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Mercator supplement

The notion of progress in the cosmological and religious traditions of Africa

This article is taken from a speech entitled “The notion of progress in the cosmological and religious traditions in Africa” delivered by John MBiti during the Conference on the Notion of Progress in the Diversity of World Cultures organized, in particular, by the United Nations in New York (May-June 2015).

1. Oral and Artistic Traditions

Africa is a continent of oral versus written traditions, including: legends, myths, proverbs, rituals, etc. in addition to architecture, basketry, metal works, paintings (in caves and on rocks), and symbols. Progress evokes history, which in turn has to do with Time. Traditional African concepts of the future are tied to the natural rhythm of time: day and night, the seasons and the life rhythm of human persons.

2. Traditional African Concepts of Time

Traditional African concepts of linear time recognize the threefold pattern: (a) A long and indefinite past; (b) An intensive, humanly experiential and tangible present; and (c) A conceptually reachable (or even inevitable) future, stretching a few months or years from the present. I have not found African calendars that count or depict a sequence of months, years, and centuries. Nor have I found any mythology about the future, whereas there are thousands of mythological narratives and explanations about the origin of the world, of human beings, and of death, among other mysteries.

3. A Multiple Religious Continent

Africa is a profoundly religious continent, with African Religion, Christianity, and Islam as the biggest historically and numerically. Accordingly, the cosmology of African Religion is centred on a firm monotheistic notion of God. My research into the traditional religion of 600 peoples and languages shows that of these, every African language, dialect, and people has a word for God. Besides the generic term “God”, there are thousands of attributes about God, of which I have collected some 1,600.

The oral knowledge and belief about God is communal, which people discuss and communicate in proverbs, rituals, prayers, and invocations. Atheism has no place in traditonal African society. Openly and daily, people speak of God, call upon God to help in need, and invoke God in pronouncing blessings. People express the traditional attributes, beliefs, and conceptions of God anthropologically, metaphorically, symbolically and in personifications. For examples: Almighty, Creator, Immanent, Invisible, Loving, Omnipresent, Omniscient, Parent, Transcendent, and Unknowable.

4. The (Implicit) Notion of Progress in Mythological Origins of Humans

The myths (stories) of human creation abound. They generally start with God creating the world, then first persons, and placing them in a particular situation and condition of life. This is followed by subsequent states of their life, in a semi-progressive sequence.

As an illustration let us take the creation myth of the Shilluk people of South Sudan. It “tells that God made humans out of clay... Then God gave them legs with which to walk and run, hands with which to plant grain, eyes with which to see that grain, and a mouth with which to eat it. Afterwards God gave them the tongue, with which to sing and talk; and finally ears, so that they may enjoy the sound of music, dance, and the talk of great persons. Then God sent the humans out onto the earth, each a complete human being”.

This myth depicts God prominently, as the Creator and the caring Parent who provides the humans with faculties to live happily (making music and dancing). There is a clear element of implicit progress in the story, beginning with the first persons getting legs and hands, progressing to planting, harvesting and dancing.

In some of the African creation myths, it is narrated that God endowed the first humans with one of three gifts: immortality, resurrection, and rejuvenation (after becoming old). But somehow, these primeval gifts perished and humans did not know how to regain them.

Could it then be, that the pursuit of progress is ultimately a mythological and eschatological endeavor to regain the mythological immortality, resurrection, and rejuvenation?

5. The Notion of Progress in Prayers

With the many prayers in African Religion, people address the invisible world. There are two worlds in African cosmology: the visible (physical), and the invisible (spiritual). These interact. Prayers facilitate communication between the visible and invisible worlds. We take an example of the prayer of a childless woman (wife), from the Banyarwanda people of Rwanda. It is called Kwambaza: a cry for help . It is a global, painful, powerful, and timeless prayer.

“O Imana [God] of Urundi [Rwanda], if only you would help me! / O Imana of pity, Imana of my father’s home [country], if only you would help me! / O Imana of the country of the Hutu and the Tutsi, 3/ if only you would help me just this once!... / I cry to you: Give me offspring; give me as you give to others! / Imana, what shall I do, where shall I go?... / O Merciful, O Imana of mercy, help this once!”

This prayer is set on the process of personal progress. It moves from the past “my father’s home [country]”, through the agonizing present “I cry to you… I am in distress”, towards a hoped for tangible future “Give me offspring!”. But the childless woman is utterly unable to bring about this personal progress. She can only cry and appeal for God’s (Imana’s) mercy, to transform her “here and now” state of being childless, into the tomorrow state of hopefully being the mother of an offspring. Millions of women throughout the world, cry, and hope in harmony with her.

6. The Notion of Progress in Stories

African peoples tell millions of traditional stories, which serve many purposes like education and entertainment. Let us look at one story, The animal well of the Akamba people in Kenya. It tells that a long time ago the country, Ukambani, suffered a prolonged drought. All the rivers and ponds dried up. So, the animals decided to dig a well in a riverbed, in search of water. Day by day all the animals except the hare, came to the dry riverbed, toiled and toiled. The hare would stand at the bank and watch. They beckoned to her to join them, but she would merely say, “Just dig on, you will find water. I will wait here till you find it!”

When the animals reached water, they jubilated and danced for joy. They unanimously resolved to keep a security guard, to bar the hare from getting their water.

The first day, the pig kept watch, the next day the buffalo, then the leopard, and so on. Every day the hare came to get water, carrying a small calabash (with honey) and a big one. When they tried to stop her, she would laugh, “Aha, aha! I have sweet water and do not need your water”. If the animals did not believe her, she would tell them in that case to taste her water (honey). They liked it, and would ask for more. But the hare would only give more on condition that she would bind them first, so that they do not run wild from being drunk with the sweet “water”. They would agree, and the hare would then tie them up, hands and legs. Then she would fill her big calabash with water, and walk away laughing.

One day the tortoise offered to keep watch. Other animals whispered skeptically that it was not strong enough to stop the hare. The tortoise procured glue, smeared itself with it, and waited at the entrance to the well. When the hare came and saw the tortoise, she said, “I don’t even give you my sweet water. I will just push you aside, fetch water, and go home”.

The tortoise tried to stop the hare, which retorted, “I will strike you!” The tortoise replied, “Yes, I dare you!”. The hare got one hand stuck by the glue. She struck with the other hand, which also got stuck. Then she tried to kick, but her legs got stuck, as did also her mouth when she tried to bite the tortoise. When all the animals came, they found the hare stuck onto the tortoise. They said they would kill it. But the leopard requested that she would bring it alive to her cubs. They put the hare in the leopard’s basket, and let it take her home. However, on the way, the hare gnawed a hole in the basket and sneaked out into the bushes. The animals never saw her again, for the rains came and there was water everywhere.

Can this story of the animal well serve as a parable for the notion of progress? Why not? The community finds itself in a situation that threatens its very existence. It lacks water, the symbol of life. However, the community will not easily accept to succumb to this natural disaster. It knows that there is water in the ground. To survive, it resolves to dig a well and get to that water. The process of progress sets it.

The community moves progressively from drought to abundant water. Joint effort drives the community forward and in the ground it exploits the resources of life. The rain comes from God, but it is society that must dig the ground to find water. Hard work, tensions, and refusal to dig – all these elements come into play in course of progress.

7. The Notion of Progress in Proverbs

Millions of proverbs and wise sayings circulate in all African communities. They serve a multitude of purposes in society: advice, information, entertainment, ethics, parables, religion, symbols, teaching, and warning. Some endorse the notion of progress, without necessarily naming it as such. Some examples are: “Asking for something in prayer is not the same as receiving it. When God wills it, God will give it to you”. Progress is inbuilt in this proverb: a need arises, the person concerned prays to God about it, and waits. In due time, God gives the person the requested item. There are two dimensions at work here: the human and the divine. They both involve the element of time, moving from the present towards the indefinite future.

“Cattle are born with ears; their horns grow later.” Symbolically, Progress here is the natural change from one state towards another and final state. The proverb can be applied symbolically about many things. “Go back, and fetch what was left behind!” The proverb recognises that Progress is underway. It may have its foundation from the past, but it now moves towards the present and the future.

“If God gives you sickness, God gives you its cure.” Personal Progress is inbuilt in this proverb.

“If parents take care of you up to the time you cut your teeth, you take care of them when they lose their own teeth.” Personal Progress counteracts personal regress. The process is repeated in families ad infinitum.

“Most of the world is still ahead.” There is a progressive movement towards further reality over the horizon, in the (undefined) future. The present state of the world is not the end of reality. There is room for it to progress continue, to progress, to reach fruition or completion.

8. Introducing Modern Notions of Progress on a Mathematical and Calendar Scale: Africa Agenda 2063, “The Africa We Want.”

The African Union Commission (AUC) and the All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC), organized a Consultation for Africa Faith-Based Organizations on the “Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want” (1). This took place on 5-6 November 2014, at the Desmond Tutu Conference Centre Nairobi, Kenya. There were 93 participants from religious organisations in Africa. On several considerations, this was an extremely significant consultation:

1. It brought together Secular and Religious bodies, in keeping with Africa being a deeply religious continent, to discuss a common target.

2. It tabled the future dimension of Time on a mathematical scale, along the Western). Even though, as we have shown, there are indeed potential and implicit notions of Progress in African Religion and Cosmology, they are not articulated on a mathematical scale or calendars (which did not exist).

3. This Consultation made a combined secular cum religious commitment to the proposed Progress projected for up to the year 2063. That year will be the 100th anniversary of both the AU and AACC. It assigned the idea of Progress to a historical projection. If the Agenda is a dream, then it is a very vivid one.

4. According to this Consultation, Progress involves a radical change towards 2063. The Consultation appealed to all areas of African reality to work for and commit them to this change. Whether we want it or not, change will inevitably continue to take place, as the years roll by. However, change does not necessarily mean Progress. There is an undeclared tug-of-war between Progress and Change. Progress is a forward moving phenomenon. But change is largely neutral, and may produce both Progress and /or Regress, separately or simultaneously. My precautionary maxim is: “If we do not change Change, Change will change us”.

5. The Consultation arose originally from the agreement of African Union Heads of State and Governments, which they made at the AU’s Golden Jubilee in 2013, “on the formulation of Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want.” That foresees “inclusive growth and sustainable development”.

6. The Consultation highlighted seven “Agenda 2063 Aspirations, Goals, and Implementation Strategy”, namely: 1. A prosperous Africa... 2. An integrated continent, politically united… and the vision of Africa’s renaissance. 3. An Africa of good governance, democracy, respect for Human Rights, Justice and the rule of Law. 4. A peaceful and secure Africa. 5. An Africa with a strong cultural identity, common heritage, values, and ethics. 6. An Africa whose development is people-driven.

7. “Africa as a strong and influential global player and partner” Consultation report, p. 24, from the address of Mandla Madonsela

This Agenda is both secular and religious, it has both personal and communal consequences. It addresses all aspects of African reality, including: communication, conflicts, culture, economics, education, ethics, health, justice, media, peace, politics, religion, scientific contributions, and technological developments.

“African Agenda 2063” as outlined in that joint Consultation, sounds both beautiful and idealistic in projecting Progress between 2013 and 2063. Undoubtedly Progress = Change. But Change is not necessarily Progress. God will make the sun rise and set without fail, year by year, to bring Africa and the world to the year 2063 and beyond. It is the humans that have to change changes to produce Progress or result in Regress.

I find it difficult to relate this mathematically designed Progress, to the traditional African notions of time on a fifty-year stretch of time. Is the idea perhaps too impersonal and abstract, for individuals and communities to identify themselves with it? Will our languages stretch the concept of time into the distant future beyond a few years from the present (and past)? Maybe we have to mythologise Agenda 2063, in order to install it into our “African blood”. An African proverb says: The person who chews food slowly, will finally swallow it. African Agenda 2063 has enough time to chew its big mouthful of food, maybe slowly at first, until finally it swallows it.

John Mbiti

Original text in English

John Mbiti is philosopher, writer and professor emeritus of african cultural history.

(1) Agenda 2063: «The Africa We Want» (PDF), 2015.

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