Exploring the Rich and Diverse World of African Spirituality: African Spirituality Beliefs and Practices, #15

By Monique Joiner Siedlak

Explore the rich and diverse world of African spirituality with Exploring the Rich and Diverse World of African Spirituality.

Starting with the fundamental ideas that underlie African spiritual traditions, this comprehensive book provides readers an illuminating journey. Have a look at the complex cosmology of Africa to see how it affects the spiritual outlook of the continent.

Discover the intricacies of divination, from ancient cowrie shell readings to contemporary tarot, and recognize the crucial role played by ancestors, whose worship constitutes a major component of these beliefs.

Immerse yourself in the hypnotic motions of holy dances and the rhythmic sounds of ritualistic drumming. Explore the healing arts that meld spirituality and conventional medicine in unbroken harmony and get to know the pantheon of gods, including the revered Orishas and Loas.

Join the African diaspora on a voyage to see how these old beliefs evolved and flourished in new locations as you decipher the meanings behind potent symbols, such as the intricate Adinkra patterns and vivid Vodou flags.

Honor the place that women play in African spirituality by acknowledging their strong affinity for the Divine Feminine. Finally, face the difficulties and seize the chances presented by carrying out these customs in the modern era.

By the end, you will come away with a profound appreciation for the resilience, depth, and richness of African spirituality.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Oshun Publications, LLC
• Release date: Dec 28, 2023
• ISBN: 9781961362055

Monique Joiner Siedlak

Monique Joiner Siedlak is a writer, witch, and warrior on a mission to awaken people to their greatest potential through the power of storytelling infused with mysticism, modern paganism, and new age spirituality. At the young age of 12, she began rigorously studying the fascinating philosophy of Wicca. By the time she was 20, she was self-initiated into the Craft, and hasn’t looked back ever since. To this day, she has authored over 35 books pertaining to the magick and mysteries of life. Her most recent publication is book one of a Wiccan series entitled “Jaeger Chronicles.” Originally from Long Island, New York, Monique is now a proud inhabitant of Northeast Florida; however, she considers herself to be a citizen of Mother Earth. When she doesn’t have a book or pen in hand, she loves exploring new places and learning new things. And being the nature lover that she is, she considers herself to be an avid animal advocate. To find out more about Monique Joiner Siedlak artistically, spiritually, and personally, feel free to visit her official website at www.mojosiedlak.com

Book preview

ONE

ENTWINING WITH THE AFRICAN COSMOS

The African worldview has for a long time been considered inferior and uncivilized due to the propaganda machine that has mostly been perpetuated by colonialism and racism. Many still believe the African worldview needs to be updated to know what it really is. This has primarily created African stereotypes that make it hard for many non-Africans to see through the bias that the media has especially caused. The African worldview is diverse and full of special things like stories, proverbs, and much more, but this chapter will introduce you to the central ones.

Embracing the Circle of Life

This is a very central aspect of African spirituality in the sense of how life began, how it is shaped, and how it ends. Not all Africans believe in the same concepts of life due to factors ranging from education type, the spread of Christianity and Islam, and migrations out of the continent. However, under African spirituality, life is believed to have begun through the creation of a superior being. As it has already been established that the superior being or creator is worshiped and regarded in many forms of nature, nature is thought to be life itself. This worldview of life has made many African spiritualists be in tune with their environments through a deep understanding of plants, animals, the weather, and how they all function. Through this activity of a closer examination of the environmental features, African spiritualists believe that they get closer to the creator himself. Additionally, this perspective also evokes the notion of the creator watching over all life to ensure its sustainability and continuity. No special stories are passed on from generation to generation of the steps the creator took to create the world with everything in it, like in other organized religions like Christianity.

The next notable concept of life is the ancestors’ role in human life and various activities. African spiritualists have always believed that the spirits of the departed are always around us, ensuring our safety from many evils, fortune, and even guidance through difficult times. This idea of the departed makes many, if not all, African spiritualists respect the dead at all costs. Furthermore, even individuals considered evil are treated with high regard when they die, and their funerals are often held just like any other. This is likely why it is not common in the African culture for someone to speak ill of a dead person. Saying good things about the departed may make someone avoid an angry ancestor’s wrath. This idea of the ancestors’ influences on the living also makes most African spiritualists respect the graveyards; no insensible littering, walking on the grave, or any other activity or behavior deemed disrespectful is avoided with great caution. Some African spiritualists interpret dreams of their dead relatives and loved ones as a means of communication that must be interpreted and taken seriously.

By extension, towards the high regard of nature, the land is viewed with such extreme importance, not just as a place to live, farm, and rear animals, but also as a legacy of one’s life. The selling of land is not as common in African societies as in other regions of the world due to some beliefs in African spirituality. When someone acquires new land, they designate a space where they will do African spiritual activities like animal sacrifices, cleansing rituals, etc. This attachment to these activities also makes it harder for most Africans to sell their land; such as, buying someone else’s land, especially if they are dead, is mostly unheard of. Chiefs and other community leaders would have to conduct some cleansing rituals through diviners before a deceased person’s land is given to someone else. Some of the cleansing rituals are done to uproot certain spiritual conditions that the previous owner had set up as a means of protection or retaliation against someone who takes over their land or is not a relative or loved one. It can be safe to say that this created a system that maintained order by preventing many land disputes among people in a tribe or village.

Like an old African saying, It takes the whole village to raise a child, many African spiritualists believe in being interconnected with the creator, ancestors, diviners, and others. This concept of life reinforces the concepts and beliefs of participation in community spiritual activities like dancing, singing, and drumming in the main areas, rite of passage activities for girls and boys, contributions towards ceremonies, visiting and assisting the sick and elderly, and many more. Even though many Africans have embraced other religions and adopted Western culture, all these community attributes of staying connected are evident in some African cultural systems today. Notably, even the most educated through the Western system sometimes consult diviners to address specific issues or ask for guidance. Traditional ceremonies like the Shimunenga of the Ila people of Central Zambia maintain this idea of connectedness by bringing people together to remind them of who they are and their beliefs. This concept is believed to have been why nuclear families are still as popular today as they were in the past. Many Africans have been able to stay in close contact with relatives with whom they share a common ancestry many generations ago.

Mysteries of Mortality: The African Outlook

There is no specific standard for the idea of death in Africa because of the many varieties of perspectives on what happens after someone dies. In African spirituality, people believe that as life begins at birth, it must also end at death, following the creator’s design. This aligns most people’s grieving attitudes and feelings with this notion and helps alleviate the pain of grieving. Certain practices, rituals, and ceremonies have to be done according to the person’s age, marital status, or how they died. When an older person dies, there is always a sense of logic that their death was natural, provided there is no evidence or witness of malicious activity such as poisoning or physical bodily harm from someone or an animal. The funeral proceedings are often characterized by continuous wailing and crying by the women as a show of loss of life. The men are usually reserved and speak in low tones with their heads facing down to show respect for the dead person. Men do not cry out loud as women; when they do, it is private, where no one can see them. This is both a way of showing that they are willing and able to take on whatever responsibilities are needed at the funeral and understand death as a part of the creator’s plan.

The death of an adult is also treated differently if the person has left a spouse and children, parents, etc. These people are given special recognition by having them throw a handful of dirt into the grave by following a family hierarchy system based on the departed person’s family relationships. In some tribes and regions in much earlier times, the surviving spouse may be required to marry one of the deceased’s unmarried siblings. If there is no sibling available, this is when the idea of nuclear families proves beneficial. If the surviving spouse is a man, the reason for having him marry one of the deceased’s siblings or relatives must be because of the dowry price that was paid. If the surviving spouse is a woman, being remarried again to one of the dead husband’s brothers was done for the reason that she needs a man to take care of her. Suppose it is a baby that has died. In that case, the funeral process is characterized by silence because crying and wailing are forbidden to avoid exaggerating the loss of life. After the burial, the people quickly return to their normal activities, hoping that the couple that lost the baby will have another