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AFRICAN COSMOLOGY AND THE PARANORMAL *
Ayisi, Christian Harry, M.A., Ph.D. (Lond.)
University of Ghana,
Legon,
Ghana, West Africa.
NTRODUCTION
It has been my special preoccupation to find out some special
features of activity, experience and philosophy peculiar with the African
thich explain, in a significant way, some of the mysteries surrounding
the paranormal.
In this pursuit, I am currently engaged on research in
ihana into sources of psychic power; and I have been studying the activities
of various well-known cults as well as a number of individuals privately
engaged in occult practices.
From my researches, I have found that there
is a close link between the paranormal and cosmology, as conceived by the
traditional African.
Cosmology explains the flow and balance of the .
subtle energies in the universe which bring about and affect all life
Processes .
But beliefs concerning cosmology are prescribed by culture
nd traditions; and although it is difficult to identify the various
eoples of Africa with one type of cultural persuasion there is nevertheless
. sense in which some features of a people's philosophy and behaviour could
je regarded as being typically African. In this paper, therefore, I am
aking some generalizations from my Ghanaian experience, based on the
kan persuasion
(The Akans constitute the dominant ethnic group in Ghana;
nd, broadly speaking, Ghanaian cultural style is set by them.)
The central theme of this Conference is: "Psychotronics - our
nner cosmos".
We are focusing attention on Man's inner space, with a
iew to proclaiming the ideal of micro- and macro- cosmic unity.
*Paper prepared for the Fourth International Conference on Psychotronic
Research, Sao Paulo, Brazil, June 30 - July 7, 1979.
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It seems to me that African cosmology throws some light on this. I therefore
propose, in this paper, to relate elements in a typically African cosmology
to paranormal practices, and then draw some implications for psychotronic
research.
TRADITIONAL AFRICAN COSMOLOGY
The forces which control the universe are the Supreme Being,
Spiritual beings, and Mother Earth.
The most important of these is the
preme Being ("Onyame", "Onyankopon", meaning 'the shining one' and 'the
only great one, Onyame') .
He is also "Odomankoma Oboadee", i.e. the
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Creator.
He is "Onyankopon Kwame" ("Kwame", meaning a male who was born
who came into being on a Saturday) . "Onyame" is also used as a term
signating the firmament.
The Supreme Being retains ultimate control over events and sustair
add rules over the world He created; but He is also viewed as transcendent
w in some respects remote from his creation.
This attribute of trans-
ondence carries the concomitant belief that He has delegated power to other
gents - the Spiritual
beings ("Ahonhom") - that more directly interact
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Mother Earth or the Earth Goddess is designated "Asase Yaa"
"Yaa", meaning a female who came into being on a Thursday) . She is the
ide expanse of earth, and is thus polar to "Onyame", the firmament. She
mbodies the concept of fertility.
She supports all matter and all forms
f biological life, and has thus the attribute of 'dependence', i.e. one
epended upon .
Africans have their own ontology, which may be divided up into
ne following five categories:
(i) God - the ultimate explanation of the genesis and sustenance of
both man and all things;
(ii) Spirits -
superhuman beings (e.g. demons, and "little people"
i.e. "dwarfs" - "Mmoatia") and the spirits of human beings who died
long ago (ancestral spirits, "Nsamanfo")-
ii)
Man - who is a fusion of a soul ("Okra") from God, a 'blood-element'
("mogya") from the mother, and a 'personality-spirit' ("ntoro")
from the father;
[iv)
Animals and plants - the remainder of biological life;
(v)
Phenomena and objects without biological life.
Man is the centre of this ontology, in the sense that God is the
'iginator and sustainer of man; the Spirits explain and influence man's
stiny; animals, plants and natural phenomena and objects constitute the
vironment in which man lives, provide a means of existence, and man
tablishes a mystical relationship with them.
This is
how the microcosm
lates to the macrocosm.
In addition to these five ontological categories, there is
vital force, power or energy permeating the whole universe.
This
th human beings.
These other agents are accordingly treated as if
endowed with an independent ability to act; and they are recognized in
tal force, "sunsum" (i .e. "sum-sum" - "move-move": moving force)
what anthropologists call 'mana'; and it may be equated to the
từ
ir own right as well as in their role of intermediaries with the Supreme ech "psychotronic energy",
the Hindu "pranic energy",
Being.
e Soviet "bioplasmic energy", or the Chinese "chi energy".
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The traditional African sees the universe with some kind of wholenes
t embraces both the visible world and the invisible.
The African draws no
ine between material and spiritual forms of existence; both have reality
o him.
He sees the universe as invested with mystical power. This
ower is ultimately from the Supreme Being; but, in practice, it is inherent
n, or comes from or through physical objects and spiritual beings. What
this means is that to the African, the universe is not static or 'dead':
is a dynamic, 'living' and powerful universe.

.
"Sunsum" is inherent in people, animals and things.
It is a potent
yet neutral energy which can be turned to good or evil ends. God is
the source and ultimate controller of this force; but the spirits have
ccess to some of it, and some human beings have the knowledge and technique
tap, manipulate and use it.
The multitude of different types of
existents in the universe are unified by their indispensable possession
"sunsum".
The "sunsum" is the essence of the being or object,
Its intrinsic activating principle; and, as well as designating the
stivating essence of particular beings and things, it also refers to the
neral power to act in non-ordinary, non-physical ways. It is the primary
use of all unusual or inexplicable events.
It is thus the power behind
11 paranormal events .
TEMENTS IN THE PARANORMAL
Whenever pouring libation, the Akan invokes first, "Onyankopon
kwame" (the Supreme Being) , and then "Asase Yaa" (Mother Earth) , before
ntoning his petitions to the spiritual beings.
This may be likened
applying a positive charge to a negative charge to produce electric
wrrent which, like psychotronic energy, is a very potent, yet invisible,
Sower for all sorts of uses. It is significant to observe here that
modern witchcraft, even in the West, recognizes the place of "earth"
rituals: a small bowl containing earth is one of the important things
Spiritual objects serving the role of intermediaries with the
Supreme Being are deities ("abosom"), and talismans, amulets, charms
asuman") .
The deities are conceived as personal beings who descend
earth independently of human efforts; they are attended by medium-
priests or priestesses, who invoke their power for all sorts of human situati
e amulet has the power of passive protection against spiritual "influences".
. derives its efficacy from one of the basic sources of magical power - the
wer inherent in any object ( "sunsum") .
The talisman introduces one
ito active magic, and is also protective in many respects. It is the
oduct of intellectual speculation and magical fabrication. Sometimes
e talisman is "charged" with magical power by ritual and incantation.
e interesting example of charms in Ghana is "love medicine". Some of
ese, which often include sweet-smelling substances such as lavender,
ek simply to make the user highly irresistible to the heretofore
responsive object of his affection.
Women may secure love medicine
make their husbands impotent with
any other woman; and a man
y guard against the infidelity of his wife or girl-friend by employing
dicines that will cause other men to become impotent on her.
One other type of power centres around the "little people" -
visible "dwarfs" ("mmoatia") .
They are invoked to perform miracles
ke telekinesis, teleportation, materialization, and dematerialization;
eir services are also utilized in paradiagnostics, paramedicine, and
rbal medicine.
The power of ancestral spirits ("nsamanfo") also is
voked for beneficent or other purposes.
This is the power invoked
d utilized in seances. "Mmoatia" and "nsamanfo" are considered
be the power behind poltergeist activities.
The power of individual human beings derives from their
unsum" (personality-spirit, emanating from "ntoro") . It is the
velopment of this which makes one psychic.
This power is also the
imary ingredient of witchcraft.
Astral projection is an activity
this constituent element in man.
A special type of power which lies between witchcraft
...
d sorcery in Ghana is "Nzima bayl", i.e. "Nzima witchcraft" (Nzima
in the far western region) . A person who acquires this power is
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t
on the altar table.

.t comes from the inner world of the individual.
In the African's
able to become very wealthy in a remarkably short space of time. To do st
however, he must first sacrifice the life of the person he loves the most
his own child or matrilineal relative - or else relinquish his own sexual
potency or fertility.
After the initial evil deed, the power acts sole.
liverse where everything is conceived as containing a mysterious
›wer ("sunsum") , where rituals, spells, and incantations, and spirits
je as real as any physical object, there is no clear dividing line
Itween supernatural and natural.
When operating, the magic worker
for the good of the individual.
But the gains so secured are often
>es not divorce the inner world from the outer; bound up both inwardly
of short duration.
The person lives to enjoy his new wealth for only
a few years, and all his riches vanish upon his death.
id outwardly with the magical art, he does not attempt critically
> understand what he is doing; he only exploits the imagination and .
le emotions; thus he achieves a cosmic unity.
Then also, the African notion that all magical processes
:e simply means of tapping the occult power ("sunsum") that is
lieved to inhabit everything - people, plants, precious stones,
:ars, and so on - carries with it
the important idea of 'correspondences '.
ir example, metals have many 'correspondences' in magical thought -
.th parts of the body, with planets, with stars, and with aspects
: the earth.
The idea here may also be illustrated with the magical
wer found in plants, which is used extensively in Africa.
A shrub
tich grows in various parts of Africa - the Ocimum Viride ("Onunum") ,
ir instance, has both wide medicinal and spiritual properties. Its
:ied leaves contain 1.2 per cent of an orange-yellow essential oil
.th thyme-like odour and pungent taste which mixes with alcohol in
.1 proportions, and is a possible source of the drug thymol. Its
af infusion can be substituted for quinine in cases of fever of
.1 kinds.
The root, with that of Ocimum canum and of guava
,th the sap of the plantain stem, is a superstitious remedy in Ghana
ir snake-bite.
In cases of delirium, the leaves, mixed with gunpowder,
INNER AND OUTER WORLDS OF MAGIC
The African feels rather than thinks about magic; and this
:e rubbed on the face and body.
In many parts of West Africa the
gives an important clue to the nature of the paranormal. To the African, rub is reputed to drive out evil spirits and demons.
Thus, the
belief in the paranormal has its roots in the emotions and in the imaginawer contained in the plant operates at different levels. One might
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The power contained in words and numbers - the most fundament
and important source of magic - is also accounted for by "sunsum". The
reasoning behind the use of words and numbers is the same as in all other
types of magic - that they "reverberate" through the universe, connecting
with all similar (though unseen) things.
Words readily lend themselves
to magical use, since they exist on two definite levels: first, as
objects; and second, as concentrated symbols or communicators. And there
can be no doubt about their extraordinary force; for, by putting our
thoughts and feelings into words, we define them and give them reality.
In fact, "to name" in Hebrew means to "make appear"; and in English
to "inform" means the same - to give form to something that was
previously vague and indefinite.
The evocation of the name of a
divinity is, indeed, an attempt to dominate that divinity, to cause it
to appear and to subdue its will.
The power of the spell derives
from the power of words and incantations.
The effectiveness lies
in its associations and in its methods of delivery, and in the repetition
of ritual that allows its impact to be built and reinforced.

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be an entirely natural remedy;
another might be part-natural, part-
symbolic; yet another wholly symbolic.
This operation at different
levels - (entirely natural-partly natural, partly symbolic - wholly
symbolic) - conveys an important idea about all magical thinking, in
the phrase: "as above, so below"; and implied in this phrase, is
IMPLICATIONS FOR PSYCHOTRONIC RESEARCH
a vast system of 'correspondences' between all natural objects. The
'correspondence' between like things, between microcosm and macrocosm,
underlies all magical reasoning.
It is also an important ingredient
in the magical power of amulets and talismans. Any substance - animal,
vegetable, or mineral - can be used as an amulet; and the making of a
talisman requires knowledge of analogies and their magical 'correspondence himself from an experiment, clearly sees the processes at work,
Yet another facet of inner and outer worlds of magic can be
found in the ritual. The purpose of a spell, for instance, is to use
inner power to bring about a manifestation in the outer world of nature.
Here also, reference could be made to the "witches' pyramid", consisting
of the four cornerstones of magic from which the whole mysterious
edifice of witchcraft arises.
These cornerstones are: creative
imagination, strong will, absolute faith, and secrecy. Without all
four working together, the arts and crafts of the supernatural cannot
be accomplished.
But with the "pyramid" (which represents the "inner
world") working for the ritualist, he is nevertheless to be sure he
has ample knowledge of the universal power tides, the source and the
ebb and flow of these cosmic power tides as marked by the movements
of the Sun, Moon and planets through the solar system (these representing create a desired effect.
the "outer world") .
The significance of the ritual can also be
seen, by analogy, in the world of the child.
He attempts to control
the outer world by devising games and ceremonies.
An obsessional
adult personality attempts the same thing: by ordering the outer
world (e.g. by assembling things appropriately on the altar), he strives
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to control the inner (i.e. to achieve concentration on what he is
doing) . Actually, it is difficult to tell which world exactly this
obsessional personality tries to control;
there is no clear answer
here, just as there is not in the world of magic, where inner and
outer are one.
The point has been made in this paper that an important clue to
the nature of the paranormal is that we feel rather than think
about it.
Thus, the magic worker, bound up both inwardly and out-
wardly with the magical event, does not attempt critically to understand
what he is doing. In this way, he is unlike the scientist, who isolates
and
assumes that the results will always be the same. What this seems
to suggest is that researchers into the paranormal must be very
careful in assuming that formal statistical considerations based on
certain suppositions about the nature of our physical universe and our
expectations, necessarily apply to some of the studies they undertake.
It would also appear from this that the secrets of many
parapsychological mysteries lie in the unconscious mind; and therefore,
our physical world, and presumably, all other worlds too, are nowhere
but in the mind (at least in the form in which they are known) . This
seems to suggest that in some paranormal experimental design, the
results probably depend on belief in them, rather than on "scientific
laws".
Belief, with clear thought imagery, may be needed to
One is here reminded of the beliefs which
some psychics have in "thoughtforms" which can be created by thought,
endowed with "life" and assume what appears to be an independent
existence.
Perhaps there are two matters here of vital importance
to parapsychologists: one is that they are to look "inwards" at
themselves; the other is that they are to look for new hypotheses,
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perhaps in ancient literature (mostly from the East) .
A further implicati Approved For Release 2000/08/15r@|ARDP96-00792R00070082000110g the processes
all things are related by the intermingling of the "fields" (i.e."sunsum")
surrounding them, and that there are 'correspondences ' between all
natural objects.
It would seem here that, sometimes, "right conditions
prevailing" might be a better explanation of events, rather than "cause
and effect" .
The right conditions may be, and probably are, "mental"
conditions.
The idea here that patterns of events naturally occur is
implicit in Smuts' philosophy of "holism", and related to Jung's
"synchronicity".
It would seem from this that we may have to develop
sometimes different ways of looking at things from those we have been
taught in conventional science, if we are to advance in psychotronic
research.
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
African cosmology sees the universe as a totality, in
which material and spiritual worlds merge as one.
It sees all natural
things as having animating "spirits" of their own, with "fields"
of these intermingling one with another; and this seems to imply that
the inner world of the unconscious accounts for much that manifests
in the outer world of nature, sometimes through belief in the expected
results.
It is also suggested that the interrelationships of "fields"
in the universe may account for those occurrences which seem "uncaused".
In the territory of the paranormal, interesting excursions
are made into "inner space".
In a sense, although traditional believers
of the supernatural, often referred to as "primitives", generally "know"
less than rational and scientific man, their freer responses nevertheless
give them a contact with inner reality, even a mastery of it, that might
well be every bit as valuable as that external knowledge. It may be well
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of their belief and perceiving the valuable elements and insights
contained in them.
REFERENCES
1. Mbiti, J.S.
African Religions and Philosophy,
London: Heinemann, 1969.
2. Williamson, S.G.
Akan Religion,
Accra: Ghana Universities Press, 1965.
3. Wright, R.A.
African Philosophy: An Introduction,
Washington, D.C .: University Press of America,
1977.
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