AN EXAMINATION OF THE CONCEPT OF REINCARNATION IN AFRICAN PHILOSOPHY by HASSKEI MOHAMMED MAJEED submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF LITERATURE AND PHILOSOPHY in the subject PHILOSOPHY at the UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA SUPERVISOR: PROF. M. B. RAMOSE JANUARY 2012 CONTENTS Declaration vi Acknowledgement vii Key Terms viii Summary ix INTRODUCTION x Problem Statement x Methodology xi Structure of the Dissertation xii PART ONE 1 Belief in Reincarnation in some Ancient Cultures 1 CHAPTER ONE: EGYPTIAN BELIEF 2 1.1 Immortality and Reincarnation 7 1.2 Egypt and Africa 12 1.3 On the Meaning of Africa 17 CHAPTER TWO: GREEK BELIEF 19 CHAPTER THREE: INDIAN BELIEF 25 ii CHAPTER FOUR: CHINESE BELIEF 36 CHAPTER FIVE: INCA BELIEF 40 Conclusion for Part One 49 PART TWO 52 Personal Identity: A Prelude to Reincarnation 52 CHAPTER SIX: PERSONAL IDENTITY 52 6.0.0 On What Does Personal Identity Depend? 52 6.1.0 The Ontological Question in African Philosophy of Mind 55 6.1.1. Mind as a Disembodied Self-knowing Entity 56 6.1.2. Some Criticisms 64 6.1.2.1 Mind has no Akan Equivalent 65 6.1.2.2 Mind is Meaningless, Nonsensical, and Nonexistent 86 6.1.2.3 Mind is Bodily 96 6.1.2.3.1 Mind Signifies Mental or Brain Processes Identifiable with the Body 96 6.1.2.3.2 Bodily Identity as either a Fundament or Consequent 97 (a) Body as a Fundament 97 (b) Body as Consequent 106 6.1.2.4 Mind is neither Body-dependent nor a Disembodied Entity 107 6.1.3 Synthesis: Materialism, Physicalism, and Quasi-physicalism 111 6.2.0 The Normative Question in African Philosophy of Mind 121 6.3.0 Persistence (Survival) 123 iii PART THREE 128 Reincarnation in African Philosophy 128 CHAPTER SEVEN: THE DOCTRINE OF REINCARNATION IN AFRICAN THOUGHT 128 7. 0. Reincarnation: Introduction 128 7. 1. The doctrine of Reincarnation in African Thought 131 7.1.1. The „Sage‟ Question in Traditional African Philosophical Research 132 7.1.2. An African Concept of Reincarnation 141 7.1.2.1. On the Partial Reincarnation Thesis 141 7.1.2.2. On the Complete Denial of Reincarnation in African Thought 144 7.1.2.3. On the Reincarnation of Souls Not Admitted to the Spirit World 153 7.2.0. The Language and Eschatological Concepts of Ancient Egypt and Traditional African Culture 154 7.2.1. Similarities in Terms of Language 156 7.2.2. Similarities in Terms of Eschatological Concepts 159 CHAPTER EIGHT: RATIONALITY OF BELIEF IN REINCARNATION 164 8.1.0 „Ancestral‟ Return 164 8.1.1 Ordinary Return 164 8.1.2 „Ancestral‟ Return as a Connection between Souls 166 8.1.3 Personal Survival 173 8.2.0 The Awomawuo Phenemenon 183 iv 8.3.0 The Non-Admissibles 185 8.3.1. African and Buddhist Non-Admissibles 192 CONCLUSION 195 NOTES 199 REFERENCES 240 v DECLARATION Student Number: 4562-414-3 I declare that An Examination of the Concept of Reincarnation in African Philosophy is my own work and that all the sources that I have used or quoted have been indicated and acknowledged by means of complete references. H.M. Majeed. vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I must express my profound gratitude to Prof. M.B. Ramose whose critical comments, patience, and close supervision ensured that this dissertation was not only a success but also intellectually rewarding. The support of my family has also been overwhelming. vii KEY TERMS Reincarnation or rebirth; Ancient philosophy of religion; Akan or African philosophy; Immortality and personal survival; Akan eschatology; The soul; Life-Death philosophy; Afterlife; Personal identity; Rationality of reincarnation. viii SUMMARY This dissertation is a philosophical examination of the concept of reincarnation from an African point of view. It does so, largely, from the cultural perspective of the Akan people of Ghana. In this work, reincarnation is distinguished from such related concepts as metempsychosis and transmigration with which it is conflated by many authors on the subject. In terms of definition, therefore, the belief that a deceased person can be reborn is advanced in this dissertation as referring to only reincarnation, but not to either metempsychosis or transmigration. Many scholars would agree that reincarnation is a pristine concept, yet it is so present in the beliefs and worldviews of several cultures today (including those of Africa). A good appreciation of the concept, it can be seen, will not be possible without some reference to the past. That is why some attempt is first made at the early stages of the dissertation to show how reincarnation was understood in the religious philosophies of ancient Egyptians, Greeks, Indians, Chinese and the Incas. Secondly, some link is then established between the past and present, especially between ancient Egyptian philosophy and those of contemporary sub-Saharan Africa. In modern African thought, the doctrine of reincarnation has not been thoroughly researched into. Even so, some of the few who have written on the subject have denied its existence in African thought. The dissertation rejects this denial, and seeks to show nonetheless that reincarnation is generally an irrational concept. In spite of its irrationality, it is acknowledged that the concept, as especially presented in African thought, raises our understanding of the constitution of a person as understood in the African culture. It is also observed that the philosophical problem of personal identity is central to the discussion of reincarnation because that which constitutes a person is presumed to be known whenever a claim of return of a survived person is made. For this reason, the dissertation also pays significant attention to the concept of personal identity in connection, especially, with the African philosophical belief in the return of persons. ix INTRODUCTION The concept of reincarnation, also known as „rebirth‟, is the belief that a „person‟ (after his or her death) can be born again.1 The implication here is that a „person‟ can inhabit different bodies at different times. This dissertation reflects on the concept of rebirth in African philosophy. Although it dwells much on traditional African thought, the dissertation does not argue that a „tradition‟ necessarily constitutes a „philosophy‟. Problem Statement Reincarnation is a belief that is widespread in African and Asian societies and is increasingly becoming popular also in the West. But, the way the notion is commonly understood in the African conception of the person and of personal survival, bristles with several problems and puzzles – some of them logical – which make the notion very difficult to comprehend. Since there is not much African philosophical literature on the subject, I believe that an adequate clarification of the concept itself cannot be found fully discussed in existing books. This is why I developed an interest in carrying out a research that will lead me to some indigenous African cultures for first hand discussion and analysis of the concept of reincarnation. This way, my analyses will contribute to the understanding of the concept. If it is said that a „person‟, or, as is sometimes suggested, an aspect of a person survives death, then what will this aspect be? What exactly is that which reincarnates? If it is a soul (or a nonphysical entity) that reincarnates, why should it [the soul] be said to constitute a person at all? In any case, what/who is a person? Is it even true that a person is not completely material? If x a person is both physical and spiritual, then what is the relation between the two? These are some of the questions that the dissertation will seek to answer. Aims: The aims of this dissertation are: i) To attempt to clarify and understand the concept of reincarnation generally. ii) To explore how the concept is understood in African thought. iii) To explore the rationality of the concept of reincarnation. Methodology: In order to construct a truly African perspective on reincarnation, this research dwells mainly on the traditional values and beliefs of the Akan people of Ghana. Ideas generated from the examination of those values and beliefs – and from those of named traditional elders – are then used by me to develop an original traditional Akan philosophical position on reincarnation. The method of investigation, then, is purposely and distinctly philosophical – i.e., the position I come to, with regard to Akan reincarnation, is not established on the basis of the numerical strength of my discussants, but on the philosophical quality or usefulness of their views. Traditional beliefs and values are also treated the same way. The method, hence, develops, admits or rejects concepts, ideas or beliefs on the basis of logic. The Akan concept of reincarnation will thus be clarified and appraised with the aid of logic. The research also makes use of published materials, nonetheless. xi Structure: The structure of the dissertation is as follows: Part One Belief in Reincarnation in some Ancient Cultures Reincarnation is a basic concept that has attracted the attention of many thinkers, including ancient philosophers. This is probably due to the fact that the doctrine is directly connected with such enduring but perplexing questions as the nature of a person, life and death which humans have always been interested in. And, for the necessary background discussion of the doctrine, I intend, in this part, to explain briefly how reincarnation was understood in some ancient cultures, focusing on ancient religious philosophies of Egypt (in chapter one), Greece (chapter two), India (chapter three), China (chapter four) and the Inca Empire (chapter five). Part Two Personal Identity: A Prelude to Reincarnation This part shall serve to prepare the ground for a proper examination of the concept of reincarnation.