Fawohodie

Adinkra symbol of independence: freedom, with the responsibility it brings.

Fawohodie means independence, and the Adinkra symbol stands for freedom and emancipation. The proverb usually linked to it adds an important condition: independence comes with its responsibilities. Being free is not only being released from something; it also means carrying your own life and the duties that come with it.

The symbol has a strong place in Ghana's history. In 1957 Ghana became one of the first African countries to gain independence from colonial rule, and Fawohodie became one of the signs of that moment. Across the diaspora it is also linked to emancipation from slavery, and in Suriname and the Netherlands it fits naturally with the remembrance of Keti Koti.

The symbol shows an X shape drawn with a double outline. Like other Adinkra symbols, it is printed on cloth and used in decoration, clothing and art.

It sits naturally beside Sankofa, which asks you to remember where you come from, and Hye Won Hye, which speaks of what endures.

The responsibility the proverb speaks of reaches beyond the self. A free person, family or nation answers for its own choices and can no longer blame them on someone else. In that sense Fawohodie is a sign of maturity as much as of celebration: freedom is something you keep by using it well. That double meaning is why the symbol is chosen for moments of passage, such as leaving home, starting something of your own or marking a national day.

In dreams, chains falling away, a door opening, leaving a house for a home of your own, or a gate being unlocked can be read in an Akan way with this meaning. Such dreams often come when someone is gaining independence, from parents, a relationship, a job or an old way of living, or longs to. Read with Fawohodie, the dream welcomes the freedom, and asks what responsibility you are ready to carry with it.