African Philosophy and Intelligence, Part 2

By Dr. Josef Ben Levi 

Presented by Omni-U Virtual University

It is virtually an impossibility to understand the culture of any nation, especially ancient Kemet, without being grounded in their language. Language is the very heart of a people's conceptual frame of reference. Dr. Theophile Obenga pointed out the significance of studying ancient languages and their relationship to African philosophy. He said:

"So, the news is that a history of African philosophy is possible. The catch is that the production of such a history is a particularly exacting task. For it requires nothing less than a fluent knowledge of ancient Egyptian, Greek, Latin and Arabic, in addition to mastery of the techniques and methods associated with the history of philosophy. Without Greek, no scholar can acquire a genuine grounding in the Western philosophical tradition. Without ancient Egyptian, the restoration of the authentic tradition of Black African philosophy- in its most chronological aspect- its fundamental manifestation- remains impossible" (Obenga, 2004, p.16).

The importance of having language skills cannot be emphasized enough. In fact, the failure of most critiques on ancient African thought has to do with a lack of grounding in the language. This, however, is not only true of ancient Egyptian thought; it is true of those who claim to be Christian ministers and Muslim Imams. In speaking of the value of knowing Hebrew and Greek for the study of the Old and New Testaments one writer has stated:

 "Without some knowledge of Hebrew and Greek, you cannot appreciate the critical discussions, now so frequent, relating to the books of the Old and New Testament. Without some knowledge of Hebrew and Greek, you cannot be certain, in a single instance, that in your sermon based on a Scripture text, you are presenting the correct teaching of that text. Without some knowledge of Hebrew and Greek, you cannot be an independent student or a reliable interpreter of the word of God" (Berry, 1992, p. i).

As stated previously, I have devoted myself to the study of ancient languages, particularly Medew Netcher, in order to unlock the treasures of wisdom that are only located in the thoughts of the ancient dwellers on the Nile River (Budge, 1926/1977). That is also why critical discourse analysis (CDA) is an important tool in developing a methodological framework for this project.  Discourse analysis is about studying the use of language.  Critical discourse analysis correlates well with the conceptual framework of Sebayeet [1]as an African-centered philosophy of education because it" encompasses an even wider sphere that includes all of the social practices, individuals, and institutions that make it legitimate -or possible- to understand phenomena in a particular way, and to make certain statements about what is "true" (Hodges, et al., 2008). 

CDA is also concerned with power, language usage, and how particular forms of discourse systematically construct versions of the social world in the Foucauldian[2] sense and also in the way in which language is used as a tool to communicate institutional roles in the lives of individuals and how their roles are dictated in terms of thinking and speaking (Foucault, 1972).

What European Egyptologists call Egyptian “religion and  magic" are mis-characterizations of their systems of thought or philosophy. Without a solid understanding of African culture -through an African lens- their vision has been blurred by hegemonic practices and thoughts.  The ancient Egyptians did not have a word for "magic" or "religion" since, in the beginning of their existence, the Persians- from whom we get the word “magic”- were not a factor in civilization and the Latins- from whom we get the word “religion”- did not exist as an organized people.

The two terms that are mis-characterized are “Hekaw”, which means “spiritual power through speech”, or “the word”,. which came to be indentified with the Greek  “Logos” ( λογος) meaning "reasoned discourse." This is so often misunderstood in the Biblical New Testament book of John 1:1 where it says, " Εν αρχΰ ήν ό λογος" (en arxhes hn o logos) and mistranslated as, "in the beginning was the word...". 

It was through "speech" that all things manifested themselves in ancient Kemetic thought. To make that possible one had to have Sia, or perception, clarity of thought and knowledge (Allen, 2001; Obenga, 2004). It still remains true in all African cultures- including African American culture- that speech or verbal communication is a significant aspect of existence (Dillard, 1973; Smitherman, 1977; Stoller, 1975).

The ancient Egyptians had four classical systems of thought which were attached to different communities along the Nile. They were: Hermopolitan, Heliopolitan, Memphite, and Theban. Each of these systems shared common philosophical principles. These included an ontological approach which stated that the universe was not created out of nothing since an uncreated matter has always existed. They called this uncreated matter- Tem (often mistranslated as Atum). Tem encompassed all of the elements within an original single source just like the primordial singularity of the Big Bang theory in modern physics. This uncreated matter embodied principles of order and harmony called- Maat. This fundamental matter contained- not only the archetypes- but, a principle of transformation or - Kheperi- the ever evolving One, whereby matter would evolve according to the dictates of the universal principle. It could best be described as "it that evolved by itself" - -Kheper djes ef.

Khepera was within Nuni -  wateriness. Under the influence of Khepera -which manifest itself as self-consciousness in the form of the Sun or Ra or what the Greeks called Helios ( Ηελιοϛ). Next there was  - it Neterew- the ruling forces that carried - Nini- infinity, -Hehew -finiteness,  - Kekew - perpetual darkness, and - imen - hiddenness, unknowness. This term is often- and again- mis-translated as Amun or Amen. These four and their complements: Nini-Ninet, Hehew-Hehwet, Kekew-Kekewt, and Imen-Imenet made up the - Khemeneyew - or "eight infinite ones" (Assmann, 2002; Hornung, 1996; Obenga, 2004). 

The Greeks upon learning this concept referred to them as the Ogdoad (Ογδοαδ) or "group of eight".  Plotinus later borrows them by utilizing the ancient Egyptian notion of - pesdjet - or "group of nine" which is the sum total of all the elements and forces in the universe and creates a text called the "Ennead" (Hutchins, 1952).

When one reads these famous Greek texts and then reade those of the philosophies of ancient Egypt, it is more than obvious that so-called early Greek speculative thought did not have its origins in the Greek mainland. In fact, at the time when we are to believe that the Greeks were engaged in contemplative activities- a practice that requires the kind of peaceful environment in which  the ancient Egyptians found themselves  until the reign the Ahmosis II (570-526 B.C)- when he allowed the Greek Carians and Ionians in as mercenaries against the Persian invaders. That was before the ultimate conquest of Egypt in 332 B.C. by Alexander of Macedonia. 

The Greek city-states were actually at war with each other throughout the Peloponnese and, later, with the Persians (Herodotus, 1942; Thucydides, 1972).

That is why, in my view, so many American and European university courses in philosophy focus on what are called the European continentalists: Descartes, Heidegger, Hume, Kant, Kierkegaard, Mill, Nietzsche, Rousseau, Wittgenstein, etc. They are safe within the Western European worldview, and they leave little room for challenges to their evolutionary state. But if students have to take a serious look at the pre-Socratic thinkers: Thales, Anaximander, Anaximenes, etc. or the Socratics: Plato and Aristotle, they might start asking questions about the origins of their thoughts and how they were transmitted to the West (Al-Khalil, 2010; Freely, 2009; Hornung, 2001; James, 1954; McGinnis & Reisman, 2007; Pollard & Reid, 2006; Volney, 1802/1950).

The Western philosophical tradition in the academy seems to have forgotten the significant influence of Giordano Bruno in Italy on the resurgence of philosophical study in Europe during the period known as the "renaissance"- a term that was coined to define the rebirth ,or return, to the classical tradition in the arts and philosophy. During this period, there was a fascination with the origin and chronology of European ideas. It was Giordano Bruno that considered Egyptian philosophical ideas through the Hermetica to be the earliest and oldest, as opposed to Judaism and Christianity, which he viewed as later and worse. By the seventeenth century, the Hermetica was basic reading for all potential philosophers and theologians (de Leon-Jones, 1997; Freke & Gandy, 1999).

This is why CDA is relevant to Sebayeet. If we don't take the time to understand the importance of language  to the construction of identities and how it looks at historical processes intent on tracing the intertextual history of phrases and arguments augmented by original documents, ethnographic research about their past, and political discourse- the challenge to false discourses will never take place. Without the incorporation of visual images into concepts of discourse as well as the social production of inequality, power, ideology, authority and manipulation of historical realities, African American students will remain within the deconstructed lives they continue to endure in the school system. If  not provided the opportunity to confront some of these concerns and engage in a level of critical discourse which allows for higher-order thinking skills- while not assuming that providing this type of learning is too much for them to handle- a real sense of education cannot take place. These are the same Hegelian principles that have been used to produce the ideologies of racism perpetuated in “education”- in this case the education of African- Americans, particularly as it relates to identity formation and representations of the ancient African self in the Nile Valley.

BlogNotes 

[1] Instruction in deep thought  philosophy. 

[2] Foucault believed that knowledge and power are inseparable, and coined the term "power/knowledge" to express this idea. 

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