The Place of the Kierkegaardian Religious Sphere in Igbo Notion of Being

Transcription

1 K. U. Onwunali (2013) The Place of the Kierkegaardian Religious Sphere in Igbo Notion of Being, ANSU Journal of Arts and Social Sciences, 1 (2): The Place of the Kierkegaardian Religious Sphere in Igbo Notion of Being ONWUNALI KEVIN UGOCHUKWU Department of Philosophy, Imo State University, Owerri, scholakevin90@yahoo.com Abstract Soren Kierkegaard chose only three spheres of life instead of four, five or even ten. Renowned academicians of quote and repute like, James Valone, Anyaehe P. Ogbonna, James Collins registered their opinions. Valone James said that, the values by which people live are fewer, therefore, no point creating unnecessary spheres of life. Anyaehe P. Ogbonna, highlighted that, when Kierkegaard writes on each of these stages or spheres, he is dealing with a unique and distinct lifestyle, each of which is complete in itself and incompatible, moreover, with any of the other lifestyles. Therefore, the lifestyle being unique and distinct and as Valone said, being fewer gives no reason for creating more spheres of life. This article hitherto sets to discover the kierkegaardian view of religious sphere of existence. It is a thing of interest for this article also to showcase the three spheres of human existence of Kierkegaard namely, the aesthetic, ethical and religious spheres, from which the religious sphere has a place in the Igbo notion of Being. As an academic piece, this work establishes that the Igbo thought of an authentic individual is same with Kierkegaard s, because they both preach a recourse to the supreme-being as the only way to perfect and authentic existence, thus, these thoughts have great value to human life. Keywords: Existence, Sphere, Being 141

2 ANSU Journal of Arts and Social Sciences Introduction The advocacy of the three spheres of existence of Kierkegaard and its culmination in the religious sphere had been a similar view in Igbo thought but mostly in the religious sphere. The other spheres of human existence such as the aesthetic and ethical in Kierkegaard do not really identify perfect happiness for the human individual. It is only the religious sphere that does this transcendental assignment. Both in Igbo thought and Kierkegaard s mind, this belief of the religious sphere holds sway. The mélange of these thoughts is found in authentic existence via the religious sphere. Kierkegaard s three sphere of existence James Collins, explained that, Kierkegaard borrowed Hegel s triadic structure of thought, nonetheless, he applied the tripod chain of thought into human existence. James Collins in his book, The Mind of Kierkegaard, communicates: Kierkegaard profited a good deal from the study of Hegel s Logic, but he concluded that Hegel s identification of the structure of thought with that of being, was contradicted by human experience. Hence, he sought to ally the didactical principle with the movement of concrete human choices, rather than with the supposed unfolding of the absolute Begriff or rational concept. The individual in his personal character and freedom, rather than the individual as the locus of universal and necessary laws, is the responsible agent in the Kierkegaardian dialectic of the modes of existing 1. Valone James, Collins James, Anyaehe P. Ogbonna, all ended up in human existence, of commitments and organized ideals. Valone James, in his book, The Ethics and Existentialism of Kierkegaard: Outline for a Philosophy of Life, interpreting Soren Kierkegaard, exposes: What he is trying to communicate through his doctrine, however, is that there are only a finite number of values in human life. So while people may live their lives, their value systems are uniquely, distinctly tailored to their own personalities and lifestyles, there are only a limited number of fundamental values commitments and organized ideals 2. All in all, diverse values of different people are expressed in multiple forms. For Kierkegaard, these values, commitments, organized ideas, find their expressions in these three unique, distinct, outstanding personality types, each boldly representing a sphere of way of life. These spheres of life s ways are, The Aesthetic, The Ethical, and The Religious ways of life. The aesthetic sphere of existence is characterized by; immersion in sensuous experience, valorization of possibility over actuality, egotism, fragmentation of the subject of experience, et cetera. The sensual Aesthetic sphere of existence in the first part of his work, 142

3 ANSU Journal of Arts and Social Sciences Either/Or (Enten-Eller), Soren Kierkegaard, shows us a variety of aesthetic lives and types, from the lowest which is sensory. The aesthetic individual or Aesthete, is essentially a driven individual, even if he or she thinks he or she is pursuing a life of purpose. The Aesthete, is easily fascinated. And in this pursuit of the sensuous and the sensual, which at the end, is a chasing after enjoyment, the Aesthete, is unable really to communicate because, he or she is solely concerned with him or herself. James Collins in his book, The Mind of Kierkegaard, describes this action of the Aesthete in this form. Sensual immediacy is the basic state of the esthetic individual, when passion is admitted only at the sensuous level and apart from the moral will. It inevitably turns into abstract and selfish lust. The individual loses power over himself and is made prisoner of the search for the pleasurable moment, a moment which can never be realized to complete satisfaction 3. Since the life of the Aesthete, realizes no complete satisfaction, it ends up in despair. When the curious mind asks, but why despair? Soren Kierkegaard explains that, an individual has within himself something, which will not be satisfied by a sensory life. This something, is eternal. It is characteristic of the Aesthete to belabour one side of human life; the corporal, the temporal, the finite. Yet the other side is nonetheless, there and this side constantly makes itself felt by an anxiety, a sympathetic antipathy and an antipathetic sympathy, which alarms and attracts at the same time. The term which best describes this call of the spirit in the sensory world, Soren Kierkegaard says, is dread (angst). Dread therefore, is an indication that an individual has the eternal within himself But the individual who has felt the dread within, and yet obstinately persists in an existence in the sensory sphere, will end in despair. On these notions, dread and despair, Soren Kierkegaail wrote two of his highly inspired books, namely; The Concept of Dread, and The Sickness unto Death. This ethical sphere is characterized by reason, self- determination and equilibrium. The appropriate mode of expression is the responsible use of language, for it is only language, through tenses and pronouns that gives rise to selfconsciousness. The term ethics in Kierkegaard s work has more than one meaning. It is used to denote, (i) A limited existential sphere, which is superseded by the higher sphere of the religious life. (ii) An aspect of life which is retained even within the religious. In the first sense, ethics is synonymous with the Hegelian notion of customary mores. In this sense, ethics represents the universal or more accurately, the prevailing social norms. The social norms are seen to be the highest court of appeal for judging human affairs. Even human sacrifice is justified in terms of how it serves the community, so that when Agamemnon sacrificed his daughter Iphigenia, he was regarded as a tragic hero since, the sacrifice is required for the success of the Greek expedition to Troy. Soren Kierkegaard, chose to use Judge William to represent the personality type, reflected in the ethical sphere of existence. 143

4 K. U. Onwunali (2013) The Place of the Kierkegaardian Religious Sphere in Igbo Notion of Being, ANSU Journal of Arts and Social Sciences, 1 (2): The ethical ideal is to bring every aspect of an individual s being into conformity with the universal law, so that what is essentially human may be expressed in the individual instance. The ethical existence is able to supply the greatest lack of aesthetic life, namely, a strong will. The absence of this factor accounts for a tendency of aesthetic individuals to be irresolute and ineffective in practical affairs and skeptical in matters of intellect. Judge William s ethical wisdom may be compressed within a single precept: choose thyself. His view is expressed in the following difficult passage, as written by Soren Kierkegaard in his work, Either/Or,Vol.2; In choosing absolutely, I choose despair and in despair, I choose the absolute, for I myself, am the absolute, I posit the absolute, but in complete identity. With this I can say that I choose the absolute which chooses me, that I posit the absolute which posits me. 4 The act of choice is proper to the ethical sphere. Soren Kierkegaard in his book, Either/Or, speaks of choice in this way: Choice imparts to a man s nature solemnity and dignity, nothing is compared with it and with it, one becomes what he becomes. In it, he does not become another man than he was before, but he becomes himself, consciousness, unified and he is himself, for the great thing is not to be this or that, but to be oneself if he wills it 5. It is this free choice that bestows upon the individual, a unique dignified and purposeful life. The ethical sphere constitutes the choice; hence, choice is the distinguishing factor of this sphere. Soren Kierkegaard however, does recognize duties to a power, higher than social norms. Ninian Smart in his book, The World Philosophies, speaking on the ethical person writes: The ethical person thinks that he can achieve perfection, but does not reckon with sin. The consciousness of sin eventually induces a new sense of darkness, corresponding to the aesthetic person s despair. He can overcome this, only by a new act of commitment to faith 6. The Religious Sphere of Existence in Soren Kierkegaard After following Soren Kierkegaard s investigations in various fields of secular concern, one is brought to a standstill, unless one is willing to probe into the religious implications of his/her previous findings. To be religious for Soren Kierkegaard means, having absolute relationship to the Absolute. Valone, in his book, The Ethics and Existentialism of Kierkegaard:Outline for a Philosophy of Life, explaining deeper on what it means to be religious, writes; This in the first place, assumes that there exists a chasm between the transcendent and the secular which cannot be medicated, second, this grief is reflected in the person; third, our life is a self-struggle, in which both 144

5 ANSU Journal of Arts and Social Sciences the secular and the transcendent content for being is the ultimate goal of our life; fourth, the attempt to make the secular the ultimate end of life, will end in failure and despair. The initial step to the religious life is to recognize all these 7. At this sphere of existence, the difference between faith and reason is striking for Soren Kierkegaard. One s movement from the aesthetic to the ethical sphere, requires an act of choice and commitment. It ushers one into the presence of reason, in as much as, moral law is an expression of one s universal reason. But the movement from the ethical to the religious sphere is based on faith. For Soren Kierkegaard, Christian faith is not a matter of regurgitating church dogma. It is a matter of individual subjective passion, which cannot be medicated by the clergy or by human artifacts. Faith, is the most important task to be achieved by a human being, because only on the basis of faith, does an individual have a chance to become a true self. This self, is the life work which God judges for eternity. The religious stage, is achieved by acknowledging God and openly confessing one s sinfulness, choosing oneself as, guilty and hoping for divine forgiveness. Soren Kierkegaard gives a reason for this as, before God, the individual is in the wrong. The individual is thereby, subject to an enormous burden of responsibility, for upon his existential choices, hanger his eternal salvation or damnation. Anxiety or dread (angst), is the presentiment of this terrible responsibility, when the individual stands at the threshold of momentous existential choice. Anxiety is a two-sided emotion; on one side, is the dread burden of choosing for eternity, on the other side, is the exhilaration of freedom in choosing oneself. Choice occurs in the instant, which is the point at which, time and eternity interact - for the individual creates through temporal choice, a self which will be judged for eternity. But the choice of faith is not made once and for all. It is essential that faith be constantly renewed by means of repeated avowals of faith. This is the non-rational leap of faith, which makes a human individual greater than the Angles. It is in choosing God and by making the choice for God, that the individual transcends the finiteness and temporality of his/her own existence, and establishes a personal relationship with his creator. This sphere of existence, is the summit of life s ways attained through the process of reflective thought. This sphere, is duly subdivided into religiousness A, and religiousness B. Religiousness A, is the general Christian view of life, which many Christians hold on to. This form of religion, Kierkegaard called Paganism, because there is no inward reflection of the self by the self, for the self, towards the Absolute-God, discovered in eternal happiness. Again, Religiousness A, for Soren Kierkegaard, is equivalent to the Hegelian pantheism, and holds that the individual human being, is but a momentary or fragmentation, yet necessary manifestation of the Absolute Mind. The voice of S.U Zuidema in his book, Kierkegaard, in describing Religiousness A, says; Religiousness A, knows nothing of a concrete revelation of God in history, concentrated in the name of 145

6 K. U. Onwunali (2013) The Place of the Kierkegaardian Religious Sphere in Igbo Notion of Being, ANSU Journal of Arts and Social Sciences, 1 (2): Jesus. It does not seek the eternal in a place, in a concrete individual man, but seeks the eternal everywhere and nowhere in particular. It is thus, compatible with an idealistic, general, historical philosophy of religion, such as Hegel s. Moreover, it does go beyond the standpoint of immanence in a different way to Hegelian thought, that is, in existential self reflection and intensification of its passionate or pathetic didactic, rather than in objective speculative thought. 8 For Johannes Climacus, Religiousness A, is an individual s reliance on God, from the universally available experiences; it is thus, a pagan religiosity, in the sense that, it is the highest religious experience available to humanity apart from the transcendent revelation. Soren Kierkegaard, observed that, in Christianity, it (Religiousness A), can be the religiousness of everyone, who is not decisively Christian whether baptized or not. The final step of the sphere of life s way is the Religiousness B. This is a passionate non-rational leap of faith, a commitment of feeling and will. What is the commitment to? A curious mind may ask? It is not to a way of life merely as some readers have supposed, but also to Christian belief. And the central Christian belief, Soren Kierkegaard holds, is the belief in the incarnation. The object of faith, is thus, God s reality in existence as a particular individual, the fact that, God has existed as an individual human being. It becomes paradoxical therefore, that God becomes a human being in time. The central paradox, is that assertion that, the Eternal, Infinite, Transcendent God, simultaneously became incarnated, as a temporal, finite, human being (Jesus). There are two possible attitudes we can adopt to this assertion, namely; we can have faith or we can take offence. What we cannot do, according to Soren Kierkegaard, is believe by virtue of reason. If we choose faith, we must suspend our reason, in order to believe in something higher than reason. In fact, we must believe by virtue of the absurd. This is the distinctive fact of Christianity which marks it out from all other religions. According to Soren Kierkegaard, it is a fact, incapable of establishment by any process of objective thought. Much of Soren Kierkegaard s authorship, explores the notion of the absurd. In his essay, Repetition, Job gets everything back again by virtue of the absurd. In, Fear and Trembling, Abraham gets a reprieve from having to sacrifice, (as Religion calls it) and murder (as Ethics calls it) Isaac, by virtue of the absurd. In, his Journals, Soren Kierkegaard hoped to get Regine back, again after breaking off their engagement, by virtue of the absurd. The Christian God is represented as absolutely transcendent of human categories, yet has capacities to love, judge, forgive, teach, et cetera. The culminating point in Religiousness B (the religious inwardness), is the first moments, the incarnation, an eternal historical fact. That we must find our selffulfillment in God, becomes clear to us as we discover the inadequacy of our existence at the aesthetic and ethical spheres of existence. Through despair and guilt, we are brought to the decisive moment in life, when we confront the final Either/ Or, of faith. According to 146

7 ANSU Journal of Arts and Social Sciences Johannes Climacus, Faith, is a miracle, a gift from God, whereby eternal truth enters time in the instant. This Christian conception of the relation between (eternal) truth and time is distinct from the Socratic notion that, (eternal) truth is always already within us, it just needs to be recovered by means of recollection (anamnesis). The Notion of Being in Igbo thought The history of the notion of the word Being is to three ancient roots, namely Indo-European, Greek and Latin. The oldest of these roots, is discovered in the Sanskrit word, es emerging from another word, asus meaning life, Iive. 9. Literarily, Being is anything that is. The Igbo notion of Being, is not far from the Igbo idea of Ndu, meaning life, existence. Now in Igbo language the spelling of Ndu has different meanings to designate different things or views, like, Ndu (LH)-needle or pin or a pointed instrument used to prick another object, Ndu (HH)-near, close by, adjacent to 10. This being which has Ndu, has a human being at its centre. The reason is that, it is only a human being that questions what being is. According to John Mbiti in his book, African Religions and Philosophy; Man is at the very centre of existence and African peoples see everything else in its relation to this central position of man it is as if God exists for the sake of man 11. However, a human individual in Igbo thought can be viewed from the position of origin and final destiny, which is about Igbo world view. According to J.Obi Oguejiofor in his book, The Influence of Igbo Traditional Religion on the socio-political character of the Igbo, he says; Meaninglessness is a concept completely foreign to the nature of man. In his day to day relation with the cosmos he always strives and often unconsciously to have a base in the form of a unifying factor which is understood as terminus ad quo (the origin) and ad quem (the end) the result of this innate guest for an explanation for meaning in life, constitutes what is known as a world-view 12. In Igbo thought, the world shows itself as one fluid coherent unit in which the visible and invisible worlds fit together conveniently. E.I. Metuh in his book, African Religions in Western conceptual schemes: the problem of interpretation studies in Igbo Religion 2 nd edition agrees that, Generally, the world of human experience is seen as one fluid coherent unit in which spirits, man, animals, plant and the elements are engaged in continuous interaction 13. However, according to Ben Okwu Eboh in his article in Maryland Studies: An International Journal of Philosophy and African Studies, Vo1. 3, he says: The point is that the reality of this spiritual world is not an academic proposition; it is rather an empirical, common place experience. It is perhaps 147

8 K. U. Onwunali (2013) The Place of the Kierkegaardian Religious Sphere in Igbo Notion of Being, ANSU Journal of Arts and Social Sciences, 1 (2): a world-vision although unique, but by no means lacking in coherence 14. This human being is invariably Mmadu. An Igbo Sage claims that Mmadu has its etymological words as Mma (Goodness) and Du, Di (exists), this Igbo Sage is credited to Arazu. This concept mmadu, establishes the difference between human species from other beings, such as, plants, animals and even spirits. Its opposite term is mmuo (spirit), since spirits are the invisible partners of humans. Man in Igbo thought is seen as a creature of God. Many Igbo names and even proverbs show a human individual as a direct creature of God. Examples of such names include; Chukwukere - God created, Madueke - Man does not create. Examples of such proverbs include; Eke kere onye bu chi ya - The creator who creates one is his God. Meek C.K in his book, Law and Authority in a Nigerian Tribe, says: One of the most striking doctrines of the Ibo is that every human being has associated with his personality, a genius or spiritdouble known as chi 15. Igbo thought shows that at birth, God gives a Chi to an individual and gives this Chi several packages of gifts, talents and fortunes for the individual. Whichever of this gifts, talents and fortunes this Chi chooses, becomes the destiny of the individual. This package contains luck or misfortune in life s way. Thus, this Chi has two functions it plays, firstly, choosing the package of fortune, secondly, being the Guardian Spirit. Life for the Igbo is communion. This communion is not limited to the relationship with created things, such as, the universe, spirits, ancestors, his family, community, but also relationship with the creator himself, Chukwu. According to Emefie Ikenga Metuh in his book, African Religions in Western conceptual scheme: The problem of interpretation (studies in Igbo Religion); Man is indeed bound to God by ties of creation and by his divine providence over the world of which man is part. But even more, Igbo beliefs suggest that man is ontologically linked to God through the Chi, the spark or emanation of God in each person 16. The Place of the Kierkegaardian Religious Sphere in Igbo notion of Being The kierkegaardian Religious sphere is significant in the Igbo thought of Being. Their terminus ad quo et ad quem, are same. Kierkegaard sees the fulfillment of an individual in God. Kierkegaard in his book, Either/Or, says: It is in choosing God and by making the choice for God, that the individual transcends the finiteness and temporality of his own existence and establishes a personal relationship with is creator. 17 The Religious Sphere makes the journey to the final destination, which is God, in whom truth, peace and happiness is attained. It is through a personal search, with its agony, risk, dilemma and then 148

9 ANSU Journal of Arts and Social Sciences bliss to become a Christian, that one discovers God and eternal happiness. In Igbo thought, the individual is fulfilled also by making a final journey to God. Emefie Ikenga Metuh, in his book, African Religions in Western Conceptual Scheme: the problem of interpretation (studies in Igbo Religion), writes: Man in Igbo belief is seen primarily as a creature of God many Igbo names and proverbs see man as a direct creature of God. 18 According to C.K Meek, in his book, Law and Authority in a Nigerian Tribe, he says: One of the most striking doctrines of the Ibo is that every human being has association with his personality, a genius or spiritdouble known as Chi. 19 The Igbo is profoundly religious. These polytheistic people worship many gods. They believe that there are three levels of divine beings: the highest level is the supreme god or Chukwu underneath Chukwu are lesser gods, called, Umuagbara, and under these are the Ndi Iche, the spirits of dead ancestors. Chi, was seen individually and was personalized by its followers. It is here that Kierkegaard s Religious sphere and the Igbo thought about Being have the same vanishing point. The relevance of this work in our contemporary society This work is relevant because it revives the human conscience in returning to God. It makes one realize the need of having this personal encounter with God in other to have a fulfilled life. This return to God is an act done in choice, which makes one responsible for choosing or not choosing. In this responsibility is the authenticity of decision and the human person, making the person to standout from the crowd. It is a clarion call for one to return to God, in other to be fulfilled in life, have peace of mind, happiness and attain perfection which is made manifest in authentic human existence. Conclusion From the foregoing, one can understand that the kierkegaardian Religious Sphere of existence is evident in the Igbo thought of a human being. This is so because, in both the Religious Sphere of Kierkegaard s philosophy of existence and Igbo thought, there is a recourse to God as a way to attaining authenticity of existence and happiness of life. References James C., The Mind of Kierkegaard, Chicago: Henry Regney Company, 1953, p.48. Valone J., The Ethics and Existentialism of Kierkegaard: Outline for a Philosophy of Life, London: University Press of America, 1983, p.10. James C., The Mind of Kierkegaard, 1953, p. 55. Kierkegaard S., Either/Or, Volume 2, trans. Walter Lowrie, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1974, p Kierkegaard S., Either/Or, 1974,p Smart N., Word Philosophies, New York: Routledge, Taylor and Francis Group, 2001, p

10 K. U. Onwunali (2013) The Place of the Kierkegaardian Religious Sphere in Igbo Notion of Being, ANSU Journal of Arts and Social Sciences, 1 (2): Valone J., The Ethics and Existentialism of Kierkegaard: Outline for a Philosophy of Life, 1983, p Zuidema S., Kierkegaard, trans. David Freeman, Philadelphia: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Co., 1960, p. 36. Heidegger M., Existence and being, Washington D.C, Gateway Edition, Regnery Gateway, 1949, p.28. Echeruo M.J.C., Igbo-English Dictionary, Lagos: Longman Nigerian Plc, 2001, p Mbiti J.S., African Religions and Philosophy, Heinemann, London: 1971, p. 92. Oguejiofor J. O, The Influence of Igbo Traditional Religion on the Socio- Political Character of the Igbo, Nsukka, Fuladu Publishing Company, 1996, p. 47. Metuh E.I., African Religions in Western Conceptual Schemes: the Problem of Interpretation Studies in Igbo Religion, 2 nd Edition, Jos: IMICO Press, 1991, p. 38. Eboh B.O., Maryland Studies, An International Journal of Philosophy and African Studies, vol. 3, June 2006, p Metuh E.I., God and man in African Religion, London: Geoffrey Chapman, 1961, p.3. Meek C.K., Law and Authority in a Nigerian Tribe, London: Oxford, 1937, p Kierkegaard S., Either/Or, Vol.2, trans. Walter Lowrie, New Jersey: Princeton University Press 1974, p.112. Metuh E.I, African Religions in Western Conceptual Schemes: The Problem of Interpretation (Studies in Igbo Religion), p Meek C.K., Law and Authority in a Nigerian Tribe,1937, p

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12 K. U. Onwunali (2013) The Place of the Kierkegaardian Religious Sphere in Igbo Notion of Being, ANSU Journal of Arts and Social Sciences, 1 (2):