Split-Open Planet consists of a collection of Jidi Majia latest poems, speeches and interviews that, read together, form a compelling portrait of the most popular ethnic poet China has to offer in the past three decades .
With the publication of his first poetic volume"Songs of First Love" at the age of 22, Jidi majia won the national poetic prize and established himself as the most popular ethnic poet in China(China's small minority nationalities totalling 80 miilion divided into 55 separate groups), for both critics and his devoted readership.
Now, in this book, , he takes us on a figurative journey, exploring the challenges and joys of the human experience through the eyes of the son of a former chief in a remote tribe in Western China.
Jidi Majia's prodigious poetic output centers around the ethnic elements, ranging from his Yi identity to humanity. Major variants concern social issues and olden verities in present day China and the world, both practiced with intelligence and skill, earning him a lasting niche with passing years.
Vilified with good sense and sentiment, and peppered with Yi animistic beliefs and wisdom, his work adresses elemental themes about conservation of our physical world and cultural diversity, the innocence and sacredness of indigenous cultures, his terrestrial connection to Land and Life etc.
Included are his two latest long poems such as The Belated Elegy, praised as "an impressive poetic concept, mirroring the spiritual evolution and wealth of philosophy of the Yi people" as well as The Split Planet, in which he shows himself most gainly as a poet-thinker meditating on the invisible "world war" provoked by the corona-virus pandemic, conveying the tragedy spliting our world while broadening our understanding of our contemporary realities.. Both have been translated into17 languages and have had a sizable impact on reders home and abroad.
A poet in action, Jidi Majia has initiated a number of high-profile international poetic events such as Qinghai Lake International Poetry Festival, Chengdu Intl Poetry Week etc.These events have turned out to be a worldwide cataclysmic event, an integrative process, fostering a sense of shared ideals among poets from around the world.Thet prove high points for Chinese poets who find themselves united together with their overseas peers by both prosodic and cultural causes.
