwhelming greatness in a wonderful way ... it makes me speechless and humble. I am imagining standing at the foot of Kilimanjaro ... nailed to the ground, because of its mighty features ... I just have to make it to the peak to adore the beauty of Africa ...

overwhelmed
tears rolling down my cheeks
Africa seen from the sky

© Chèvrefeuille

Awesome ... I can almost sense that moment ... standing on the peak of Kilimanjaro, it feels so real and I have never been there. Thanks to Adjei I can feel Africa, I can feel how magnificent the view is from the top of Kilimanjaro. It feels like Heaven ...

!! More haiku by Adjei Agyei Baah you can find at his weblog Afrikuland !!

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until next Thursday September 3rd at noon (CET).

3 comments:

  1. Kristjaan: great post yet again.
    I am sharing something that hits me in the way Kilimanjaro does you.

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  2. I forgot to say that it was your own haiku that moved me most and that inspired me to write about the awe which some creations engender.

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  3. Very nice post - and inspiring.

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