African esotericism refers to the intersection of science, religion, cultural traditions, beliefs, art, and philosophy in both the African continent and the African diaspora.
Particularly in relation to Igbo religious tradition, African esotericism communicates "global ethical values" and "moral keys" to developing a morally sound community of persons.[2]
As of 2010, African diaspora religion such as Haitian Vodou and shamanism have been "aligned and bedeviled",[3] despite the goal of African esotericism being to understand "the universe and our place in it". African esotericism has also received limited scholarly attention.[4] A documentary interviewee states, "These systems have not been given the same mainstream attention or concentrated researched. That is why we don't understand it, and why it's deeemed negative. It's just lack of understanding."[3]
In the mid-20th century, Afrofuturism sparked a cultural, philosophical, and artist phenomenon,[5] which continues today. Afrofuturistic philosophy sparked the creation of the Black Panther Party circa 1966 during the American civil rights movement.[6] In the 1930s, the black nationalist movement religion Nation of Islam contained descriptions of extraterrestrial life such as that of Yakub and claiming that black individuals were of cosmic origin.[7][8] Additionally, "some [Nation of Islam] students became master esotericists" to unite science and religion in their interpretations of Elijah Muhammad's "cryptic teachings", which paralleled freemasonry, black supremacy, distinctions in the passage of time, and the cosmic symbolism of the Fez.[7]
In 2021, a Louisiana State UniversityHistory of Religion essay argued that "members of a heterogeneous Africana global community deploy secrecy, concealment, selective disclosure, and other strategies for the purposes of survival and flourishing", and "the exclusionary and centering claims of Western esoteric studies must themselves be understood as part of a larger European colonial enterprise that creates notions of the 'West'".[10]
Traditional Vodun dancer enchanting gods and spirits, in Ganvie, Benin
Traditional African religion, like most other ancient traditions around the world, were based on oral traditions. These traditions are not religious principles, but a cultural identity that is passed on through stories, myths and tales, from one generation to the next. The community, one’s family, and the environment, play an important role in one's personal life. Followers believe in the guidance of their ancestors spirits. Among many traditional African religions, there are spiritual leaders and kinds of priests. These individuals are essential in the spiritual and religious survival of the community. There are mystics that are responsible for healing and 'divining' - a kind of fortune telling and counseling, similar to shamans. These traditional healers have to be called by ancestors or gods. They undergo strict training and learn many necessary skills, including how to use natural herbs for healing and other, more mystical skills, like the finding of a hidden object without knowing where it is. Traditional African religions believe that ancestors maintain a spiritual connection with their living relatives. Most ancestral spirits are generally good and kind. Negative actions taken by ancestral spirits are to cause minor illnesses to warn people that they have gotten onto the wrong path.[13]
Native African religions are centered on ancestor worship, the belief in a spirit world, supernatural beings and free will (unlike the later developed concept of faith). Deceased humans (and animals or important objects) still exist in the spirit world and can influence or interact with the physical world. Forms of polytheism were widespread in most of ancient Africa and other regions of the world before the introduction of Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. An exception was the short-lived monotheistic religion created by Pharaoh Akhenaten, who made it mandatory to pray to his personal god Aten (see Atenism).[14] This remarkable change to traditional Egyptian religion was however reverted by his youngest son, Tutankhamun.[15][16][17][18] High gods, along with other more specialized deities, ancestor spirits, territorial spirits, and beings, are a common theme among traditional African religions, highlighting the complex and advanced culture of ancient Africa.[18][19][20] Some research suggests that certain monotheistic concepts, such as the belief in a high god or force (next to many other gods, deities and spirits, sometimes seen as intermediaries between humans and the creator) were present within Africa, before the introduction of Abrahamic religions. These indigenous concepts were different from the monotheism found in Abrahamic religions.[18][21][22][19]
Traditional Koku dancer
Traditional African medicine is also directly linked to traditional African religions. According to Clemmont E. Vontress, the various religious traditions of Africa are united by a basic Animism. According to him, the belief in spirits and ancestors is the most important element of African religions. Gods were either self-created or evolved from spirits or ancestors which got worshiped by the people. He also notes that most modern African folk religions were strongly influenced by non-African religions, mostly Christianity and Islam and thus may differ from the ancient forms.[23]
Traditional African religions generally hold the beliefs of life after death (a spirit world or realms, in which spirits, but also gods reside), with some also having a concept of reincarnation, in which deceased humans may reincarnate into their family lineage (blood lineage), if they want to, or have something to fulfill.[24] The Serer concept of reincarnation rejects the notion of the incarnation or reincarnation of the Supreme Deity and Creator Roog. However, the reincarnation of the Pangool or souls is a well-held belief in Serer spirituality.[25]
Jacob Olupona, Nigerian American professor of indigenous African religions at Harvard University, summarized the many traditional African religions as complex animistic religious traditions and beliefs of the African people before the Christian and Islamic "colonization" of Africa. Ancestor veneration has always played a "significant" part in the traditional African cultures and may be considered as central to the African worldview. Ancestors (ancestral ghosts/spirits) are an integral part of reality. The ancestors are generally believed to reside in an ancestral realm (spiritworld), while some believe that the ancestors became equal in power to deities.[27]
The defining line between deities and ancestors is often contested, but overall, ancestors are believed to occupy a higher level of existence than living human beings and are believed to be able to bestow either blessings or illness upon their living descendants. Ancestors can offer advice and bestow good fortune and honor to their living descendants, but they can also make demands, such as insisting that their shrines be properly maintained and propitiated. A belief in ancestors also testifies to the inclusive nature of traditional African spirituality by positing that deceased progenitors still play a role in the lives of their living descendants.
Olupona rejects the western/Islamic definition of monotheism and says that such concepts could not reflect the complex African traditions and are too simplistic. While some traditions have a supreme being (next to other deities), others have not. Monotheism does not reflect the multiplicity of ways that the traditional African spirituality has conceived of deities, gods, and spirit beings. He summarizes that traditional African religions are not only religions, but a worldview, a way of life.[27]
Gallery
A drapo that serves as an intermediary between humans and gods in West African Vodún. The ritual drawings and colors refer to Lwa, and Dambala (rainbow serpent of the water element, associated with the cosmos). The heart and pink color represent Erzulie.
↑ Fennell, Christopher. "Multivalent Symbols of an Enclosing Hand". African Diaspora Archaeology Network. Chris Fennell of the Department of African American Studies, Center for African Studies, and the Department of Anthropology at the University of Illinois. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
↑ Masaeli, Mahmoud; Sneller, Rico (2020-01-02). Responses of Mysticism to Religious Terrorism: Sufism and Beyond. Gompel&Svacina. ISBN978-94-6371-190-6. "esotericism is important in communicating global ethical values and the development of a morally sound community of persons. In the contemporary world, judges, police, etc. could be seen as bearers of the Ikenga..." (264). "...esotericism could be an essential moral key to unlocking the pedagogy of ethics of patriotism for the country for community development. Igbo mysticism could be a good starting point for raising moral consciousness among Nigerians" (266)
↑ Hexham, Irvin ((1981), Lord of the Sky-King of the earth: Zulu Traditional Religion and Belief in the Skrelicsy God, Sciences Religieuses Studies in Religion, vol. 10: 273-78)
1 2 3 Okwu AS (1979). "Life, Death, Reincarnation, and Traditional Healing in Africa". Issue: A Journal of Opinion. 9 (3): 19–24. doi:10.2307/1166258. JSTOR1166258.
↑ Ehret, Christopher (November 2004). "A Conversation with Christopher Ehret". World History Connected (Interview). Interviewed by Laichas, Tom. Retrieved 30 May 2020. (Citation with date provided here)
1 2 Salamone, Frank A. (2004). Levinson, David (ed.). Encyclopedia of Religious Rites, Rituals, and Festivals. New York: Routledge. p.5. ISBN0-415-94180-6.
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