Meaning and essence of philosophy -- On the existence of African philosophy -- Philosophy as wisdom: the Ifa example -- Ontology in Ifa corpus -- Epistemology in Ifa corpus -- Ethics in Ifa corpus -- Ifa and the problem of gerontocracy in Africa -- Ifa and the consequences of literacy -- Ifa and the development crisis in Africa.

An essential part of the concept of knowledge is the belief that the basic premises for knowledge must be justified. This means that for a knowledgeclaim to be true, there is a need for its justification. In African epistemology, the justification of beliefs and epistemic claims has mostly been considered from an externalist perspective such that justification appears to be one dimensional. Since epistemic claims can be justified using either the internalist or externalist perspective, this paper aims at showing that (...) there are internalism and externalism in African epistemology and that Ifá divination system embodies both the internalist and externalist basis of justification in African epistemology. Keywords: Internalism, Externalism, African Epistemology, divination, Justification. (shrink)

Neglected monotheism is how Thaddeus Metz and Motsamai Molefe designate the common denominator among the various religious cultures found across sub-Saharan Africa. This is a product of their engagement with such traditional African religious themes as God’s nature, God’s will, life beyond death, and the duration of existence beyond or without a body consequent on death. This article uses traditional Yoruba theology and its ritual archive, the Ifa corpus, to argue that Metz and Molefe’s monotheistic proposal is a hasty generalization. (...) In fact, on close inspection, the Ifa corpus turns out that traditional Yoruba theology is grounded in panentheism. (shrink)

Yoruba Idealism t questions, debates, and redefines the assumed epistemology in Yoruba Idealism. It is a work in two parts. The first is built around a study of divinity-philosopher Orunmila, the mentalist, the father of Yoruba idealism, and the cultivator of Ifa-Ife Divination. This project, the first of its kind, sheds a new light on the nature of Yoruba culture. The author's central argument is that the Yoruba people are idealists by nature. Combining indigenous knowledge with the wisdom of Orunmila, (...) the author defines Yoruba idealism as the ideal purpose of life, the search for the meaning of life, and a yearning for the best in life. The second part, 'The Mystic Land: Path to Initiation and Idealism,' features Kinedi, a fifteen-year-old boy from Las Palmetto, the capital of Zala, who journeys to the Altar of Light and Idealism in order to be initiated, gain knowledge, and comprehend the value of idealism, in addition to obtaining the key of life. This book is the first of its kind, and an important new addition to the series Africa in the Global Space. (shrink)

El presente trabajo versa sobre cómo se construye una cierta identidad y, por tanto, un cierto tipo de sujeto, a partir de los sistemas normativos propios de la adivinación en la santería cubana. Este análisis se realiza a partir de las experiencias en el trabajo de campo del autor durante cinco años en una “casa de santo” en Remedios, Villa Clara y del estudio exhaustivo de las llamadas “letras” de Ifá. La adivinación en esta religión no solo resulta un acto (...) predictivo, sino una manera de conformar un tipo de personalidad, a partir de un conjunto de reglas y recomendaciones individualizadas para cada creyente. (shrink)

El presente trabajo versa sobre cómo se construye una cierta identidad y, por tanto un cierto tipo de sujeto, a partir de los sistemas normativos propios de la adivinación en la santería cubana. Este análisis se realiza a partir de las experiencias en el trabajo de campo del autor durante cinco años en una “casa de santo” en Remedios, Villa Clara y del estudio exhaustivo de las llamadas “letras” de Ifá. La adivinación en esta religión no solo resulta un acto (...) predictivo, sino una manera de conformar un tipo de personalidad, a partir de un conjunto de reglas y recomendaciones individualizadas para cada creyente. (shrink)