Honoring Ivan Van Sertima

“You can not make yourself whole again by brooding one hundred percent of the time on the darkness of the world. We are the light of the world.” 

― Ivan Van Sertima

A Gathering of Resources by Ifasalewa Fagbemi Ogunride

In Honor of Ivan Van Sertima

Ivan Gladstone Van Sertima (26 January 1935 – 25 May 2009)

Ivan Van Sertima was born in Guyana, South America.  He was educated at the School of Oriental and African Studies (London University) and the Rutgers Graduate School and holds degrees in African Studies and Anthropology.  From 1957-1959 he served as a Press and Broadcasting Officer in the Guyana Information Services.  During the decade of the 1960s he broadcast weekly from Britain to Africa and the Caribbean.

He is a literary critic, a linguist, an anthropologist and has made a name in all three fields.  

As a literary critic, he is the author of Caribbean Writers, a collection of critical essays on the Caribbean novel.  He is also the author of several major literary reviews published in Denmark, India, Britain and the United States.  He was honored for his work in this field by being asked by the Nobel Committee of the Swedish Academy to nominate candidates for the Nobel Prize in Literature from 1976-1980.  He has also been honored as an historian of world repute by being asked to join UNESCO's International Commission for Rewriting the Scientific and Cultural History of Mankind.

As a linguist, he has published essays on the dialect of the Sea Islands off the Georgia Coast.  He is also the compiler of the Swahili Dictionary of Legal Terms, based on his field work in Tanzania, East Africa, in 1967.

He is the author of They Came Before Columbus: The African Presence in Ancient America, which was published by Random House in 1977 and is presently in its twenty-ninth printing.  It was published in French in 1981 and in the same year, was awarded the Clarence L. Holte Prize, a prize awarded every two years “for a work of excellence in literature and the humanities relating to the cultural heritage of Africa and the African diaspora.”

He also authored Early America Revisited, a book that has enriched the study of a wide range of subjects, from archaeology to anthropology, and has resulted in profound changes in the reordering of historical priorities and pedagogy.

Professor of African Studies at Rutgers University, Dr. Van Sertima was also Visiting Professor at Princeton University.  He is the Editor of the Journal of African Civilizations, which he founded in 1979 and has published several major anthologies which have influenced the development of multicultural curriculum in the United States.  These anthologies include Blacks in Science: ancient and modern, Black Women in Antiquity, Egypt Revisited, Egypt: Child of Africa, Nile Valley Civilizations (now included within the pages of Egypt: Child of Africa), African Presence in the Art of the Americas, African Presence in Early Asia (co-edited with Runoko Rashidi), African Presence in Early Europe, African Presence in Early America, Great African Thinkers, Great Black Leaders: ancient and modern and Golden Age of the Moor.

As an acclaimed poet, his work graces the pages of River and the Wall, 1953 and has been published in English and German.  As an essayist, his major pieces were published in Talk That Talk, 1989, Future Directions for African and African American Content in the School Curriculum, 1986, Enigma of Values, 1979, and in Black Life and Culture in the United States, 1971.

Dr. Van Sertima has lectured at more than 100 universities in the United States and has also lectured in Canada, the Caribbean, South America and Europe.  In 1991 Dr. Van Sertima defended his highly controversial thesis on the African presence in pre-Columbian America before the Smithsonian.  In 1994 the Smithsonian published his address in Race, Discourse and the Origin of the Americas: A New World View of 1492.

He was also asked by Congress to appear before a Congressional Committee on July 7, 1987 to challenge the Columbus myth.  This landmark presentation before Congress was illuminating and brilliantly presented in the name of all peoples of color across the world.

Soure: http://www.journalofafricancivilizations.com/VanSertima

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They Came Before Columbus

They Came Before Columbus reveals a compelling, dramatic, and superbly detailed documentation of the presence and legacy of Africans in ancient America. Examining navigation and shipbuilding; cultural analogies between Native Americans and Africans; the transportation of plants, animals, and textiles between the continents; and the diaries, journals, and oral accounts of the explorers themselves, Ivan Van Sertima builds a pyramid of evidence to support his claim of an African presence in the New World centuries before Columbus. Combining impressive scholarship with a novelist’s gift for storytelling, Van Sertima re-creates some of the most powerful scenes of human history: the launching of the great ships of Mali in 1310 (two hundred master boats and two hundred supply boats), the sea expedition of the Mandingo king in 1311, and many others. In They Came Before Columbus, we see clearly the unmistakable face and handprint of black Africans in pre-Columbian America, and their overwhelming impact on the civilizations they encountered.

- Amazon.com

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Ifasalewa Fagbemi Ogunride
ADE Enterprises, LLC
Egbe Ogun Si Wa

Obara Meji As Documented by Baba Ayo Salami (ibae), with Interpretations by Awo Falokun Fatunmbi

Osolo the priest of Awòn
Casts divination for Awòn
On the day he was going to wash his Orí of wealth in
the river

Commentary:  Obara is the Odu that incarnates humility in the struggle with arrogance.  For those who are struggling to find abundance cleaning away the negative effects of arrogance is the first step towards accessing your ability to create abundance.

Would it be easier for me? He asked
They told him that it would be easy for him
But he was advised to perform sacrifice to Òsun

Commentary:  Osun as the wife of Sango creates a balance between the strong leadership skills of Sango that can lead to arrogance and the generosity of Osun which is rooted in a genuine concern for others.

He offered the sacrifice
Life then pleased him
He started having children
He afterwards took all his children to Òsun
‘Death must not kill the child of Awòn’, they
Instructed.

Commentary: The word Awon means them, it is a reference to being a part of a community.  Taking your children to Osun implies teaching your children the value of generosity and concern for others.  This is a fundamental step in the process of building healthy community.

Life pleased them so much
Òsun took good care of him and his children
And also petted them all

Commentary:  The word petted is not the best translation the inference here is that Osun loved and nurtured her children which again is the foundation for creating community.

He was dancing and rejoicing
He was praising his Babaláwo
His Babaláwo was praising Ifá
He said it was as his Babaláwo had said
Osolo; the priest of Awòn
Casts divination for Awon
On the day he was going to wash his Orí of wealth in
the river
Osolo; is here really
He is the priest of Awòn
Don’t you all know that good Orí is what Awòn washes in the river

Commentary:  This is the oriki ire and it asks for the ori to be cleaned so it can return to its original state of being blessed by Creation.

Obara as a topographical metaphor is the ability of the world around us to transform itself based on evolving conditions.  It is the idea that the universe is a living thing constantly creating new dynamics and new information.  The blessing of Ifa is that it teaches how to communicate with the Universe in a language we understand.

Ire,
Awo Falokun Fatunmbi

Ogbe'Sa: Those Whose Turn It Is To Rule The World

ORÍKÌ / ORIN OWONRIN MEJI

ORÍKÌ OWONRIN MEJI
(Invocation for Good Fortune)

Owonrin Meji,  Owonrin Meji,  Owonrin Meji,

The Reversed Head, the Reversed Head, the Reversed Head,

mo be yin,  ki eso ibi de rere fun mi ni gbogbo ojo aye mi,  ki emi - re s'owo, ki emi mi gun ki ara mi kiole,  ki nma ri ayipada di buburu lojo aye mi ati beebee.

I beg you, turn evil to good throughout all my days on earth, that I might be rich, that all my life will be lengthened and that my health will always be good, and that turning from good to bad may not reach me in all my days in the world.

Owonrin Meji.  Ase.

The Reversed Head. May it be so.

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ORIN OWONRIN MEJI
(Song for Good Fortune)

Owon mì jó, Owon mì yó, Owon ti mí ota oye b'ofò.

Owon day dance, Owon day be joyful.  Owon has brought the staff of hi chieftancy from the sea.

Owon mì jó, Owon mì yó.

Owon day dance, Owon day be joyful.

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ORIN OWONRIN MEJI
(Song for Good Fortune)

Òlógbò dúdú ese,  gòòlò ma se lo,  gòòlò ma se bo.

Black cat, sluggish I will go, Sluggish I will come back.



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Ire,
- Awo Falokun

ORÍKÌ / ORIN IROSUN MEJI (Invocation for Good Fortune)

ORÍKÌ
IROSUN MEJI
(Invocation for Good Fortune)

Irosun Meji,  Irosun Meji, Irosun Meji,
The Sounding Osun, the Sounding Osun, the Sounding Osun.
Mo be yin, kie jeki awon omo - araye gburo, mi pe mo l’owo l´owo pe mo niyi, pe mo n'ola, pe mo bimo rere ati beebee.
I beg you, let the whole world hear of me, that I am rich, that I have honor, that I have prestige, that my children will be good.
Kie jeki won gbo iro mi kaakiri agbaye,  Irosun Meji.  Ase.
Let them hear around the world that I am a good and blessed person. The Sounding Osun.  May it be so.

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ORIN
IROSUN MEJI
(Song for Good Fortune)

Emi won,  emi won è le pa 'Àpéni.  Ìdárí oró ki pa oró.
Their mouth, their mouth, cannot kill l'apeni.  Idari the Smith cannot kill the Smith.
Emi won,  emi won èle pa 'Àpéni.
Their mouth, their mouth, cannot kill l'apeni.

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ORIN
IROSUN MEJI
(Song for Good Fortune)

Baba ma je nikan je nikan je.  Iyán ti mo gún.  Baba ma je nikan je.
Father don't let me eat along.  I have prepared soup.  Father don't let me eat alone.
Obè ti mo se. Baba ma je nikan je.
I have my knife.  Father don't let me eat alone.

- Awo Falokun

Irosun Meji As Documented by Baba Ayo Salami (Ibae), With Interpretations by Awo Falokun Fatunmbi

Eji Ìrosùn did not fast.

Commentary:  to say someone does not fast is to imply they are spiritual evolved and have no need of taking extraordinary measure to continue to grow and evolve.   They are in alignment with their destiny.

Casts divination for Oni;
The child of the clan Onisin ikô of Kolojo
On the day he was crying because of children
They told him that he would have many children
That his life would be better
And that all good things would stand by him
But he was advised to offer sacrifice for children

Commentary:  when the Odu is asking for a blessing of children there is an implication here of requesting children, a healthy relationship and the means to take care of a family.

Oni; then offered the sacrifice
Life so pleased Oni;
He then was dancing and rejoicing
He was praising his Babaláwo
His Babaláwo was praising Ifá
He said it was as his Babaláwo had said
Eji Ìrosùn did not fast
Casts divination for Oni;
The child of the clan Onisin ikoô of Kolojo
On the day he was crying because of children
They told him that he would have many children
But should perform sacrifice for children
He that used Isin as sacrifice
What do we call such a person?
The mother of Moôjesôin
The father of Moôjesôin
It is Moôjesôin that brought children into this world in multitudes

Commentary:  These lines are the oriki ire.  In liturgical Yoruba the word irosun refers to menstrual blood.  Due to the influence of Christianity in the Diaspora menstrual blood is often viewed as something that is spiritually unclean and necessitates keeping menstrual blood away from sacred objects.  Irosun from the elision I ro Osun meaning the spirit of Osun descends.

Osun is the spirit that protects the ori and it makes the journey from Orun to Aye at the moment a child is conceived.  Menstrual blood is essential to the procreation process and is the medium for cleansing the womb as the receptacle of genetic inheritance.  The use of red camwood called Irosun as an ase (substance with spiritual power) in making some Orisa, is I believe a substitute for menstrual blood.  The use of camwood powder can be looked at as a request to the ancestors for their blessing.

In the cycle of life, death and rebirth ogbe is the first expression of life.  In irosun we have life that becomes manifest as a result of rebirth and rebirth creates the process we call evolution.

Ire,
Awo Falokun

ORÍKÌ ODI MEJI: Invocación A La Buena Fortuna

Odi Meji, Odi Meji, Odi Meji,

Odi Meji, Odi Meji, Odi Meji

mo be yin,  kie bami di ona ofo, kie bami di odo ofo,  kie bami di ona ejo, kie bami di ona ibi,  kie bami di ona Esu, 

Le pido que me cierre el camino de la perdición, ciérreles el camino de la perdición a mis hijos, a mi compañero/a y a mi familia, cierre el camino de las luchas contra mí, cierre el camino de la negatividad contra mí, cierre el camino de la ruptura con Esu

Ni nri'di joko pe nile aye.  Kiema jeki nba won ku - Iku ajoku. 

Permita que me siente tranquilamente en el mundo. Permita que no muera en una epidemia

Okan ewon kiike.

Un eslabón en una cadena no hace una cerradura

Kie se - Odi agbara yi mi ka,  Ki owo mi ka'pa omo araye bi omo Odi tiika'lu. Ase.

Rezo para que usted se ponga voluntariamente a mí alrededor, de la misma manera que pusimos un jardín alrededor de un patio.

- Awo Falokun

Irosun Meji by Ayo Salami - Commentary by Awo Falokun

Irosun Meji as Documented by Baba Ayo Salami (Ibae), with Interpretations by Awo Falokun Fatunmbi

Eji Ìrosùn did not fast.

Commentary:  To say someone does not fast is to imply they are spiritual evolved and have no need of taking extraordinary measure to continue to grow and evolve.   They are in alignment with their destiny.

Casts divination for Oni;
The child of the clan Onisin ikô of Kolojo
On the day he was crying because of children
They told him that he would have many children
That his life would be better
And that all good things would stand by him
But he was advised to offer sacrifice for children

Commentary:  When the Odu is asking for a blessing of children there is an implication here of requesting children, a healthy relationship and the means to take care of a family.

Oni; then offered the sacrifice
Life so pleased Oni;
He then was dancing and rejoicing
He was praising his Babaláwo
His Babaláwo was praising Ifá
He said it was as his Babaláwo had said
Eji Ìrosùn did not fast
Casts divination for Oni;
The child of the clan Onisin ikoô of Kolojo
On the day he was crying because of children
They told him that he would have many children
But should perform sacrifice for children
He that used Isin as sacrifice
What do we call such a person?
The mother of Moôjesôin
The father of Moôjesôin
It is Moôjesôin that brought children into this world in multitudes

Commentary:  These lines are the oriki ire.  In liturgical Yoruba the word irosun refers to menstrual blood.  Due to the influence of Christianity in the Diaspora menstrual blood is often viewed as something that is spiritually unclean and necessitates keeping menstrual blood away from sacred objects.  Irosun from the elision I ro Osun meaning the spirit of Osun descends.
Osun is the spirit that protects the ori and it makes the journey from Orun to Aye at the moment a child is conceived.  Menstrual blood is essential to the procreation process and is the medium for cleansing the womb as the receptacle of genetic inheritance.  The use of red camwood called Irosun as an ase (substance with spiritual power) in making some Orisa, is I believe a substitute for menstrual blood.  The use of camwood powder can be looked at as a request to the ancestors for their blessing.

In the cycle of life, death and rebirth ogbe is the first expression of life.  In irosun we have life that becomes manifest as a result of rebirth and rebirth creates the process we call evolution.

Ire
Awo Falokun

ORÍKÌ ODI MEJI: Invocation for Good Fortune

Odi Meji, Odi Meji, Odi Meji,

The Seal, the Seal, the Seal,

mo be yin,  kie bami di ona ofo, kie bami di odo ofo,  kie bami di ona ejo, kie bami di ona ibi,  kie bami di ona Esu,

I beg you, close the way of losses to me, close the way of losses for my children, my mate and my family, close the way of litigation against me, close the way of negativity against me, close the way of disruption from the Spirit of the Trickster.

Ni nri'di joko pe nile aye.  Kiema jeki nba won ku - Iku ajoku.

Let me sit quietly in the world. Let me not die in an epidemic.

Okan ewon kiike.

One link in a chain will not make a lock.

Kie se - Odi agbara yi mi ka,  Ki owo mi ka'pa omo araye bi omo Odi tiika'lu. Ase.

I pray that you will rally around me, in the same way that we put a garden around a yard. May it be so.

Awo Falokun

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Awo Falokun is available for Ifa / Orisa Initiations and Workshops. Call: 775-741-0188 or email: awofalokun@ifabooksinc.com for more information.

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Dylann Storm Roof: Our Moral Responsibilities Over Differences

Dylann Storm Roof is another name in a long list of criminals the media describes as “lone assassins.”  We are supposed to believe “lone assassins” are tormented individuals who sit in dark corners of their unclean bedrooms planning mass murders with no outside help or encouragement.  I believe we are way past the need to call BS on media coverage of this insanity.  If I hear one more talking head say; “The suspect was described as a quiet loner who did not have many friends.  Neighbors and friends were shocked to learn the young man went on a violent killing spree with no apparent motivation.”

  

Does anyone believe that?

Based on the little we know the tired scenario of random violence does not fit the picture.  Witnesses say Roof entered the building and asked specifically for Rev. Clementa C. Pinckney.  Once the pastor was identified by members of the congregation, Roof sat next to him for close to an hour during a prayer meeting before opening fire.  Pinckney was the first to die in the gun fire.  When a murder suspect asks people to identify someone who he shortly thereafter shoots and kills it is not an act of random violence by a lone assassin, it is, in the language of the law, a premeditated murder.  There is no grey area here.  Witnesses describe a murder not a random act of violence.

This begs the question who was Rev. Clementa C. Pinckney?  He was both the pastor of the historic Emanual AME Church in Charleston South Carolina and a popular state politician.  His church was burnt down in the 1890’s because it was used by freed Africans to advocate an end to slavery prior to emancipation.  Recently Rev. Pinckney challenged the official version of the murder by police of Walter Scott.  He made his remarks on the floor of the South Carolina State Senate assembly room.  In his role as pastor he organized demonstrations against what is clearly a tendency by police to kill unarmed black men.

The initial police report of the Walter Scott homicide was that Scott took a Taser gun from Officer Michal Thomas Slager who feared for his life and shot him.  A video of the incident shows Slager shooting Scott n the back and then dropping the Tazer next to the body after he was fatally wounded.  The Video was released by a group called Black Lives Matter.  Here is a list of their demands:

We say no more.

·         We demand an end to all forms of discrimination and the full recognition of our human rights.

·         We demand an immediate end to police brutality and the murder of Black  people and all oppressed people.

·         We demand full, living wage employment for our people.

·         We demand decent housing fit for the shelter of human beings and an end to gentrification.

·         We demand an end to the school to prison pipeline & quality education for all.

·         We demand freedom from mass incarceration and an end to the prison industrial complex.

·         We demand a racial justice agenda from the White House that is inclusive of our shared fate as Black men, women, trans and gender-nonconforming people. Not My Brother’s Keeper, but Our Children’s Keeper.

·         We demand access to affordable healthy food for our neighborhoods.

·         We demand an aggressive attack against all laws, policies, and entities that disenfranchise any community from expressing themselves at the ballot.

·         We demand a public education system that teaches the rich history of Black people and celebrates the contributions we have made to this country and the world.

·         We demand the release of all U.S. political prisoners

·         We demand an end to the military industrial complex that incentivizes private corporations to profit off of the death and destruction of Black and Brown communities across the globe.

Black lives matter was founded by Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors and Opal Tometi following the acquittal of George Zimmerman for the killing of Trayvon Martin.  At least one of these women has been active in the Orisa community in Oakland, and the Bay Ifa Orisa community has actively supported some of their events.

        The question is, did the video released by Black Lives Matter influence the remarks made by Rev. Pinckney on the floor of the South Carolina assembly and was his murder a message?

        When Darren Wilson killed Michael Brown in Ferguson the local Grand Jury declined to prosecute.  Darren Wilson resigned as a police officer.  The local prosecutor helped raise two and half million dollars to assist Wilson in his retirement.  

        The question is what kind of message was sent to Police Officers when Darren Wilson was paid two and half dollars as a result of his fame from killing Michael Brown?

I spent thirty years of my life working as a private investigator defending suspects accused of murder.  Based on all those years of dealing with this issue on a professional basis I am saying flat, out, the killing of Clementa Pinckney was not a random act of violence, it was a well-planned, consciously conceived pre-meditated murder.

Listen to the totally absurd comment of Attorney General Loretta Lynch.  She said; “We will now be looking at all of the facts, all of the motivations that led this individual, if in fact he is the shooter.  It is really premature to determine which is the best venure, either state of federal, to pursue this matter.”

Wrong.

Premeditated murder is a state offense.  There is no Federal law against murder.  If you make an effort to identify a victim, locate the victim and then kill that person you have committed first degree murder, PERIOD.  There is no State in the United States that requires proof of motive as an element for the charge of first degree murder, none.  As the chief law enforcement officer in the United States I would hope the Attorney General understands the laws against murder.

There is only one reason why the Federal Government would want to be involved.  The reason is they have something to hide.

Remember Chandra Levy?  Chandra was an intern working for Representative Gary Condit.  Part of her responsibilities working for Condit was to schedule press conferences with the Bureau of Prisons.  She was the person who issued press passes to reporters who asked to cover the execution of convicted Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh.  On the day Chandra disappeared she told a journalist friend she was present at McVeigh’s execution.  After he was given the lethal injection she saw him get up off the execution table and walk out of the prison escorted to a black van by men dressed in suits.  Chandra was so fearful for her life; she booked a flight to France and was never seen again. 

The lawyers who defended her convicted killer are asking for a retrial based on physical evidence that Chandra did not die at the place where prosecutors claimed their client committed the murder.  In other words if the convicted killer was in the park where law enforcement claims she was killed he is innocent. 

How is that relevant to the case against Mr. Storm Roof?

It certainly suggests that law enforcement might have an agenda, and it suggests the media will support that agenda regardless of the facts.

I believe the Ifa Orisa community has a moral obligation to challenge the deliberate distortions that surround this issue.  We need to set aside the religious differences that make working together in ritual difficult and focus on our moral responsibilities as role models in our community.

May it be so.

Ire,

Awo Falokun