Of Nigeria and the larger black race

JANUARY 12th should be the beginning of the end of the structures that have arrested the economic, sociopolitical and cultural development of the black race, courtesy of the universe (eledunmare) through Oya and Obaluaye. Though I have read that the 16-bit original African information retrieval system – Ifa-Afa-Iha-Eha-Fa – has indicated that Odu Irosun Oyeku typifies this year, but without a global perspective short term interpretations run contrary to long term objectives. The Odu advises looking back to move forward not to repeat past mistakes. A short term myopic interpretation of looking back to the ancestors restricts it to Yoruba, as opposed to going back to the roots of Ifa-Afa-Iha-Eha-Fa that spread across the South and the Middle belt. Without the benefit of a longer universal time perspective, the interpretations will only result in the same strategic and tactical errors that have beset the black race. More than the loss of millions of our people to the transatlantic slavery and our lands to colonisation, the loss of our traditional timing and knowledge banks is the greatest loss. It practically blinded us as a people. Stargazers known as aworawo have practically disappeared from the original African cultural landscape.

At the beginning of human civilisation, it was the understanding of cosmic sciences that enabled our ancestors not only to be able to decipher planting seasons based on the movement of the sun (Orunmila), but also different human endeavors spiritually linked to other planets attached to various orishas. From the short Mercury orbit linked to Esu, information and its ramifications whereby they knew bad days to avoid going out, to the slightly longer Mars orbit of about two and a half years linked to Ogun, war and positive action, to the 12-year Jupiter orbit linked to Obatala and the 246-year Pluto orbit, the longest orbit in the solar system, linked to Oya and the tenets of revolutionary change. However, the longest orbit is that of the entire universe put at 26,000 years and divided into twelve 2,000-year eras spiritually tied to the coming of God/Messiah/Mahdi. You have 8 cycles of Oya social change to arrive at a change of global consciousness brought every 2,000 years.

While the physically blind can’t see the sun to predict its immediate weather conditions, our cultural blindness prevents us from knowing what time it is apart from those tied to food, sex and partying. Not advanced concepts of social change which will inspire and empower our sociopolitical evolution as a people. We have become like sheep. While the Gregorian solar calendar counts 2020 sun revolutions since it began compared to the Yoruba 10060, they are important orbit alignments not visible to the naked eye since we can’t see the planets to locate their position. Pluto, the planet attached to Oya, was at the same position it was 250 years ago, when in 1770s, Bashorun Gaa usurped the power of Alaafin of Oyo, signaling the beginning of the end of Oyo Empire. Being a global phenomenon, the independence of the United States of America signal led the beginning of the end of British and French global supremacy. 250 years earlier, around 1520, at the same position Pluto’s winds of global structural change brought the emergence of France and England to challenge the spiritual and political dominance of Spain and the Holy Roman Empire.

Likewise, Nupe Islamists attacked Oyo Ile, making the royal court to move to Igboho until Oyo developed its Aare Onakankanfo military institution. 1270 had ushered in the use of paper money and gunpowder that Europeans used to shake off Islamic global dominance that had ruled them for 500 years. There are 8 Oya cycles in a Great Year, 2000 year epochs, and this present cycle is more poignant because it also coincides with the change of the Great Year. This 2020 cosmic alignment is also very important because in the 1770 alignment, Saturn (Babaluaye) didn’t meet Oya (Pluto) at that point to make a greater upheaval. The last time they met was in 1520 leading to the breakup of Roman Catholicism by France and England, as well as the original African cultural sphere by Oyo and Benin. Not only earthly but heavenly constructs were smashed and broken apart by Oya’s ferocious winds of revolutionary change.

Starting from January 12 2020 throughout the 2020 decade all old political, economic and cultural systems will be broken and new ones will evolve, as we also witness a global change of consciousness from religious and political dogma to fact-based enlightenment and quest for cultural, economic and political justice in the age of Aquarius/Sango. Normally a violent time of change, it is hoped that the presence of Jupiter (Obatala) at the same angle of the sky during 2020 will enable a calming intelligent beginning to this transit. Astrologers say that cosmic influences show favorable periods for certain endeavors but to enjoy or avoid them requires positive action. If the stars show that you will make money, it requires you make the effort to be blessed by favorable influences, otherwise the opportunity passes you by in blissful ignorance. This is why we must never forget that Elizabeth used astrology through John Dee to make pivotal decisions that uplifted Britain into global ascendancy. The potency of cosmic sciences to empower the masses or usurper make the ruling classes demonise and ban cosmic sciences from the general public. Nevertheless, European powers still consult cosmic sciences and know what Oya’s time it is, Just as well as the Muslim sufis that see it as a time of the great Mahdi.

This is why the global consciousness of Anglo-Saxons in UK and USA has opted for neo-conservatives to strengthen their global structures in this time of great change. This can also be used to justify the fanatical support of Islamists for Buhari, who is supposed to drain the swamp and empower his people. Unfortunately, the two largest original African groups, Yoruba and Igbo, and the rest of the Niger-Congo ethnolinguistic family, despite still being able to read Ifa, have lost their sense of traditional spiritual timing to give them a global perspective.

Even though they can be seen agitating under their small umbrella groups, not being able to read the cosmic weather, they don’t realise that this storm cannot be withstood with small separatists’ umbrella groups but by coming together to build a strong foundation that can withstand the storm of ages, to avoid being uprooted and blown across the world and smashed into hard surfaces. Ifa has prescribed Irosun Oyeku for 2020 to give us a strong platform in preparation of the change of ages, but it is fractionally interpreted to prevent the understanding that it is a call for original African cultural unity of the Niger Congo ethnolinguistic family.

We must be prepared for the rough change of ages by articulating our cultural origins and linkages in order to unite as a cultural platform, away from partisan or separatist politics.

• Faloye writes in from Lagos