Culture, Ethics and the Environment in Traditional Africa
p. 13-22
Texte intégral
1What aspect of African culture can be mobilized to develop an environmental ethic for sustainable development in Africa? An ethic for environmental sustenance that will appeal to the conscience of Africans must develop from within the indigeneous culture of the people. Familiar values make better sense and have more impact than strange ones. It is true that the current world environmental crisis is creating a platform for interaction among the constituent societies of the world, leading to joint action. The global nature of the environmental crisis causes a recognition of the need to use the moral resources of the local community for the formulation of a positive moral attitude for the sustenance of the whole society.
2In a book entitled: No Life Without Roots, Thierry Verherlst seems to be making a similar point when he says that the crises facing most Third World countries will be compounded rather than resolved if they opt for the development model of the West. Verherlst goes on to argue that the sustenance of the environment, which is a significant aspect of a country’s development, cannot be realized in Third World countries if they decide to follow the Western paradigm. This is because the underlying philosophy behind Western culture is antithetical to the goal of a self-sustaining environment, being informed by its desire to conquer nature rather than be reconciled with it (Verherlst, 1987: 24).
3Our desire to extract certain norms to support the effort to forge an environmental ethic in the continent, from the indigenous cultures of Africa has a salient assumption – the belief that every culture has a folk ethic or philosophy which professional philosophers use. As Wiredu puts it, professional philosophy is usually an unconscious presentation of communal views (Wiredu, 1991: 6). This observation is true. Every culture has within it certain philosophical axioms, ethical norms and other value systems created for the survival of the society. By the very definition of culture ‘as the sum total of the original solutions that a group of human beings invent to adapt to their natural and social environment’ (Verherlst, 1987: 25), one can deduce that every culture invents its own mechanisms or moral norms for coping with the environment and maintaining the welfare and health of the society. The African society is no exception. What then are those moral values?
4To understand those norms, a knowledge of the fundamental features of African culture is essential. Norms and values favourable to the survival of natural resources are interwoven with the totality of African culture. To talk of African culture as a uniform phenomenon that cuts across the diverse societies of the continent may be treading dangerous ground,4 but this is done to highlight the binding principles behind these diverse cultures.
5There are two significant beliefs common to all African cultures, and which unite all the various societies within Africa whatever their differences; these are the belief in communalism and supernaturalism. These two beliefs are also important because they reveal the nature of the relationship between human beings and their environment in Africa and are potential sources in the development of a new environmental ethic.
6Many philosophers, anthropologists and sociologists who have studied African cultures5 confirm that a defining feature of African culture is the communal nature of the social structures. Communalism is the concept that all individuals within a society are interrelated and interdependent. It is the antithesis of individualism as exhibited by Western liberal society. Communalism in African societies is a social arrangement whereby members see themselves as pursuing similar goals and having related interests, i.e., an individual does not see himself/herself as outside his community.
7What then is the community? – the defining attribute of a communalistic society? According to Gyekye:
It is the notion of common interests, goals and values that differentiates a community from a mere association of individual persons. Members of a community share goals and values. They have intellectual and ideological, as well as emotional attachments to these goals and values as long as they cherish them, they are ever ready to defend them (1992: 104).
8It has been said that the communal nature of African culture has ‘fundamental ethical and philosophical implications’ (Omo-Fadaka, 1990: 178). Before we begin to draw out the moral values embedded in this social structure, however, let us examine the second feature of African culture which is supernaturalism. The ethical and philosophical implications of communalism can only be meaningful and worthy of analysis in relation to the principle of supernaturalism, since the two complement each other.
9Supernaturalism in African culture refers to the belief that all of nature is imbued with supernatural power. The connotation of this regards all occupants of the universe, however small, or trivial, as possessing certain powers that cannot be explained in physical terms. Kwasi Wiredu, the Ghanaian philosopher, has described this aspect of our culture in a negative way. Supernaturalism in his opinion refers to ‘the intuitive, essentially unanalytic, unscientific mode’ within our culture (Wiredu, 1980: 11). He regards it as synonymous with superstition and the opposite of scientism – the tendency to give a scientific explanation for all circumstances.6
10Supernaturalism relates to the religiosity of the African; the desire to give a religious or spiritual explanation to all events. There is, therefore, a continuous link between the natural and the spiritual such that ‘the spiritual universe is a unit with the physical and that these two intermingle and dovetail into each other so much that it is not easy or even necessary at times to draw the distinction or separate them’ (Mbiti, 1970: 75).
11Supernaturalism is a significant feature of African culture and is always associated with traditional societies7. It is the characteristic that differentiates a traditional society from a modem one. Africans tend to see spirits in everything. According to Mbiti:
Major objects of nature like the sun, mountains, seas, lakes, rivers and boulders are also attributed to have or to be spiritual beings or divinities. Examples of this can be quoted from many parts of Africa... Through the centuries, it has become an institutionalized part of ‘looking at the world’ so much that it colours the subconscious corporate and individual thinking and attitude of African people
Mbiti, 1970: 77
12Those beliefs are not just held by all members of the society because of the simple fact that they are beliefs, but they are accepted by all because certain myths and taboos, which often engender fear, are employed to sustain them.
13The belief in ancestors and their world is a significant aspect of African supernaturalism. Many writers on African culture, even the critically minded, acknowledge that in virtually all African societies, the belief in an ancestral world inhabited by ancestors is very real.
The influence of the ancestors is as vivid in the imagination as that of the living elders of the clan and actually authoritative morally, since the ancestors are, as a rule, supposed to judge the conduct of the living and reward or punish them from a position of moral unimpeachability to which no mortal can lay claim
Wiredu, 1991: 25.
14In actual fact, Mbiti refers to the ancestors as the living dead because of their capacity to cross between the abode of the dead and that of the living. In the same vein, Mbiti regards the ancestors as the custodians of the moral norms of the community, the ‘invisible police’ of the African societies (Mbiti, 1970: 83). The idea of ancestors ‘can form the basis of a safe creative and positive system of values for any developing nation’ (Dzobo, 1992: 236). Our objective in this research is to see how the belief can be used to support the goal of sustainability.
15Let us analyse the implications of these ideas in traditional African culture for the development of a system of moral values for the sustenance of the environment in Africa. These cultural values have been used in the past as a way of preserving the environment. It has been said, ‘out of the religious beliefs and values and their reverence for sacred public places, an ecological and environmental concern was developed’ (Omari, 1990: 169).
16We begin our analysis with land because it plays an important role in most African societies because of the agrarian economic base. Land is one of the most important resources of nature and the most significant legacy that any generation cdn bequeath to its successors. In Africa the two beliefs, communalism and supernaturalism, play a significant role in the use and preservation of land. It is common knowledge that land in traditional African society does not belong to an individual but to the community. In general, therefore, the individual does not have much opportunity to misuse the land because the land tenure arrangements usually involve communal cooperation to ensure regeneration of fertility. This position has been stated clearly.
The important thing which united all African societies with regard to ownership of land was that land was considered a communal property belonging to both the living and the dead. Those ancestors who had lived on the land belonged to the same social unit which owned and controlled the land and each individual who used the land felt a communal obligation for its care and administration before passing it to the next generation
Omari, 1990: 168.
17The communal ownership of land is not the only reason why it is regarded as an obligation and treated with reverence in Africa. The spiritual and supernatural beliefs surrounding land are also responsible for its sacredness. Among the Ashanti, for instance, land is not only worshipped but regarded as the second divinity (Mbiti, 1970: 78), while the Igbo believe in the earth goddess – Ala – who needs to be appeased to ensure the fertility of the land. Likewise, the Yoruba also venerate the land: During our field work it was revealed that in traditional society, land is regarded as a potent spiritual force. This, according to our informants, explains the reason why during Ifa divination or any religious rite, the land is propitiated first in order to appease the spirits therein. Since every activity of man takes place on the land, it is believed that the land must not be offended. In actual fact, the land is seen as the link between the living and the dead. It is used as a medium of oath taking. The land, as the binding spirit, is therefore the umpire in any dealing between two or more members of the community. Any contract between them is sealed, with the land acting as the wimess.
18Since the land and all things on it do not belong to any individual, it is imperative for it to be used with moral responsibility. These beliefs surrounding the issue of land, make the individual aware that he owes an obligation, not only to the land but also to the community, to treat the land with care. Furthermore, the individual himself is aware of the potency of the land as a spiritual entity able to protect its own rights through supernatural means. If the individual abuses the land he will incur not only the wrath of the community, but also the outrage of supernatural world. The spiritual forces surrounding the land tend to protect it from misuse and abuse in traditional African society; every user owes the community the duty to maintain and sustain the fertility of the land. In this respect, Omo-Fadaka (1990: 177) reported that Africans who are forest dwellers ‘feel themselves to be part of the living forest; each part of which has its own spirit’ (Omo-Fadaka, 1990: 177).
19During field research in Igbogila town in Yewa North Local Government, information about communalism and spirituality of the land in a traditional African community was obtained. Many informants confirmed that in the past men who cultivated the land knew that it was their duty not to plant certain crops repeatedly on a particular piece of land, because such practices would result in a loss of fertility. They also believed that anyone who abused the land could be struck down by smallpox, an abominable disease. Similarly, in the same community, it was forbidden for farmers to plant crops in the afternoon when the sun was high. The punishment for ignoring this custom was smallpox. The reason given for this taboo by the members of the community was that they believed that planting in the afternoon was an unfavourable act to the spirit of the land, and practice of this custom could cause the land to lose its fertility. The informants also said that crops harvested from the land could not be sold or eaten until after certain rituals were performed. This was not only for religious reasons, but also to make sure that the able-bodied members of the community shared their farm products with the old and the disabled, who could no longer farm. It can be seen then that the religious and the secular aspects of life in Africa combine to moderate various activities to create a moral order.
20In traditional society, where people live and survive on the basis of a good relationship with nature and especially where the parts of trees are used for medicinal purposes, it is not surprising that arbitrary destruction of plants is not condoned. Amongst the Yoruba, for instance, every member of the society, especially the adults, know that plants are not supposed to be- used without consultation. Taboos and myths ensure the protection of trees, herbs, rivers, and other non-living things. These taboos and myths also have social functions (Omari 1990: 169).
21It might be said that the reason why plants and animals are mystified in traditional Africa is not directly related to conservation and that they serve this purpose accidentally. One of the informants disagreed vehemently with this view. He believed that in the Yoruba community, taboos and myths are created for the protection of the health and welfare of individuals or groups of individuals. He said that albinos and deformed people are protected from derision by the myth that they are children of God. He argues further that the fact that the trees and animals protected by myths and taboos are the rare ones – is an indication that the need for their conservation was recognized. Even if those myths and taboos were not created for preserving the resources of nature, in the present dispensation and considering the current environmental crisis, they could now be employed to restrain people from abusing natural resources.
22The belief in ancestors is an aspect of African culture relevant to the goal of sustainable environment. The belief forms the basis of the argument that every generation has the moral duty to preserve the resources of nature for the succeeding generation. The debate in the West about there being any such duty to posterity is not tenable within traditional African culture since the African community is one not only of the living but of the dead and those yet to be bom. There is no controversy in traditional Africa that the living generation, inasmuch as they are protected by their ancestors, have a duty to conserve the communal resources for their successors.
Of all the duties owed by the ancestors none is more imperious than that of husbanding the resources of the land so as to leave it in good shape for posterity. In this moral scheme the rights of the unborn play such a cardinal role that any traditional African would be nonplussed by the debate in Western philosophy as to the existence of such rights. In the upshot there is a two-sided concept of stewardship in the management of the environment involving obligations to both ancestors and descendants which motivates environmental carefulness.
Wiredu, 1991: 25
23 In dosing this section it must be mentioned that those norms and values that are protective of the environment in African culture have been eroded by modernity. Many writers have commented that colonialism and the attendant cults of modernity, urbanization, Christianity and Islam have eroded all aspects of African culture and values to the extent that it has become necessary to reconstruct those positive and environmentally protective norms in Africa to meet the present challenge. Since moral values that are environment-friendly are touched by the dynamics of the society; a new moral orientation that will engender the sustenance of the natural resources has to be built.
Notes de bas de page
4 Sweeping generalizations should always be avoided in the study of African culture, unless the evidence confirms the generality.
5 See for example, Gyekye, 1987, 1992; Wiredu, 1980, 1991; Mbiti, 1970; Omari, 1990; and Omo-Fadaka, 1990,
6 Wiredu’s position with respect to supematuralism is that it is one of the problems retarding the progress of the African society. His conclusion, therefore, is that supernaturalism should be discouraged. Though we agree with Wiredu that African attitudes toward the supernatural have had a negative impact on society, we feel that such ideas can also be positively channelled for the goals of environmental conservation. It will be necessary to make these theories less superstitious and more scientific.
7 One of the distinctions often drawn between traditional and modern culture is the fact that the former operates with the ideas of superstition and supernaturalism, while the latter operates using scientific principles. While explanations within traditional culture tend to be supernatural, modem culture tends to seek scientific answers.
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