In her latest poetry book, ‘Die With Me’, Zimbabwe’s much-loved Princess of Mbira, Hope Masike explores spirituality through horror poetry.
Zimbo Jam writer and book reviewer Sarah Nyengerai spoke to Hope about her move from sensuous poesy, her passion for societal consciousness, and the quest for self-knowledge and identity.
SN: You are renowned for your love for art and sensual expression through music. Die With Me is your third poetry book. Congratulations on this achievement. What was the inspiration behind the shift to horror poetry?
HM: Thank you! My themes are inspired by – pardon the cliché – life. I enjoy exploring varied issues in my writing, as life dishes itself to us. Be it everything currently happening in my life or through the experiences of friends or stories I encounter through books, movies etcetera that can inspire a theme for a poem or an entire book.
Add to that, I am drawn to themes I consider under-explored.
Die With Me came about from similar inspirations and spiritual journeys I’ve had the honour of embarking on, plus (I must add) a love I used to have for horror movies.
SN: Has a poem ever frightened you? If so, what was the poem?
HM: Nah. I am yet to find a poem that really frightens me.
My reason for liking horror movies back then is that I had a hard time finding content that would truly grip me, keep me glued and get me deliciously tense. Similarly, when I did research for Die With Me, I looked for horror poems and found none of them to be frightening or horrific, including poetry labelled as ‘horror’ poetry.
Add to that, when I wrote my horror poems, I felt they were more graphic and unusually daring but not quite as horrific. Yet, thematically, the most befitting category remains ‘horror’ poetry.
SN: Your author’s note is a thought-provoking and detailed read that takes readers through Zimbabwe’s faces of religion and spirituality and their impact on ‘the quest for meaning and answers’. Please share more on this excerpt from the note — As an existentialist side-enquiry, is what we need/want ever supposed to be that important?
HM: As I rightly point out in the introduction to Die With Me, I have the privilege of being a social commentator, deliberately highlighting through my poetry and music, issues and topics I consider important.
I believe we must constantly interrogate and keep in check things we want and think we need, that way, needs and wants never imprison us at any given point in life.
As I wrote Die With Me, I found myself wondering, if human wants and or needs are meant to be the most important thing in our lives. Is life by nature, designed to solely be about wants and are we not missing out on life by excessively glorifying our wants and needs? To illustrate, my poems are based on two spiritual routes, namely, Chivanhu and Christianity, both of which I think are, unfortunately, misinterpreted in many ways. However, as Die With Me shows, people tend to rally more towards either religion (or both) in the unrelenting pursuit of their desires for the reason that, celebrants of either form of religion predominantly focus on the satisfaction of wants and needs.
SN: Your collection navigates topics such as depression and suicidal thoughts. With the recent rise in mental health awareness, how do you cope with the ebbs of life?
HM: Being a creative is a gift and a calling that blesses the artist and others. Our work can act as positive escapism if artists channel it cleverly.
When what we are experiencing in our lives and the lives of those around us is unsweet or unpleasant, we have the power to actively (and lucratively) turn it into lemonade, through art, music and poetry.
German philosopher, prose poet and cultural critic Nietzsche wrote; poets are shameless with their experiences: they exploit them. And so, I believe that wise creatives must use their craft to cope with life’s lows.
SN: You infused a short story titled ‘Flower by The Grave’, an apt write-up, relevant to the current religious status quo in Zimbabwe and the infamous ‘blesser’ culture. What do you hope readers learn or glean from it?
HM: The short story is based on actual events and incidences I have heard of, some of which are from as far back as childhood.
The global message in the tale is that all forms of religion have honest people and ‘crooks’. For example, the Bible is clear that there shall be false prophets and our Shona culture has sayings such as ‘zino irema’, which cautions that, just because a person smiles at you (offers a helping hand) it doesn’t necessarily mean they mean well. Furthermore, the tale explores the importance of us knowing for ourselves, what we believe in and why.
Gundamusaira is dangerous.
The story also teaches against an excessive love for material possessions and highlights the consequences of a lack of self-belief. That being said, there are numerous lessons for readers. I cannot exhaust them all. One has to read the story to take in all the lessons.
SN: I am sure I don’t speak for myself when I say that ‘Flower by The Grave’ leaves readers wanting more of the story. Could this be the beginning of Hope as a short story writer or possibly a novel?
HM: Certainly. I wrote this short story as an attempt at the form, and I must say I enjoyed the process. So yes, I would love to write more stories.
SN: The poem, ‘Nothing’, made me chuckle. It is very cheeky and satirically loud. Furthermore, it gets readers thinking. Without giving much away about the contents, share your inspiration behind ‘Nothing’.
HM: I am happy it made you chuckle. There is an African proverb that says ‘Our wasted days are days we never laugh’.
The poem ‘Nothing’ was meant to communicate the nothingness of ‘unanswered’ prayers. Sometimes there is just nothing, of course for many possible reasons. But- oh, how empty nothing is. The same poem can be taken to mean many other things.
Moreover, what better words could have depicted a poem titled Nothing?
SN: Please share with your readers your top three poems from Die with Me.
HM: I always say having to choose a favourite piece for an artist is unfair. I equate it to a parent being asked to pick a favourite child. Nevertheless, here is my choice at this moment.
- Tied
I love Tied, because it has a lovely drawing to go with it and because I enjoy exploring the phenomenon of ‘soul ties’.
- Legal Right.
I have a love-hate relationship with ‘The Law’. I love it for the obvious reason that it helps a lot in keeping order. But I do not like that the law is not necessarily always the same as justice.
- So We Snap.
I love long poems, So We Snap is a compelling and honest poem about how people end up losing hope. But the hope is that we never lose hope. So the poem paints a picture of the ugliness of losing hope.
SN: If you could collaborate or interview, one poet. Whom would it be and why?
HM: There are too many to mention. I would love to sit down and talk to ‘every’ poet. Poets are beautiful minds. As Plato said, ‘Poetry is closer to vital truth than history’. So I’m afraid I cannot choose one because I desire all truths. However, for now, I will indicate two from Zimbabwe.
Jazz musician Dudu Manhenga – I enjoy her Christian poems. Another one is, spoken word artist and activist Batsirai Chigama. The three of us have conversed over coffee and it was nothing short of magical.
SN: In closing, where can readers purchase Die With Me?
HM: Die With Me, along with my last two books, are available through the following options
Signed copies are available from myself and my team – contact us via Whatsapp on +263 779 626 881
House of Books ZW online shop https://houseofbookszim.com/
House of Books ZW are reachable on the following social media pages:
Instagram – @houseofbookszim and Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/theHOBZim/
Die With Me will be available on Amazon in a fortnight or so. We will announce on social media once it’s up.
Evidently, Hope Masike’s inclusion of horror poetry as a genre demonstrates her versatility as an artist. Her ability to venture into unchartered territory deemed taboo reflects her explorative personality and her desire to understand spirituality, culture and history. Furthermore, her poetry allows readers to express and connect with their emotions to make room for the rediscovery of self
