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Words of Paradise
By PAULINE RIMAN
“Words of Paradise” is a collection of Papua New Guinea poems that
have been translated from the vernacular.
Published two years before the nation’s independence in 1975, it
joins Papua New Guinea’s list of classical literature from the
pre-independence or nationalist era.
The book was compiled by the well-known Nigerian editor and
anthologizer Ullie Beier whose contribution to the promotion and
encouragement of Papua New Guinean writing was profile throughout
the 1970’s and whom the writer to the book’s post face-Jerome
Rothenberg described as:”...a kind of cultural hero, a secret
piRediscovering artmpernel of tribal emergencies.”
Unlike the dominant anti-colonial sentiment of that era, Words of
Paradise entails poetry of varying and diverse themes that are
inherent to the common Papua New Guinean experience.
With over a hundred poems in the collection, from more than a
dozen authors from across the country, a total of thirteen themes
give a structured layout to the entire work of poems.
The first four themes are ‘Gods’, ‘Rituals’, ‘Charms’ and
‘Reflection’ which are representative of a traditional past deeply
rooted in spiritually.
It is not surprising to see works then from one of the best of
Papua New Guinea’s poets-Allan Natachee, from Mekeo who uses
traditional forms to express himself. Natachee’s chant-like prose
covers the entire theme on ‘Gods’, particularly the creationist
god Aia, this emphasizes his proud affiliation to his Papuan
heritage as well as intimate the influence of Christian ideas, as
seen in this excerpt from his poem The Cycle of A’asisa:
“Aia without beginning
Aia without end
Aia above the water
Aia has lived
Aia has watched
Above the darkness
Aia has lived
Aia has watched
Aia creator of our earth
Unfortunately, only two gods capture the first theme, i.e. the
creation god Aia and the sun god Kirope from Mekeo mythology.
It would have been phenomenal to have read more poetry from other
regions of Papua New Guinea which undoubtedly substantiate,
strengthen and diversify the theme on gods.
Another renowned poet from Manus, Kumalau Tawali contributed with
a poem entitled T’chani ceremony which is contained in the section
on the “Ritual’ theme.
Made up of eight stanzas, Tawali’s poem is about the initiation of
a young man named Pondros, and whereupon the traditional staple
food taro is specially prepared in accompaniment of the
incantation of ancestral names to sanctify the ritual:
“Tonight I call upon your spirit.
O great ancestors!
Weya, my your spirit dwell on this taro
Nanu, may your spirit dwell on this taro,
Poyep, may your spirit dwell on this taro,
Mwasin, may your spirit dwell n this taro.
...And now eat it, Pondros,
For it is the true taro of your ancestors,
Eat it, that you may have their greatness”
Much of the poetry on the “Ritual’ theme by other authors, like
Tawali’s mentioned poem, is also based on initiation and includes,
for instance, rituals depicting a girl’s first menstruation,
victory after a fight and at the end of the section a subject that
seems fitting-poems on funeral rituals authored by Julie Watson
translated from Kiriwina.
The section on charms is ‘charming’ (pardon the pun), especially
the short poem by Larius Huli called simply, Incantation against
aeroplanes which is translated from the Saposa language:
“you birds, big and white
You are strange and swift
Stiff winged creatures
Crushing us from above
Arrows cannot reach you
Spears cannot reach you
Our gods,
Release your powers
Smash them to the ground”
It is an interesting contrast to see such a potent traditional
formula such as a charm being used to ward off a mechanical
monstrosity of the 20th century such as the aeroplane.
The section concerning the “Occasional and Topical’ theme contains
poems that portray a similar contrast between the traditional and
contemporary elements of Papua New Guinean society whether they
constitute ideas, practices or instruments-they are essentially
poetry on everyday events in society.
‘Reflections’ as a theme in the book is difficult to describe,
what these poems essentially permeate are deep and careful thought
that reflect a traditional consciousness wherein certain rigid
common to Papua New Guinean society, especially in this poem
excerpt translated from the Kate language by Mitine Kemune where
the allusions to women are negative and seen as a deterrent to a
man’s masculinity:
“My son watch out
Eat not too much
Sleep no the long sleep p of young women”
Live like a dove
Let good be hear of you only
My son, act not like dogs
Who follow bitches in the mating season
Life with women make you inactive
In war you’ll be killed
Wild animal will escape you.
My son, share meat by hand, don’t step on it
Your house, let it be people’s house
Your orders, let them be obeyed, hand and foot
If some one brings you fight, carry it back.
Do this, and you’ll be a man “
Following the spiritual and reflective themes are the themes that
focus on the sentimental and emotive side of Papua New Guinea
life, and these include “Village Life’, ‘Love’, ‘Love Charms’,
“Abuse’ and ‘Laments’. The theme on ‘Love’ is the largest section
of the book and as such has an off shoot “Love ‘ is the largest
section of the book and as such has an offshoot “Love Charms’,
thus proving that the human condition of love, contrary to popular
Papua New Guinea belief is not an introduced Western concept but
in fact Love in all its infiniteness whether platonic or
romantic-although somewhat secretive-had a place in traditional
Papua New Guinea society. The final remaining sections of the
collection of poems are of the themes of “Children’ are youthful,
exuberant and playful, thus written for the enjoyment of children,
for example B. Nehemia Tolom’s poem translated from the Duke of
York Island language What will you eat?:
“Cat! Cat! Cat! Linga-ngau-ngau
What will you eat?
I will eat rat.
Pig!Pig!Pig! Mo-mo-mo.
What will you eat?
I will eat some nuts.
Frog! Frog!Frog! Rok-rok-rok
What will you eat?
I will eat an ant
Master! Master! Master!A-a-i
What will you eat?
I will eat some rice [90]
The last section on “Stores’ contains poems that, as the little
suggests, tell a story. The last and longest of all the other
poems in the collection is The Balland of Roroviri by M.E. Maso
translated from the Toaripi language, which spans over three
pages.
It is the story of the life of a cultural war hero named Roroviri
from the Gulf province of Papua New Guinea whose descendants are
the people of Lelefiru [101-104].
As Ullie Beier wrote in the Preface of the book “Poetry... is a
living tradition in New Guinea [11], one bears witness to the oral
traditions evolving into the form of the written word, in the
timeless art form of poetry. In Words of Paradise, poetry becomes
truly a reflection of a nation rooted in a cultural paradise Papua
New Guinea is certainly a utopia of orature.
 
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