Emmanuel Ofuasia - Böcker

African metaphysics question a variety of issues, ranging from the nature of fundamental reality to the meaning of human existence. This volume advances the field of African metaphysics by critically engaging with key metaphysical ideas and concepts developed by African metaphysical thinkers.

This book approaches the subject of African metaphysics historically as it connects Ancient Egypt to Yorùbá. It provides a history of African metaphysics from ancient Egypt or Kemet down to John Boakye Danquah and Placide Tempels in the 20th century and then Innocent Asouzu, Ada Agada, and Aribiah David Attoe, in the 21st century. As it surpasses the deductions of these previous works, it moves further to showcase African originality and approaches to studying reality, whilst resisting the temptation to deduce conclusions from Western philosophy. It is the first book in the history of African philosophy to use a process-relational approach to interrogate African metaphysics. It also serves to harmonize and engage prominent African scholars who have written on the subject of African metaphysics.The general scope of this book centers on engaging the history of distortion and misunderstanding of African metaphysics by providing a relevant and reliable process-relational background as well as an alternative trivalent logic system. Unless African metaphysical theories are understood from this perspective, they will remain powerless to overcome these misrepresentations. It appeals to students and researchers internationally actively working in the fields of African philosophy, Intercultural African studies as well as process studies.______________________________“This book is one of the valuable contributions to the emerging field of African philosophy, after decades (1970s–1990s) of rather fruitless debates on the status of the discipline. Like many others, the book side-tracks the seemingly unending controversy of whether or not there is such a thing as African philosophy.” – Godwin Sogolo, Emerittus Professor of Philosophy, National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN). “In the opening lines of the introduction of this monumental book, Dr. Ofuasia announces: “As you read these lines, the earth in which you live in, as an ontological entity is spinning at an estimate estimated speed of 67, 000 mph. This indicates that the perspective that a thing is not in motion or is at rest is one of the fallacies ever fed to humanity. Nothing rests!” I was awe struck by how this revelation from physics extends to metaphysics. This book is a welcoming addition to African metaphysical scholarship as the process-relational approach used to explore Egyptian and ancient Yorùbá thought system in this work creatively intersects emerging discourses on agency both at the animate and what humans call inanimate, ontology, plant sentience, African medicine, cosmogony, the physical sciences, neutral nihilism and other related metaphysical topics. The eclectic interrogation of classical concepts of Ìwà and Nun from the Yoruba and Egyptian intellectual traditions, respectively, is a trail-blazing contribution. Congratulations on this feat, Dr Ofuasia!” – Ademola Kazeem Fayemi, Queensland Bioethics Center, Australian Catholic University, Brisbane. “Dr Ofuasia’s book marries aspects of Egyptian philosophy with ancient Yorùbá metaphysics and process metaphysics, all under the framework of Ezumezu logic, and it works. What has emerged from this marriage is a new and contemporary theory in African metaphysics – Ìwà ontology which is strongly grounded on African thought. This book is recommended for anyone interested in (African) metaphysics.” Aribiah David Attoe, University of the Witwatersrand. “Emmanuel Ofuasia’s text is engaged, at times even - rightfully - angry. This makes this a lively, energetic contribution. I appreciate that. This passion is often missing in philosophy, but it is much needed, especially in this area of research.” – Bjoerne Freter, Hagerstown Community College, Maryland. “In this timely work, Emmanuel Ofuasia throws down a challenge to African philosophers with the claim that process thinking runs through African philosophy from the contested Egyptian past down to contemporary times. His claim culminates in the articulation of  Ìwà ontology, which he presents as a contemporary philosophical expression of process metaphysics. This is a bold, insightful, and impressive work that will brighten the ever-expanding horizon of 21st century African philosophy.” Ada Agada, Federal University Otuoke.

This book articulates how African metaphysics (characterized by force) and process metaphysics (characterized by becoming) are similar on several fronts. On the one hand, the vitalist and relational characters of African metaphysics have engrossed researchers as unique and original to Africa, but they have yet to articulate where this leads – processism. On the other hand, the becoming or event underpinning of process metaphysics which has been the focus of Anglo-American processism, has not courted deserving academic attention, due chiefly to the influence wielded by substance metaphysics. This is the primary research gap which the present book magnifies, and then addresses, while contending for intellectual exchange(s) among specialists in processism, irrespective of the philosophic tradition. To accomplish this, this book admits intercultural philosophy for assessing the principal claims of some African and process philosophers and to bring them into a conversation, with an alternative system of logic in Ezumezu, to mediate thought, theory, and method. This effort assists in addressing the history of misrepresentation and distortion which process metaphysics, as an under-explored tradition, has suffered and endured.

This book offers a bold re-examination of how African spirituality and religion are understood, challenging centuries of misrepresentation shaped by colonial and Abrahamic thought. It argues that describing African religions through any form of modified monotheism, whether “implicit,” “diffused,” or “accommodated”, distorts their true nature and philosophical depth. Critiquing both colonial and postcolonial scholarship, the author shows how figures such as John Mbiti, Bolaji Idowu, John Bewaji, Thaddeus Metz, Motsamai Molefe, and Kirk Lougheed remain confined by Abrahamic categories that obscure African metaphysical perspectives. Drawing on the ritual systems and spiritual knowledge of six major Afro-religious traditions (Kemet, Yorùbá, Anlo-Ewe, Igbo, Akan, and Shona) the book advances panentheism, a non-Abrahamic monotheistic framework, as the most accurate model for understanding African religions. Combining philosophical analysis with ethnographic insight, it redefines the conceptual vocabulary for African religious scholarship, resolving long-standing debates and demonstrating the value of thick description for studying African religiosity. An original contribution to African philosophy, religious studies, and decolonial theory, this book reshapes how African spirituality is to be studied and understood.