Coffin texts differ from the other texts because they were literally messages on the coffin's of pharaohs reminding people of their themes of reward and punishment in the afterlife. The way in which Ancient Africans conducted themselves was so important because it impacted them in their afterlife. Afterlife was a central belief in Ancient history and each individual's afterlife path was dependent upon their current life. Goddess Ma'at helped to navigate people into a positive life by giving the Principles of Ma'at. An example of these principles would be "I have not closed my ears to truth." Ancient Egyptians practiced truth, justice and order. Through the stories that Dr. Gbadegesin described students understood that we have to fight for our rights and justice.
Not only did ordinary humans strive to abide by the Principles of Ma'at but other Gods also made an effort to practice her principles. Gods became strong by living through Ma'at. They were not exempt from certain morals or consequences; This ties back to the idea of Iwa. Keeping good character means that you are living in good existence. Omoluabi: a child begotten of the chief source of Iwa is what many wanted to be. This type of person was a person of character,disciplined,self-improving and thus earning respect from others. In conclusion it is important that Howard University students and staff have character or Iwa. We must salute the influential persons in our life like Dr. Gbadegesin did at the beginning of his lecture. We must remember "a river that forgets its source will eventually dry off."
-Kaylynn Webb
This lecture, given by Dr. Segun Gbadegesin, focused on the concept of Omoluabi and its relevance in the project of useful learning. Omoluabi is said to be the essence of a human being, a wellspring of good character. Dr. Gbadegesin analyzed this definition and spoke on the importance of character, Iwa. Before his presentation, Dr. Ghadegesin started the session by saluting his Creator, the freshman seminar coordinators, the class of 2014, and his mother and father. He expressed the importance of giving tribute and acknowledgement to those who have enabled you to be where you are today. On completing his recognition he told the story of Iwa, a woman born to Orunmila, the goddess of wisdom, and Suru, the god of patience. At the end of the story, Iwa had become lost to the man who she was with, and he spent forever trying to find and get her back. The moral of the story was that if you lose your character, you lose everything; without Iwa, your character, you have nothing. When beauty, and wealth, and all that is earthly is gone, it’s a person’s character that is able to endure until the end of time. So it is important to maintain your character and not lose it along the road. One must be an Omoluabi, a person pf character, disciplined, self-improving, and thus earning the respect of their peers and community. The ancient Egyptians learned from the Principles of Maat, and practiced truth, justice, order, balance and harmony by studying it. Through their practice they were able to have a strong character. In accordance with this, Dr. Gbadegesin mentioned that “a man of character is a man of wealth”. Character is being responsible for one’s self, remaking or improving one’s self through education; any education, not necessarily a school education. Character is also serving the community with education. Lastly, one’s character is tied, connected in the memory of the community. By looking back and studying the accomplishments of those before us we can learn and better improve our own character; for “a river that forgets its source will dry up”. Dr. Gbadegesin whole heartedly stated that good character is beauty, the greatest talisman one can possess, and the essence of all religion. And he makes a good point. A person’s character is what defines them, and it is up to that person to strive to do whatever possible to keep he or her character and not lose it on the way to self identity.
ReplyDeleteThis week Dr. Segun Gbadesein spoke on self-actualization and communal responsibility. He began by paying homage to the important people in his life by saluting them. He then went on to talk about the great philosophers of our time. But we didn’t discuss the people we usually think of as the great philosophers such as Socrates and Aristotle but the Goddess Ma’at, the vizier Ptahhotep and the pharaoh Amenemope. Each one of these influential scribes had a contribution to the way Egyptians would live their lives. First there were the principles of Ma’at. It was in these principles that Egyptian’s learned and practiced truth, justice, order, balance and harmony. These principles were to the ancient Egyptians what the Ten Commandments are to modern day Christians. Net came the instructions of Ptahhotep, which were the humanistic maxims for the living. They stated that a man of character is a man of wealth.
ReplyDeleteWe also talked about Iwa as existence. Iwa, the good of existence represents the responsibility to your-self. This means it is up to us to remake ourselves specifically through education. It also refers to the responsibility to the community. The way we serve the community is with education.
In This week’s lecture, entitled “Omoluabi : Self Actualization and Communal Responsibility”, Dr. Segun Gbadegesin delivered a powerful message on the importance of character. He first began the lecture by showing respect to his ancestors as well as those of us in the classroom. Next, he transitioned into telling the story of Iwa and Orunmila, two prominent figures in Yoruba culture, and used their story as a metaphor. In the story, Orunmila is married to Iwa, and is a prosperous man. However, later on in the story, their relationship begins to dwindle as Orunmila becomes cockier. Eventually Iwa decides to leave Orunmila, and as a result, Orunmila’s great wealth and prosperity diminish. In the story, Iwa represents character. He then went on to say that character is the crux of human existence, and that without it, not only will we not prosper, but we will lose the very thing that defines us as humans . He also revealed that Iwa can sometimes be interpreted as existence or self-improvement and that these concepts are very important.
ReplyDeleteAfterwards, he defined the term Omoluabi as “a child begotten of the chief (or source) of iwa” and that, as college students, we need to receive our education and act upon it in our communities. He stated that the goal of university level education is “to arrive at a clear notion of the nature and possibilities of human life in the individual and in the world.” This lecture was not only enlightening in regards to a historical and cultural aspect, but also in an inspiring sense. It was a reality check of sorts, and served as a reminder that character is a more important quality than all of the other distractions that are so prevalent in college life.