Notes on Marimba Ani’s “Yurugu” Lecture

Listen Siblings, I come in peace,

“The problem with Europeans and Asians is Europeans and Asians; the solutions for Africans is Africans.” — Onitaset Kumat

Today we study the thought patterns of Europeans (Occidentalism) and Africans (Originalism) with the help of Marimba Ani.  This is important, without an understanding of human natures, we can’t even begin to address our problems.  For example, “Black on Black” violence is a question of nature.  Does the African’s non-interracial society revolve around the murder of Africans?  What about Europeans to Europeans?  The European’s non-interracial society is seen in Ancient Rome’s conquest of Ancient Greece, the Vandals conquest of Ancient Rome, and the Dark Ages thereafter.  The Africans non-interracial society was, say, Ancient Ethiopia which ethically unified the Continent of Africa.  Enough said.  Marimba Ani is an excellent scholar whose video should open your mind to a new way of thinking.  She will show how European thought developed to quell their infighting and increase their outfighting.  Below, I provide notes in case two-hours of audio is too much for you.  This took a great amount of effort.  Please show appreciation by subscribing and sharing.  Please show your interest by writing about helping to build institutions of learning in your area and distributing our flyer.  These African Blood Siblings Community Centers can provide a space for your community members to be their African selves.  Subscribe, share, love.

The following citations are made:

[1] The Allegory of the Headless Chicken — Understanding “Profits”
[2] Excerpt from the Foreword for “A Quest [ . . .]“ — Spiritual Losses
[3] Marimba Ani coined the phrase “MAAFA”
[4] This is America: The Dependent African–CHANGE — Our Conditions
[5] A Basic Course in Swahili – Our Language
[6] Diop’s Two Cradle Theory — Southern/Northern Cradle
[7] Excerpt, The Authorship of the Republic [ . . .] by George James – Stolen Legacy
[8] Kmt Self-knowledge and Cosmic wisdom [quotations] – Ancient Wisdom
[9] The Monthly Meeting Place — In Person
[10] The Allegory of the School Presentation – Learned Mannerisms
[11] Constantine dreamed of a cross with a message: “Conquer by this”
[12] Letter from King Leopold II of Belgium to Colonial Missionaries, 1883 — Missionary’s Aim
[13] The Dagara are a good example for comparison
[14] Critique of Race Traitor’s “Abolish the White Race”  — Occidental Activism

Notes on Marimba Ani’s “Yurugu” Lecture
By Onitaset Kumat

Video:

First 10 minutes.

Yurugu comes from Dogon mythology.  In their complex cosmology, Amma, the Creator, created all beings with twin souls: Male and Female parts which represent the whole being.  Yurugu was a being who tore himself from the process of gestation because in arrogance he wanted to create a better earth than the creator.  When he did create things, he created things incompletely.  Nothing Yurugu created was complete because he was incomplete.  So noticing this, he returned to the Creator for his female part, but the Creator already gave it away.  So Yurugu was forever incomplete and could now only destroy and yet never be fulfilled.  This is the nature of European cultural thought and behavior [what African Blood Siblings calls “Occidentalism.“]

Marimba Ani’s calling was from noticing that in Graduate Schools, Africans studied Africans and that information was used to control Africans.  She decided against being ‘useful’ to Europeans.  She decided to turn the table, and study Europeans under a microscope.

She mentions that Europeans are very capable at masking their intentions and postures against Non-Europeans[1].  She released her book “Yurugu” to expose their European culture: “the consistent machine for the achievement of European power and control of the Universe.”

One effect on our people, is that we are trained in school to deny the strengths of ourselves.  For instance, since Plato’s time, the academy has despiritualized the Universe.  So the more time one spends in the Academy, the more is despiritualized.  This is despite that African people are a spiritual people.

She claims that her work is not “objective,” mostly because objectivity can not happen.  You have to describe things from your cultural viewpoint.  It’s a lie that we eat up when we believe that someone or something is objective.  More, being unobjective to Europe is being apolitical: We do not need that.

She says that we need to focus on young African people as they are less conditioned to support European power.  They still have their spirituality and can challenge Europe, but the elderly are less able to go against the parameters of Europe.  It should be the youth who are consulted on our liberation, for they are more in touch with what’s natural to African people.  The youth see the greater urgency in African people building for self as opposed to imitating forms that continue our oppression.

Second ten minutes.

She continues that we don’t notice what we lost.[2]  Yet we live it in how we talk and what we create musically.  But we do not consciously recognize our spirituality as a strength.  And unfortunately, we see the European viewpoint in the classroom as the only way to think–this sacrifices our own power.

Asked how we came to be how we are today, we need to look at the MAAFA.[3]We have been stripped to become ‘dependent’ on European people.[4]  This came about from terrorism and cultural violence–a breaking of the will.  We then came to a period where we mistakenly thought that we were free.  But we are still thinking within the European modality–as determined by those who oppress us and controls us.  The question is–“Who controls how you think?”  We have the ability to use our own modalities, but we don’t.  Though we have the ability to be independent, we’re almost mentally enslaving ourselves to dependence.  That’s what the book says.

The way of Europe’s control is that it makes you accept a concept of reality which makes them superior, but if you deny that, they will lose their control.  The problem is that this re-definition starts at three years of age.  They tell you that African spirituality represents backwardness.  And now we distrust ourselves.

Asked how we can conceive ourselves different from “Democrats” and “Baptists” we look at African-centered Education.  Ani explains how when we open our minds to how young Europe is and what we had done before Europe came about, challenging Europe is easier.

Third ten minutes.

It’s important to credit the ancestors in order to re-assert our concept of the Universe.  We need to understand from where our energy comes.  So she approached studying the Europeans using African conceptions.  Thus she developed concepts from the African world-view.  One of which is “Asili” (see above under vocabulary) which is a Ki-Swahili[5] word which means “seed” or “Origin.”  This was done to counteract ideas that Europe is too vast and diverse to be explained.  This term explains the core of Europe[6] which accurately gets to the consistency of European development.  So though we are thrown by exceptions, this concept of “Asili” shows the consistency.  The nature of the European Asili  (what African Blood Siblings calls “Occidentalism”) is to seek power–it’s almost one which lacks wholeness–like Yurugu–the incomplete being.   Their Asili can not be fulilled through spirit, but it is fulfilled through power, or power over others.  Thus, all of their ideas is for the purpose of achieving European power.

The reason for Europe’s unique success at world domination is that everything within their culture supports the quest for domination.  Everything!  Including and most importantly, their Philosophical concepts.  More: Truth, Academies, Academia, Intellectuals, Christianity as it manifests itself with European development.  All of these.

To understand the European worldview, we have to understand the African worldview (what African Blood Siblings calls Originalism).  Our view is that there’s a spiritual whole, such that everything is connected.  We experience ourselves as spiritual, and almost cosmic  beings, in that we are connected to nature, the forces of nature, and each other, as this is how we define ourselves.  So interaction and complementarity are important.  Material reality is just how Spirit manifests itself.

On the other hand, in the European worldview, humans become separate and distinct individuals.  The only way to know anything about the Universe is to separate oneself from it–and create the ‘object.’  The object has no feeling, meaning, or spirit.  It’s an illusion in their mind.  This starts with Plato.  Plato promoted this idea: he said that those most fit to seeing the world in this way should rule.  This is the basis of European hierarchies.

Fourth 10 minutes

In Europe there is a duality: One part thinks and one part feels.  Therefore the thinking part is better than the feeling part.  Thus rational is above emotional and dismissing emotions is how we attain true knowledge.  Therefore, those who are more rational should be above those who are more emotional.  This is in the Republic.[7]  Thus people who are less spiritual should rule.  Or, the objective should rule over the spiritual cultures.  Or, objective and scientific and rational cultures  should rule over the spiritual and emotional cultures.  This view is distinct from the African view which sees rational and emotional together.

To Africans, experience is important.  But objectivity says that there is no experience: we are objective.  For Africans, we learn from our involvement with the Universe.  But for Europeans, people are detached from the Universe: and all within the universe are ‘objects.’  Everything then is a thing.  Descarte says “I think therefore I am” which means that the only importance of humanity is that he can think.  But for Africans, we can not separate thought and feeling–they are necessarily linked.  This spawns ‘intuitive knowledge’ which is very important for us.

The African ancients used to say “Know Thyself.”[8]  This means you can learn of the universe by learning of yourself, as you are a part of the universe.  But in Europe, that’s not the case.  Instead, the universe is separate from you–you have no relationship or emotional involvement with the Universe.  The importance of this is that it makes the Universe an object which can be controlled–that’s Plato’s purpose in this exercise (to tell man that he can control the Universe) hence the lack of feeling and the independence from the object.  In terms of people and cultures, we become the objects.  We are the objects being acted upon.  Look at scientific labs: that’s how Europeans act on Africans–as objects to be manipulated.  Unfortunately, we accept this view of reality [and accept being reduced to objects.]

A spiritual Universe means that the Universe is fundamentally spiritual in nature.  That is, there is a level of reality which gives meaning to everything else in the Universe.  This is the foundation.  Everything has meaning and connection.  That’s why rhythm is so important to us as a people.  We look for relationships and inter-relationships.  But this rhythm, easy for us, is difficult for Europeans who focus on surface levels, rather than multi-dimensional levels: this is the depth of spiritual knowledge.  In African thought, we have many stages of development.  For instance, the Dogon’s stages of development add textures of truth.  Whereas the European’s view, like Plato, is compartmentalizing, separating and much simpler.  But Africa’s view is that we can not separate things, that instead there is a level on which everything is connected, and we are focused on meaning–rather than what it appears to be.  We think on how are certain things symbols for certain, deeper, sacred truths.  This conception is powerful but difficult if not in your nature (Europeans).

Fifth 10 minutes

All of this is beyond Plato, but Plato was who voiced that ‘thought’ should put people above others.  It goes also to what the Egyptians said of the Greeks, how they were children.[9]  Partially because Greeks were too superficial and could not see the meaning, only the surface.  This however defined Europeans as ‘thoughtful.’  Eventually, Plato’s academy supports this concept of truth and supports the kind of state he tries to build–which includes Slavery and so forth.  Subsequent Philosophers develop his ideas.  Aristotle, who seems distinct, has the same Asili.  Even Augustine has relationships to Platonic thought.  This is because the academy is in place: from where scholarship comes out.  Thus the academy is the building block for expanding thought–for it’s an institution of propogation.

One debate Plato had to have was promoting literal over oral.  As the oral tradition has a lot of participation, it is harder to control.  So Plato promotes literal.  It’s like when the missionaries would promote the Bible by saying “it’s in a book” and thus there’s more authority (and more intimidating) because it was in writing.  It’s a debate at Plato’s time because few could read.  Not until Gutenberg were people largely literate.

Consider poetry and music, which allows for more meaning than the literal.  Yet the written word has supremacy today because of Plato’s vision.  We as Africans need to see more than the literal–but we unfortunately don’t.

The Europeanization of Human Consciousness is the acceptance of an objective Universe, which relegates spirit to an inferior position.  This causes us to think in ways that deny our spiritual power and facillitates our own oppression.

Sixth 10 minutes

There is a harm in listening to Bach and reading Milton because we are without a context in which to place them.  We as a people are conditioned to actually debate over and convince ourselves of what we are and what we have lost.   For the most part, we don’t understand our worldview, what ritual is about, what our history is and so forth.

In European culture, “Classical” means what is valued the most–it’s a reference point–a pinnacle and high point.  So we are raised to think that Bach and Beethoven represent “Classical” music in a universal sense.  This is our reference point and we conceive it as the best.  Though we don’t even like it.  Thus we find ourselves unrefined.  That’s the danger.  Thus we adapt their superficial value system when we listen to Bach and read Milton, without understanding who we are–which gives us the posture to be able to look critically at what has been imposed upon us.

We don’t have a way to critically analyze the European reality because we don’t know anything else.  Thus we necessarily assume their reality and thus their superiority.[10]

The importance of Plato is that he is of the seminal thinkers who solidify and further develop the definition of what it means to be a European.  Though there are Pre-Platonic Europeans who have the asili–of power for fulfillment–in place: individualism and aggression.  Pre-Plato, there’s no unity, though the nature of individual destruction is in place.  Thus Plato acts to solidify the European identity–which unchecked would be self-destructive.  Plato uses the concept of truth, called an ‘epistemology,’ to define European identity: extreme rationalism–which says Europeans can control the Universe.

Next is Constantine in 312 AD.  Constantine sees that a religious statement can help to achieve this world domination.  Hence the adoption of Christianity.  Thus–Constantine personaly has the mandate to make everyone into a Christian.  This means that Europeans can dismiss all other religions from Christianity.  Constantine says that God chose him to conquer.[11]  This was key to making Europe a monolith.

This next stage is as per science.  They argue that Europeans are in the forefront of science–and this is the age of science.

Later, Capitalism contributes to European asili.

These stages are done to control other people and limit the in-fighting.

Seventh 10 minutes

She later looks at Indo-European mythologies, which had war deities, whom reward with warrior heavens or who needed blood to be pleased.  And praises to battles were dependent on the bloodiness.  Their early mythologies are replete with the glorification of war.  In Greek culture, you get the same thing.  Violence is valued.  It’s fulfilling to them.  Their Asili is imbalanced–and not in harmony with the Universe.

The European comes to be as being outside of nature.  Thus they constantly try to subdue nature and their emphasis is on confrontation and destruction.  Asili forces their group to be destructive.

This brings us to their definition of progress, which we as African people emulate: we think more technologically advanced and more cement and such is true progress.  But we’re not analyzing how they are really concerned about controlling nature and the feeling of power in there.  The European’s satisfaction is from consumption of the Universe.  Hence the new problem of “Ecological Sanity.”  Which they can not deal with because their worldview doesn’t allow it.  For instance, there’s no harmony when there’s separate objects without relationships.

Though we have indepedent schools.  We need to guarantee that a spiritual conception–African conception–of the Universe is educated in our youth.  Unfortunately, we are using the European conception in our dealing with our children.  This relates to the idea of children being turned off in school.  This however has a basis in alien concepts of learning, truth and the human being–thus their spiritual needs are not being met in those arenas.

Eight 10 minutes

For instance, the academy separates the intellectual part of the brain from everything else: but that’s not how human beings should develop.  Children are not just minds to be controlled but this is how they are treated in school.

Ani looks into the question of how do we build buildings in order to communicate our spirit.  Another question is how do you arrange a classroom?  Usually we accept that students sit in lines and stay still.  But what about if we sat in circles?

[Confusing skip]

Africans, for instance, looked at the story of Jesus as a symbol of each person being reborn spiritually.  Africans also didn’t have the same sort of hierarchies.  Africans also had more important roles for their women.

[Another skip]

Most Christians would think that Jesus’ resurrection was a historical occurrence.  But the Gnostics say that this is symbolic–the idea that the spirit can be resurrected.  It’s important to realize that African people have resurrection stories prior to Christianity: this deals with the regeneration of life.  Yet, the resurrection, in European tradition, should only be understood physically and historically.  The reasoning for this emphasis is that there’s now a time and date and witnesses.  This gives these people authority to control other people.  Thus these people pass on the authority to control other people.  This is the foundation of the Catholic Church.

But the Gnostics and other “heretics” were saying the important aspects of the rebirth isn’t control but personal spiritual rebirth.

Judaism embodies Monotheism, written codification and Patriarchy, which raises the Christians.  So the antagonism is unclear.  Ani answers that the dispute is political by following the power trail.  Judaism tells a small group of people that they are special: Models on this Earth.  Importantly, no one can become a Jew.  But Paul, of Christianity, seeks to expand the religion.  World Domination requires a changing of the definition of the Gentile–so that people can now be saved.  For instance, the Romans went to others to say they can become Roman citizens, though Romans would maintain the power.  The same with Christianity.

Ninth 10 minutes

This relates with rhetoric as well.  For instance “We love you” is what Europeans say to us.  The idea of brotherhood attracts us, and we then become victims of colonialism.  One needs to look at the Old Testament, where Judaism makes it clear that you can kill and punish Gentiles.  See Deuteronomy.  This wasn’t a statement of conversion.  The Jews don’t claim to love you–only Christains do.

Every Religion makes sacred a national identity.  Every religion claims the adherents are special and sacred.  It’s tied to culture.  But Europeans made it universal.  It claimed to be beyond culture.  Though it’s evident that it functions for European power strictly.  Nevertheless, Europeans only say “We love you” though they want to take the land.

Leopold is mentioned.[12]  A quotaiton is read.  “Whole disctricts were depopulated.  Of eight villages with a population of over 3,000, only ten persons were left.  Of another district the population dropped in 15 years from 60,000 to 5,000.  The Balangi (?) tribe, formerly numbering 40,000, sank to 8,000.  King Leopold, it is calculated, netted a profit of between 3 and 5 million sterling and could call to God to witness the purity of his motives and his desire to promote civilization.”  Another author is recommended.

Ani writes the book to try to show the consistency of Europeans.  Leopold is one of many.  Columbus and others have the same motive.  The reason why they can do this, is because Europeans can view people as objects.  This is why it is important to understand Plato and what’s being taught in school.  For European Philosophers are largely connected to these atrocities because they permit the worldview that allows these atrocities.  This relates further with the lack of spirituality that Europeans have.  This allows for their destruction of humankind and how God can be evoked to justify them.  She evinces this point with a Special Forces quotation, which permits Europeans to attacking us.  Even Du Bois pointed out how the Good Ship Jesus, set sail with a prayer that to the crew justified slavery.

Tenth 10 minutes

The question comes to Black missionary work.  This she says is a blatant example of self-hatred.  So to speak, a missionary going amongst African people to preach a doctrine which implies their inferiority is a sad phenomenon, as it’s talking about themselves.  They seemed to accept this without thought.  Ani wants us to question this on a fundamental level.  She sees the Black missionary as ironic because they can not claim spiritual superiority over traditional African systems.[13]  This is reminiscent of the slave master’s phraseology.

Carter G. Woodson says that you don’t need the shackles anymore.  Because the conditioning is so thorough.

Now is read a quotation on Ancient Greece’s conquest.  Thus comes the idea of “World” for the brotherhood of humankind.  That an Empire will unite all people.  The European makes the Emperor out to be, in the role of Conqueror, a savior of humankind.  This represents the European asili: the ego and the need to dominate the world.  The desire to keep peace in the world–“Pax Romana.”  This meant Roman Domination of the World.

This continues to this day–One world–one Culture.  We have fallen into this universalist rhetoric where the actual expression is the asili of Europeans seeking to fulfill themselves.  The need to achieve more and more dominance and power throughout the world.

The Romans did this by saying that they bring order around the world.  Europeans today do the same by cultural imposition.  This shows how old this idea is and the consistency.

Eleventh (Last) 10 minutes

Another thing we fall prey to is the ‘liberal’ critics, who claim so much is an exception.  They ignore that this has always been a consistent thrust of European culture.  The Europeans always had a drive to seek control.  They say “Bring everyone together” but they mean “Bring everyone together under us.”[14]

It is encouraged that we expose each European’s rhetoric to their Asili.  This explains the political function of their dialogue.  Understanding the European “asili” permits its use as a tool for analysis.  She uses an example where Bush sends troops into Sudan to feed children.  She asks (her students), knowing European history, does it make sense that Bush would be concerned with our diet?  It doesn’t, but we see that this fits the Asili in that Bush is expanding the power of America through this expedition.

Asked about America expanding and the “Black American’s” belief that thereby their power expands, she answers that we are thusly giving up things and committing to something different.  On a spiritual level, given the African conception of life, your life is not separate from other Africans or all of Africa’s existence.  Meaning, we have an accountability to our ancestors, descendants and community.  So though we can think that we can get certain advantages for ourselves, there is a reality of what we are accountable to.  Thus one pursues an illusion if we think that we are individuals or “Americans,” though Europeans don’t view us thusly.  “Individualism” is one of the most devastating concepts to our people–“Connectedness” and “Community” is our strength.

To put it mildly, one is short-sighted to ask that question.  But conditioning makes it difficult to convince us otherwise.

Pen-ultimately, Europeans say “War Lords” are only in Africa.  The people of Bosnia aren’t “War Lords” because of the importance of language.  “Barbarism” for instance only applies to non-Europeans.  This goes back to Plato.  This is the same for “tribes.”  Yugoslavia may maim children and bomb people, but they are not ‘tribal’ or ‘barbaric.’  This language makes us indict our own people and identify with the incoming (civilizing) Europeans.

Lastly, study the African worldview.  After all, in no way can you become master in the European realm.  Though the illusion is that everyone can move up in Europe’s worldview.  For instance, Powell [Or Obama] though it doesn’t appear to matter to us that he has to function in the interest of European power.