In a wide ranging interview at the King's palace, Dr. M asked the king numerous questions about the Yoruba faith. The king gave a historical foundation of the Yoruba people, claiming they originated from ancient Kemet or Egypt and that the foundation of their religion is the Egyptian Mystery System. He noted that Cheikh Anta Diop has made linguistic comparisons of the Yoruba language and that of ancient Kemet. There is no doubt in my mind that we descended from the land known as Egypt.
Indeed, ancestor Sun Ra taught Dr. M that we are the latter day Egyptian revisionists. When we restore our African consciousness, the Oba said we are in harmony with our ancestors, especially in belief and worship. He compared the pantheon of Kemetic gods with the Yoruba pantheon. All religions and culture come out of Africa, Yoruba, Judaism, Christianity and Islam, even Hinduism, the Oba said.
After the transition of his father, His Royal Majesty Oba Oseijeman Adefunmi, who founded Oyotunji African Village after years in Harlem, NY, the new Oba was crowned in Nigeria. Dr. M told the Oba that he remembered seeing his father on the streets of Harlem during 1968. "He was a flamboyant figure, he and his entourage with their flowing robes and dashikis." The Oba said it was his father who almost singlehandedly brought African culture to the North American African. "In Harlem, my father would give out African clothing for free to make a paradigm shift in North American African cultural consciousness, after all, we were suffering a severe form of amnesia."
As a prince who was born in Oyotunji African Village, the Oba had no special privileges. He endured manhood training as all men must do in their rites of passage. He walked the forty miles to and from the village to the City of Beaufort. He stayed in the woods at night and built a house without nails. He learned the craft of construction and other skills that all young men must achieve in manhood training. "Now everyone does not make it through manhood training. Some brothers fall apart, crack up. But usually when they get support from the brotherhood, they complete the course. And it is the same for women. They learn their duties and skills necessary for womanhood, how to be wives and mothers. We are a matrilineal society, not a patriarchy, so women play a major role in our culture, they are priests as well as men. Since we come from the womb of women, they are highly sacred to us. They have power in our kingdom. If they come to me with a problem, I better listen to them and listen good or there will be hell to pay on my part!"
The complete interview will be available on Youtube.com and this blog ASAP.
--Dr. M
10/12/2012
With this interview, Dr. M completes his mission in Gullahland SC and departs for New York City. He forever thanks his friend and host, Hurriyah Asar, for her love, friendship, generosity and hospitality.
The Oba planting a tree.
The Oba and Priest
The founder of Oyotunji African Village
The founding Oba during a sacred ceremony
Shango
The Oba and visitors
We ate dinner at the Queen Mother's (in white) residence
after our interview. On our next visit, we agreed to
interview the Queen Mother.
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