Ghana Day #48:
Gye Nyame

 

When King Appiah fetched me, for our second trip to Kokrobite, he was wearing a particularly dashing shirt. ( See Day#21 )

 

When I complimented him on it, he told me that it is an Akan Adinkra pattern called Gye Nyame, which means ‘Less God’ or ’Except God’.

 

Nothing exists without God.

“My Superdry t-shirt cannot really compete with that, now can it?” I said. Which made King Appiah giggle.

 

While I was waiting for King Appiah to pick me up after my surf, I met Kobby one of the local artists. ( See Day#13 )

 

Kobby asked me whether he could show me some of his art, while I waited. One painting, in particular, caught my eye.

 

It reminded me of a Miro or a Kandinsky. I bought it, without even doing my 2,727 x table. I still don’t know what I paid for it!

 

I love it.

 

 

It was only when I showed it to King Appiah later that he said, “You bought one with the symbol you like.”

 

And there it was. The Gye Nyame.

 

My painting was “Less God”.

 

Since that day, I have seen Gye Nyame everywhere.

 

On fabrics, in paintings, on gates.

 

Nothing exists without God.