Communal Ethics, Ancestral Wisdom & Human Interconnectedness
Explore African philosophical traditions centered on Ubuntu ('I am because we are'), communal harmony, moral personhood, and ancestral proverbs across the African continent.
“A person is a person through other persons. None of us comes into the world fully formed. We would not know how to think, or walk, or speak, or behave as human beings unless we learned it from other human beings.”
“For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”
“Until the lions have their own historians, the history of the hunt will always glorify the hunter.”
“It is the little things citizens do. That's what will make the difference. My little thing is planting trees.”
“Any man that tries to rob me of my dignity will lose.”
“Be nice to the whites, they need you to rediscover their humanity.”
“If one finger brings oil it soils the others.”
“Seek ye first the political kingdom and all things shall be added unto you.”
“The man dies in all who keep silent in the face of tyranny.”
“We all share one planet and are one humanity; there is no escaping this reality.”
“The Lord had the wonderful advantage of being able to work alone.”
“It is us today. It will be you tomorrow.”
“Education is not a way to escape poverty, it is a way of fighting it.”
“Capitalism is the arsonist of our forests.”
“Fervor is the weapon of choice of the impotent.”
“I do reread novels I love, like Chinua Achebe’s “Arrow of God,” to remind myself of what fiction can do.”
“In my country we go to prison first and then become President.”
“I am a leader by default, only because nature does not allow a vacuum.”
“He warns them not to become “disinherited”.”
“I am not African because I was born in Africa but because Africa was born in me.”
“Bessie Head: I found her novels very, very gripping, fascinating, challenging, really intellectually intriguing.”
“The generation that destroys the environment is not the generation that pays the price. That is the problem.”
“Gender equality is critical for the development and peace of every nation.”
“We have finished the job. What shall we do with the tools?”
“Small nations are like indecently dressed women. They tempt the evil-minded.”
“When the people stand up, imperialism trembles.”
“To speak a language is to take on a world, a culture.”
“I love the opulent poetry of Tishani Doshi and the more formal work of Derek Walcott and Christian Wiman.”
“Long live the Cuban revolution! Long live Comrade Fidel Castro!”
“Resentment and anger are bad for your blood pressure and your digestion.”
Compare perspectives across humanity's philosophical, spiritual, and secular traditions.