Akan ecclesiastics and belief system, he is named
Kwame (or Kwa-Amen-a). This simply affirmed
the linkage of Akan ancient roots of the Alkebu-
lan or ancient Egypt or ancient Ethiopia or
Kemet.
Kofi Kissi DompereSeealsoAdinkra Symbols; Akan; Asamando; Asase
Yaa; God; Sunsum
Further Readings
Ben-Jochannan, J. A. A. (1970).African Origins of
Major Western Religions. New York: Alkebulan
Books.
Danquah, J. B. (1986).The Akan Doctrine of God:A
Fragment of Gold Coast Ethics and Religion.
London: Frank Case.
Diop, C. A. (1974).The African Origins of Civilization:
Myth or Reality. Brooklyn, NY: Lawrence Hill.
Dompere, K. K. (2006).Polyrhythmicity:Foundations of
African Philosophy. London: Adonis and Abbey.
Gyekye, K. (1987).An Essay on African Philosophical
Thought:The Akan Conceptual Scheme. New York:
Cambridge University Press.
Meyerowitz, E. L. R. (1960).The Divine Kingship in
Ghana and Ancient Egypt. London: Faber.
Osei, O. K. (2006).The Origin of the Word Aman:
Ancient Knowledge the Bible Has Never Told(J. Issa
& S. Farsji, Eds.). Los Angeles: Ame-Ra Theological
Seminary Press.
Seligman, C. G. (1934).Egypt and Negro Africa:A
Study in Devine Kingship. London: George Routledge
and Sons.
NZAMBI
The Supreme God of the Bakongo people is
called Nzambi Mpungu. The Bakongo are a
people who live in the lower Congo River region
of Africa. They cover parts of the Republic of
Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
In this heavily forested region of the world, the
idea of Nzambi Mpungu as the Creator God
included the making of man who was evil and
had to be buried and the remaking of man, the
creation of a woman from wood, and the begin-
ning of the human race from this created couple.
Their concept of Nzambi Mpungu is of an all-
powerful, all-knowing, and invisible deity who
created all things. Indeed, Nzambi Mpungu did
not just make men and women; Nzambi Mpungu
made sacred objects that humans could use to
make rituals and honor ancestors.
Nzambi Mpungu intervenes in every birth and
all creative adventures of humans. Whether one
is old or young, he or she must remember not to
violate the prohibitions of Nzambi Mpungu.
Unlike many supreme deities in Africa, Nzambi
Mpungu is known to punish those who violate
the rules laid down by the deity. In fact, the
expression sumu ku Nzambi means to violate
Nzambi Mpungu and is considered one of the
gravest things that a person can do. Inasmuch as
Nzambi Mpungu is the maker of the universe,
the one who is over all, the master of humans
and the Earth, the person who commits a viola-
tion against Nzambi Mpungu will have a bad
death,lufwa lumbi.
It is believed that Nzambi Mpungu sent
Nzambi to Earth to deal with humans on a daily
basis. Nzambi was a female energy. Nzambi was
considered a great princess who ruled the Earth
and learned the power of rain and lightning. She
kept these secrets buried in her own intestines,
and humans had to make special rituals to obtain
these powers. Nzambi was a severe teacher of val-
ues to humans. The following story is an example
of stories about Nzambi’s teaching.
According to the Bakongo people, one day,
several women were planting their seeds when
they discovered that the Earth was very dry.
They had brought a little water for drinking in
their pots, but they did not have enough water
for planting. But while they were toiling in the
hot sun, an old woman carrying a child on her
back walked past the women. She hesitated and
then, as if she was thinking about it, walked
back to the farming women and asked them to
give her child a cup of water. Of course, the
women said to the old woman that they only had
enough water for themselves as they had carried
it from a long distance. The old woman told
them that they would one day regret their lack of
charity and then walked on down the road.466 Nzambi