Reading about foods in Ethiopia especially writings of foreigners never fails to mention James Bruce’s name. Bruce’s ‘discovery’ of Ethiopians as ‘raw meat eaters’ and his boast of his trial/ordeal of raw meat. This raw meat surprise shock Europe of James Bruce and even some mock him as a liar. But, it was real and yes Ethiopians EAT raw meat. So what?
Ethiopian-born and Swedish-raised chef Marcus Samuelsson in his cookbook The Soul of a New Cuisine narrates a legend of the root of kitfo – one of many types of raw meat cuisines in Ethiopia as:
Legend has it that kitfo […] came about during one of the many wars between the Christian Gurage and the Muslims, when the Gurages were hiding out in the mountains and needed to develop quick-cooking meals they could prepare without attracting attention from big, smoking fires.
Many European writers endorse the legend of raw meat as a war time construct and tactic. Whatever!
However, raw meat is not the only ‘western strange’ type of food in Ethiopia. Eating animal testicle may surprise Europeans (By the way, I personally eat a sheep testicle for many times). Even drinking blood is very outlandish for the Hellenistic world that dominates every discourse from our cuisine to our political system.
Here is a bombshell, what about eating a human flesh? What if we ask would Ethiopians eat a human flesh or the leopard changes his spots? I am not sure about the latter, but in the former case even if it was/is rare there are some instances that human flesh was part of an Ethiopian dish. Yeah, part of a famine time dish.
Scholars of different disciplines state the major reasons of cannibalism in various forms. Some says your morbid affection to your loved one may make you cannibal and eating his/her flesh upon death. On the other hand, Anthropologists record killing someone in a fight and eating his/her flesh as a sign of bravado (as recently happens in CAR) – [Graphics]. Still some others came up with argument for cannibalism as part of rituals and magical tricks. But, out of many recorded (especially modern time) cannibalisms, most of them are survival type aka survival Cannibalism.
In many famines all over the world a human flesh was eaten by fellow human beings as a coping mechanism. Timothy Snyder’s in his book The Bloodlands eloquently states the pros of survival cannibalism as:
Survival was a moral as well as a physical struggle. A woman doctor wrote to a friend in June 1933 that she had not yet become a cannibal, but was “not sure that I shall not be one by the time my letter reaches you.” The good people died first. Those who refused to steal or to prostitute themselves died. Those who gave food to others died. Those who refused to eat corpses died. Those who refused to kill their fellow man died. Parents who resisted cannibalism died before their children did.
In such situations the lone survivors are, the Cannibals.
By the same token, David Plotz of Slate asks the bold question of why not eating a human corpse? In a reference to famine situation in Ethiopia as:
A decade ago, I visited an Ethiopian village destroyed by famine, and I saw what is still the most horrifying thing I have ever seen: a 6-year-old boy named Saoudi—stick legs and arms, distended belly—whose lips and tongue were brown from eating dirt. It’s very likely that Saoudi didn’t survive the year, and if he did, he probably has permanent health and brain damage from the lack of nutrition. There were no corpses to eat in Dire Kiltu, but had there been, would it have been wrong—or even disgusting—for those villagers to have eaten them? To have fed their famished children protein and fat, rather than indigestible dirt and grass and shoe-leather, which is what starving people often eat?
But, David misses the point. Yeah, Ethiopians used to be survival cannibals.
Discovery channel in one of its reports mention Ethiopia along with Russia as a famine time cannibal society. However, the following three recordings [All in Amharic] make the case of Ethiopian survival cannibalism lucid and horrifying at the same time.
በከብት ማለቅ የተነሳ (በሐረር ሕዝብ ላይ) ችጋር ጠናባቸው፡፡ ከዚህ በኋላ ገራድ እስላም ተሸመ፡፡ ኖሌ ላይ ብዙ ሰው በችጋር አለቀበት፡፡ ውሃም ቀጅ አልቀረ፡፡ ስለ ረሃቡ ፅናት አንድ ሴት ሰው አርዳ በላች፡፡ አንድ ሰው ነበረ በሐረር በየቀኑ ድሀ ይፈልግ ነበረ እያረደ ሊበላው፡፡ ረሃብ ስለመጥናቱ በአንድ ቀን ከሶስት ሰዎች ጋር ተቀምጠን የሰው ስጋ እያረደ የሚበላው ሰውየ መጥቶ ከደጃፍ ላይ ስጋውን በሸማው ቋጥሮ ቆመ፡፡ ›ስጋ ግዙ የፍየል ስጋ ነው› አለ፡፡ ከኛ ማህል አንዱ ሰው ›ይህ ነገር የሰው ስጋ መሰለኝ; ብሎ ጠረጠረ፤ ጠየቀውም፡፡ ቢጠይቀው ›አዎን› አለ፡፡ ከዚህ በኋላ ብዙ ሰው አለቀሰ፡፡››
‘Yeharer Tarik’ By: Unknown writer as Quoted by Getachew Haile
***
በዚያን ዘመን ደግሞ በሸዋ እንሳሮ ከሚባል አገር አንዲት ሴት ሰባት ልጆች በልታ ተይዛ ከአፄ ምኒልክ አደባባይ መጣች ንጉሱም እንጦጦ ከእልፍኙ ደጃፍ ተቀምጦ መረመራት እርሷም ‹አዎን ቢርበኝ በላኋቸው› አለች፡፡ እርሷ ግን እንኳን ሰባት ሰው የበላች ቅናሽ ስጋ የቀመሰች አትመስልም ነበር፡፡ አንጀቱዋ ከጀርባዋ ተለጥቆ እጇን እግሯን ማዳት ወርሷት ትንሽ ደኮ ለትባ ታሳዝን ነበር፡፡ ንጉሱም ‹እንዴት አገሬ ጠፋ፣ ደኸየ፤ ዘመዴ አለቀ› ብሎ አዘነ፡፡ እንያም ይዘው ያመጡት ባላጋሮቹ ‹የርሷን ልጅ ትታ የኛን ልጅ ለይታ ከበላች ፍርድ በቃ ይስጡን፤ መሞት ይገባታል› አሉ፡፡ አፄ ምኒልክም ‹ለኔ ስትሉ ተውልኝ፤ ቢጨንቃት ቢርባት ነው፤ ደግሞ ሌላ ልጅ ካላጣኹ ብላ ነው እንጅ ከባሰባት ልጆቿንም ቢሆን አትተውም ማሩልኝ› ብሎ አሰማራት፡፡ ወዲያው ልብሱን ቀለቤዋን ዳርጎ እርሷን ማድ ቤት፤ ልጇን ተማሪ ቤት አገባቸው፡፡
‘Yegojam Tarik’ By: Alqa Tekleyesus Wakijira
***
‹አንዲት ልጅ ወዛ ብላለች ጋይንቲ ደስታ የሚባል ሰው ነበርና እሱ እየረዳት ተነስታ ፍል ውሃ ወረደች፡፡ ብዙ ሰው የተቀመጠው እዚያ ነው፡፡ ይህ ስደተኛው ሁሉ ተቀበለና እዚያ አረደና በላት፡፡ ልጆቻቸውን ጥቃቅኖቹን እያረዱ የበሉ ብዙ ናቸው፡፡››
‘Metshafe Tizita ze Aleqa Lema Hailu‘ By: Mengistu Lema
Hence, in the darker days the unimaginable may happens. So do in Ethiopia. Here is a strange question, what is flaw of the question of why peoples are not eating other humans flesh in such dark days, at least human corpus?
One of the most enjoyable moments of surfing the Internet is reading the ‘How to’ guides. As if there is a panacea for everything everyone write, blog, and lecture about how to do something, how to get something, how to create/invent something , even how to be something you wish. The list has no end. Among the most funny How to’s that I found How to make your own vagina, How to become a vampire and How to create your own religion are in the forefront.
Here by, I want to employ an effort on the ‘How to create your own Religion’ stuff, but from the Ethiopian perspective. A simple Googling of tips and steps of creating your own Religion will suggest you different mechanisms and different ways. That is why I decide to blog the Ethiopian version of How to create your own religion. But, that is not the sole reason rather I got an Ethiopian guide of creating your own religion much easier than other general guides, because we have a good precedent of it – The MZ Precedent.
To make your endeavor of creating your own religion easier, I will shorten the steps to a simple 5 steps with image support. (By the way, by photo blogging, I am not implying that adage of ‘a picture is worth a thousand words’)
Here we go! How to create your own religion?
Step one: Creation
In the beginning man create his god! Yeah, Create your own god. Ok, recent statistics suggest 96 % of Ethiopians believe the God of Abraham or they place themselves in one of the three Abrahamic religions – Christianity, Islam or Judaism. Thus when you crate your new Ethiopian religion, you need to have a homemade god. Here is a precedent, call him MZ. But, MZ is not enough thus, Adjectives are very essential. You can name your god, but, for the adjectives I would quote from the MZ precedent:
ተወርዋሪ ኮከብ፣ ጀግና ፣ ደፋር፣ ህያው፣ ፍቅር፣ የአፍሪካ አለኝታ፣ የዓለም ብርሃን፣ የድሃ መከታ፣ የመሪዎች መሪ፣ እንባ አባሽ፣ የወጣቱ አለኝታ፣ የኢትዮጵያ አይን ብሌን፣ አዋቂ፣ የመጠቀ፣ ታላቅ፣ የህዝቡ አጉራሽ፣ ባለራዕይ፣ ባለዓላማ፣ ታጋይ፣ ክቡር ፣ የረቀቀ፣ ሳይንቲስት፣ ቅን፣ ደግ፣ የልማት ፊትአውራሪ፣ የጦር ሜዳ አናፂ፣ መሀንዲስ፣ ሰላማዊ፣ ዲሞክራሲያዊ፣ ባለብሩህ አዕምሮ፣ እረፍት የለሹ፣ ገበሬው፣ ባለአዝመራው፣ ዘላለማዊ፣ ድንቅ፣ መብረቁ፣ የቁርጥ ቀን ልጅ፣ አልባሽ – አጉራሽ፣ ለጠላቶቹ ሳይቀር ደግ የሚመኝ፣ ባለ ግርማ ሞገስ፣ የማይነቀስ- የማይወቀስ፣ የድህነትን ገዳይ፣ የዲሞክራሲ አዋላጅ፣ ቆራጥ፣ አስተዋይ፣ ምክንያታዊ፣ የቀለም ቀንድ፣ መፅሃፍ ትራሱ፣ እንቅልፍ ለምኔ፣ እረፍት አልባ፣ ሳተና፣ እውነታን ፈላጊ፣ ስትራቴጂ ቀያሽ፣ ሊቀ-ሊቃውንት፣ የሰላም አምባሳደር…
What ever you want! But, take care of plagiarism! Here are some pictorial adjective suggestions:
The Architect!
In a monetary form!
The One and the Only!
Step Two: Immortalization
God is immortal, thus, your own god to be. Once you create your own god the next step it immortalizing it. You may bombard the mass about how mighty your god is, how your god save the world, especially, Ethiopia from extinction, how s/he conquers her/his enemies. You may invoke ‘Qene’ or a ‘Geerarsa’ like:
‹መለስ ዜናዊ› ታላቅ መስፍን፣
ነበሩ ሲሉ ባገራችን፣
እንዲያ ሳያጡ ሰገነት፣
ምነው አደሩ ፈረስ ቤት፣
ሞከሩት እንጂ አልኖሩም፣
ከዳሞት አልቀሩም፡፡››
Or a Ge’ez ‘Qene’ like:
‹‹ለአዳም ዐባይ ሀበሀገሩ ገነት መለስ አዶናይ፤
በከመሜጦ መቅድም ምስለ ሰራዊት መካልይ፤
ኃበ ብዙኃን ሜጦ ለመናኔ ዓለም ግዕዝ መስፍነ ዓለም ነብይ፡፡››
ትርጉም፡
‹‹አዶናይ መለስ ዓዳም ዐባይን ወደሀገሩ ገነት፤
ከሠራዊቶቼ ጋር አስቀድሞ እንደመለሰው
የዓለም ገዥ ነብይ ዓለምን የናቀግዕዝን ወደ ብዙዎቹ መለሰው፡፡››
Here are some Pictures that help you on your immortalization mission:
Ohh, how he cares for the environment?!
A Stalinish Statue!
A bit like Jesus!
The people’s choice!
Father of the Nation!
Step 3: Ubiquity: Big Brother 2.0
Once you anoint the public about your god, don’t forget to make her/him ubiquitous, at least in the arts, in the posters, in the media and the whole life. The mass known for forget things in a speed of light. Hence, your god can be a victim of the myopic public. But, by making her/ him omnipresent you can easily remind the mass about your god. Some helpful Illustrations:
Praise unto him!
That is a good kind of you!
Let the children come to me!
The Grand designer!
Oh Lord!
Step 4: It is time for Declaration!
Now, your god is already in the public’s memory. Please, declare your religion! You may declare by a presser or in Articles like “I am a born-again believer & my religion is Meles Zenawi” Since, you employ mind control efforts; the public will not be shocked or surprised. That is how public memory works. But, your declarations should be blended with rituals and shrines. Otherwise, how could propels pay homage, worship and pray? You may learn from the following pics:
A boutique shrine!
Touch him, you will be blessed!
A modern shrine!
Ohhh…
Praise the Lord!
Step 5: Let the enemies flourish!
Every virtue has a vice! For all the good there is a bad! As darkness is for light. Your god needs to have an opponent. Whatever type, from the fierce to simple one. Please, don’t forget to to have enemies vengeance to your god. They may say:
‹‹ትግራይ› አይደለም ወይ መለስ አገርህ፣
‹አክሱም› አይደለም ወይ መለስ ትውልድህ፣
የጁ ነው በማለት የደበደቡህ፡፡››
Or:
Haters gonna hate!
Haters may asleep at your god’s divine funeral!
P.S:
Ohh One big thing is here. Scripture. You need to have a book that compile what your god is all about. like:
Quotes are preferable!
Something else!
ረኃብ ካለ ርኁብ አለ! የኪዳነ ወልድ ክፍሌው ‹መፅሃፈ ሰዋሰው ወግስ፤ ወመዝገበ ቃላት ሐዲስ› ደግሞ ረኃብን ‹የምግብ እጦት፤ ቀጦና፤ ችጋር› ብሎ ሲፈታው፤ ‹ርኁብ›ን ደግሞ ፡ ‹የተራበ የተቸገረ፤ ራብተኛ፤ ራብ የያዘው ምግብ ያረገዘው› በማለት ይተረጉመዋል፡፡ በርግጥ በዚህ ፍች ረኃብ (Hunger) እና ችጋር (Famine) አንድ ላይ ተደባልቀው ተቀምጠዋል፤ አንድ ባይሆኑም፡፡
በዚህች አጭር ጦማር ‹ራብ የያዘው ምግብ ያረገዘው› ኢትዮጵያዊ በረኃብ ጊዜ ከጭንቀቱ እና ግራ ከመጋባቱ ብዛት በዙሪያው ያሉ ነገሮችን ሁለ ጨርሶ ይጠብቀኛል ይወደኛል ብሎ ለሚያስበው ፈጣሪ ያቀረበውን ልመና / ቁጣና ስድብ / ትችት ለማየት ነው የታሰበው፡፡ ከዛ በተረፈ ኢትዮጵያና ረኃብ፤ የረኃብ ፖለቲካ፣ የረኃብ መነሻና መድረሻ የሚሉ ሀሳቦችን ብዙ ፀሃፊዎች በየጊዜው የዳሰሷቸው ጉዳዮች እንደመሆናቸው የዚህ ጦማር አካል አልሆኑም፡፡
ሰው በረኃብ ወቅት የልቡን አውጥቶ መናገሩ እውነት ነው፡፡ ስለእንጀራ ሲል ሰው ብዙ ነገር ያልፋል፡፡ እንዲህ እስኪባል፡
‹‹እዛ ወንዝ ማዶ፣ እንጀራ አለ ብለው አይነግሩም ለድሃ፤
በቀን በሌት ብሎ፣ አቆራርጦት ያድራል አርባራቱን ውሃ፡፡››
ሰው በመከራ ጊዜ አጋዤ ይሆናል ብሎ ከጎኑ ይዞት የሚኖረውን አምላክ ‹ወዲያ በል› እስከ ማለት ይደርሳል፡፡ አይሆዶች በሁለተኛው የዓለም ጦርነት ወቅት የደረሰባቸውን ጭፍጨፋ ከአምላካቸው ብዙ ቢያራርቃቸው፤ አንድ ያልታወቀ አይሁድ በMauthausen Concentration Camp ግድግዳ ላይ እንዲህ አለ፡
የ1994ቱ (እ.ኤ.አ) የሩዋንዳ የዘር ማጥፋት ወንጀል ብዙ ሩዋንዳዊያንን አለ የሚሉትን አምላካቸውን ጥርጣሬ ውስጥ እንደከተተው የቅርብ መረጃዎች ያሳዩናል፡፡
ኢትዮጵያዊያንስ? በኢትዮጵያ ታሪክ ከተስፋ አስቆራጭ ጊዜያት ዋነኛው የረኃብ ጊዜ ነው፡፡ ከተስፋ መቁረጡ የተነሳ ኢትዮጵያዊያን በረኃብ ጊዜ በአምላካቸው ላይ ማመፃቸው አልቀረም፡፡ እኔም በረኃብ ወቅት ኢትዮጵያዊያን ‹ይጠብቀናል› ለሚሉት አምላካቸው ከልመና እሰከ ቁጣ የገለፁባቸውን ስንኞች አሰባሰብኳቸው፡፡
ልመና
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/394380009336340480
***
‹‹ውሃ እንደተጠማኹ፣ እንጀራ እንደራበኝ፤
ጭራሹን ሳላየው፣ እግዜር ባልገደለኝ፡፡››
***
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/394379428433653761
***
‹‹እግዜር ባንድ ነገር፣ አይጠረጠረም፤
ድሀ ድሀው ሞቶ፣ ባለጠጋ አይቀርም፡፡››
***
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/394379631031111680
***
‹‹ኢትዮጵያ እጆቿን ወደ ምግብ ትዘረጋለች!››
‹‹ትችለናለህ ወይ፣ እግዜር በትግያ፤
ከብቱን ብትገልብን፣ ጠመድን ባህያ፡፡››
***
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/394379021632294912
***
‹‹ግራዝማች ደንጎሎ፣ ፊታውራሪ ጎመን እግዜርን አከሉ፤
አፍንጫን አቃንተው፣ መልክ አስተካከሉ፡፡››
***
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/394378649152942080
***
እግዜርን ግሳፄ
‹‹እግዜር ምድር ወርዶ፣ ጉዱን ነግሬው፤
የደላኝ መስሎታል፣ ተመስገን ብለው፡፡››
***
‹‹ዝናቡ የልህ የልህ፤
ጠሀዩ የልህ የልህ፤
እባክህ አምላኬ፣ እንዴት ልሁንልህ፤
ትዘራው እንደሆን፣ ቅብቅቡ ያውልህ፡፡››
***
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/394384643115347968
***
‹‹ውጭ ሀገር ይመኛል፣ ዋ ሀበሻ ሞኙ፤
እዚያ እግዜር የለም ወይ፣ እዚህ የሚያውቀኙ፡፡››
***
‹‹ተጣልቻለሁ ካምላክ ጋራ፣ በሌላም አይደል ባንድ እንጀራ፤
ከለከልከኝ ምነው፣ ሆድ የለህ አትበላው::››
***
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/394382833046671360
***
‹‹ምን ገደለው – ውጋት፤
ምን ገደለው – ቁርጠት፤
እግዜር ምን ቸገረው፣ አይማኸኝበት፡፡››
***
‹‹ዘጠኝ ታድናለህ፣ አንድ ትገድላለህ፤
የሴት ልጅ ነህና፣ ምን ፍርድ ታውቃለኸ፡፡››
***
‹‹ከሰራኸው ስራ፣ ሁሉም ተበላልህ፤
እሬት በመምረሩ፣ ድንጋይ በጥጣሬው ሁለቱ ቀረልህ፡፡››
***
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/394377515570974720
***
‹‹እፋረደዋለሁ፣ አልለቀው በዋዛ
ከምድር ላይ ሲያጠፋ፣ የሰውን ልጅ ለዛ፡፡››
***
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/394385214928994304
***
In this short blog post, I try to introduce the works of Zar’a Ya’aqob the Philosopher and his dispel Walda Heywat and commentaries on their work. No detailed analysis is implied. Yes, there was/is a controversy over the identity of these two philosophers. There are some European like Carlo Conti Rossini who doubt Zara Yaqob Ethiopianity and argues ‘Zar’a Ya’aqob is not Ethiopian or there was no such philosopher called Zar’a Ya’aqob, it is a pseudonym by 19th c Freemason European who wrote the Treatises/Hatetas.” And recently we got some Ethiopian who doubts Zar’a Ya’aqob’s Ethiopianity for a very different reason.
However, from the Hateta’s themselves to scholars who study Zar’a Ya’aqob in detail, we got an absolute majority of Zar’a Ya’aqob’s Ethiopian Citizenry.
Whatever!
As I said in the beginning my motive in this post is to share some eye-opening resources on The Hatetas. According to the Hateta’s we can understand If Zar’a Ya’aqob was Socrates Walda Heywat is Plato. Walda Heywat’s Hateta looks like a sequel to Zar’a Ya’aqob’s work. Many writers wrote about these two works.
Zar’a Ya’aqob in his Hateta briefly stated his life as ‘I was born in the land of the priests of Aksum. But I am the son of a poor farmer in the district of Aksum; the day of my birth is 25th of Nahase 1592 A. D., the third year of the year of [King] Yaquob. By Christian baptism I was named Zar’a Ya’aqob, but people called me Warqye.’ However, There is no such Autobiographical explanation on Walda Heywat’s Hateta but some peoples indicate WWalda Heywat’s first name as Melaku.
Even if Walda Heywat’s Hateta have many pages than Zar’a Ya’aqob’s Treatise, scholars are sticking with criticizing and praising Zar’a Ya’aqob’s work. Among much praises:
“If the Frenchman René Descartes is regarded as the pioneer of “Modern Philosophy”, if many believe that Kant – the philosopher who borrowed the concept of the “Thing in itself” or “Noumenon” from Amo, the philosopher of Guinea in Africa – is the “greatest philosopher” of the “European Enlightenment”, then all those who´re hep to and familiar with the treatises of Zera Yacob or Zar´a Ja´aqob would argue with me that the works of this East African philosopher represent the climax of both “Modern Philosophy” and the “Age of Enlightenment”. Mathias Victorien Ntep
And an Ethiopian scholar states:
‘Zar’a Ya’aqob is the founder of rationality in Africa. He was a contemporary of Rene Descartes, the founder of rationality in France.” Tedros Kiros
Here in below I share the treatise of Zar’a Ya’aqob and Walda Heywat in different languages and some follow-up works on the treatises.
The Hatetas
✌ Hateta Zar’a Ya’aqob: Ge’ez [Original] Amharic [Translated By: Zemenfes Kidus Abraha] English [Translated By: Claude Sumner]
✌ Hateta Walda Heywat: Ge’ez [Original] Amharic [Coming Soon] English [Translated By: Claude Sumner]
***
Critics and elaborations on the Hatetas by Claude Sumner
☞ Introduction to the Treatise of Zar’a Ya’aqob and Walda Heywat
☞ Ethiopian Philosophy, vol. II: The Treatise of Zara Yaecob and Walda Hewat: Text and Authorship
☞ Ethiopian Philosophy, vol. III: The Treatise of Zara Yaecob and Walda Hewat: An Analysis
☞ Classical Ethiopian Philosophy
☞ ‘The Light and the Shadow: Zera Yacob and Walda Heywat: Two Ethiopian Philosophers of the Seventeenth Century,” Page 172 -182
***
Critics and elaborations on the Hatetas by Tedros Kiros
☞ Zera Yacob and Traditional Ethiopian Philosophy Page 183-191
☞ The Meditations of Zara Yaquob
☞ Zara Yacob: Rationality of the Human Heart
☞ Seventeenth century Rationalist: On the rationality of the heart [ A Speech made By: Tedros Kiros]
***
Other works by different scholars
☞ ‘The Ethics of Zär’a Ya’eqob’ By: Dawit Worku Kidane
☞ Review on Tedros Kiros’s ‘Ethiopian rationalist philosopher of the seventeenth century, Zara Yaqob’ By: Andrej Krause
☞ ‘Zara Yacob’s theory of truth‘ By: Abel Cherinet
☞ ‘Zar’a Ya’aqob: The ethiopian philosopher founder of “Hatataism” By: Mathias Victorien Ntep
☞ ‘Zar’a Ya’eqob’s Argument For The Existence Of God‘ By: Chemeda Bokora
☞ ‘Philosopher Zereyacob‘ By: Habte Churnet
☞ ‘The Contribution of Native Ethiopian Philosophers, Zara Yacob and Wolde Hiwot, to Ethiopian Philosophy‘ By: Tassew Asfaw
***
A 15 Minute Vedio on Zar’a Ya’aqob
***
And at last, In the Video game Civilization IV: Beyond, Ethiopia is led by Zara Yaqob and here is how the game depict Zar’a Ya’aqob:
To be updated….
The Oromo people Settles at the heart of present day Ethiopia. Pursuant to the post-1995 devised federal arrangement Oromia is the largest regional state in the Ethiopian Federation. Oromia is the richest of all the regions, which contribute more than half of the Ethiopian GDP. The Oromo Ethnic group is the largest of all 70 + ethnic groups in Ethiopia. Afan Oromo is the most populous lingua franca in Ethiopia .
However, when we see Oromo studies in every aspect of life it is under represented and unresearched in a scale that the Oromo case needs to be treated.
We can say that the 1990’s as the golden decade of Oromo Studies. Many scholars, both Oromo and non-Oromo wrote about the Oromo question, problem and way forward. The First issue of the journal of Oromo studies was published in the early 1990’s. Dozens of books about the Oromo joins shelves around the world, in the same decade and the 1990’s was a decade of mushrooming of Oromo scholars who wrote articles and books on the Oromo question.
Yes, Oromo Studies had not started in the 1990’s rather it preceded that. In the 1960 and 1970 Journal of Oromo Students in Europe and Journal of the Union of Oromo Students in North America Used to be published. But, the Oromo question got a mainstream audience after Paul Baxter Published his 1978 article ‘Ethiopia’s Unacknowledged Problem: The Oromo’. As Mohammed Hassen puts it Baxter’s 1978 Article on the Ormoo was ‘the first major article that brought the plight and suffering of the Oromo to the attention of academic community’ and Baxter continue to be the prolific writer on Oromo issues. No one writes as much as he contributes to the Oromo studies. Baxter wrote more than 30 Journal articles about the Oromo in multifarious fields from identity to folklore to geography to history and he edit many books that deals with the Oromo.
To make the ongoing Oromo discourse lively and intellectual, here in below I try to share some resources over it. Some of them are downloadable and some others are not and as much as possible I try to collect writings on politics, history and ethnicity.
Books
Pre-1990:
Gada the Three Approaches to the study of African Society
By: Asmerom Legesse
By: Gadaa Melbaa
Post – 1990
The Oromo of Ethiopia: A History, 1570-1869
By: Mohammed Hassen
Oromia: An Introduction to the History of the Oromo
By: Gadaa Melbaa
Oromia Nationalism and the Ethiopian Discourse: The search for freedom and democracy
Edited By: Asafa Jalata
The Ethiopian State at the crossroads: Decolonization or Disintegration
By: Leenco Lata
Being and Becoming Oromo: Historical and Anthropological Enquiries
Edited By: P. T. W. Baxter, Ian Hultin and Alessandro Triulzi
Oromo Democracy and indigenous African Political System
By: Asmerom Legesse
Oromummaa: Oromo Culture, Identity and Nationalism
By: Asafa Jalata
Oromia and Ethiopia: State formation and Ethno-national conflict: 1868 – 2004
By: Asafa Jalata
By: Asafa Jalata
An Ancient People in the State of Menelik: The Oromo, Great African Nation
By: Ayalew Kanno
By: Mario Aguilar
Journals
Journal of Oromo Studies:
Volume 1 Number 1 and 2 – 1993/1994,
Volume 2 Numbers 1 & 2 – 1995,
Volume 3 Numbers 1 & 2 – 1996,
Volume 4 Numbers 1 & 2 – 1997,
Volume 5 Numbers 1 & 2 – 1998,
Volume 6 Numbers 1 & 2 -1999,
Volume 7 Numbers 1 & 2 – 2000,
Volume 8 Numbers 1 & 2 – 2001,
Volume 9 Numbers 1 & 2 – 2002,
Volume 10 Numbers 1 & 2 – 2003,
Volume 11 Numbers 1 & 2 – 2004,
Volume 12 Numbers 1 & 2 – 2005,
Volume 13 Numbers 1 & 2 – 2006,
Volume 14 Numbers 1 and 2 – 2007.
Selected Journal Articles:
The Oromo as recorded in Ethiopian literature
By: Ekaterina Gusarova
The Ethnogenesis of the Oromo Nation and Its Implications for Politics in Ethiopia
By: Edmond Keller
The Oromo Secessionism in a Broader Context of the Horn of Africa
By: Jan Zahorik
Ethnicity, Democratisation and Decentralization in Ethiopia: The Case of Oromia
By: Merera Gudina
The Struggle For Knowledge: The Case of Emergent Oromo Studies
By: Asafa Jalata
The Oromo in Exile: Creating Knowledge and Promoting Social Justice
By: Asafa Jalata
Gadaa (Oromo Democracy): An Example of Classical African Civilization
By: Asafa Jalata
or
check the whole Asafa Jalata archive.
Political programs of Oromo Political Parties:
The Political program of Oromo Liberation Front (OLF)
The Political program of Oromo Peoples Democratic Organization (OPDO)
The Political program of Oromo Democratic Front (ODF)
The Political program of Oromo Peoples Congress (OPC)
To be updated.
አዳም ረታ የዘመኑ ስጦታ ሆኖ ብቅ ብሏል፡፡ ይፅፋል ይፅፋል ይፅፋል፡፡ አጫጭር ልብወለዶችን ግሩም ይሰራቸዋል፤ ገፀ ባህሪያትን እንደ አዳም የሚስል፣ የሚገልፅ ደራሲ ማግኝት ሳይቸግር አይቀርም፡፡ የአዳም ብቸኛው ረዥም ልብ ወለድ የሆነው ‹ግርጫ ቃጭሎች› የዘመናዊ አማርኛ ስነ ጽሁፍ ጥግ እንደሆን ሀያሲያን እና ጠበብት ይናገራሉ፡፡ የግርጫ ቃጭሎቹ ዋና ገፀ ባህሪ ‹መዝገቡ› አስገራሚ ፍጡርነት እና እሳቤ፤ አዳም ግን መዝገቡን እንዴት አሰበው? እንዴትስ ሰራው; ያስብለናል፡፡ ወይ የእሱ (የአዳም) ስራ እንድንልም ያስገድደናል፡፡ አሁን ደግሞ አዳም ‹የስንብት ቀለማት› ባለው ረዥም ልብ ወለዱ ብቅ ሊል ነው፡፡ አይን መክፈቻ (Appetizer) ይሆንም ዘንድ ከመፅሃፉ የመጀመሪያ ገፆች እነሆ ብሎናል፡፡
በዚህ በአዲስ ስራው፤ ተኮላ እና ጅማወርቅ የተባሉ ባልና ሚስቶች ስለትዳራቸው፤ ስለ ኑሮ፤ ስለ ውበት፤ ስለ ወሲብ ለአንባቢው እየተናገሩ፤ አለፍ ሲልም እርስ በርሳቸው እየተነጋገሩ አብረውን ይከተሉናል፡፡ አዳም ውብ ቃላት በአፍ በአፋቸው እያጎረሳቸው እነሱ ይተፋሉ፡፡ እኔም በአዳም ገለፃዎች ተደምሜ ከጅማ ወርቅና ከተኮላ ንግግሮች እንዲሁም ተግባራት በትንሹ አቅርቤያለሁ፡፡
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/352754340093632513
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/352754045116616705
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/352754794995265536
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/352755087866732545
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/352755349046038529
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/352768311987154944
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/352768953472401408
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/352769894695178242
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/352770030359953409
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/352777365501390848
የመፅሃፉ ዋና ገፀ ባህሪ ተኮላ ሚስቱን ጅማወርቅን ከሌላ ሰው ጋር ስትላፋ እና ስትሳሳቅ አይቷት ደነገጠ ደንግጦም አልቀረ ይለናል አዳም፡
‹‹ተኮላ ፈሱ አመለጠው፡፡ ደነገጠም፡፡ ከሁሉ ያስደነገጠው የፈሱ ድምጽ ከሰው አንደበት የወጣች መምሰሏ ነው፡፡ የሆነች እንስትነት አላት፡፡ ድሮ የሚያውቃት በትንሹ የረሳት ሴት ድምጽ፡፡›› እያለ ተኮላ የመፍሳት ሱስ እንደተጠናወተው ደጋግሞ ይነግረናል፡፡ የተፈሱ ፈሶችን በሙዚቃ ኖታ ይደረድራቸዋል አዳም፡፡ እንደዚህ:
ፈስ – 1
2. የፈስ ስኪዞፌሪኒያ
ፈስ – 3
4. የፈስ ኢል ኒኞ
ፈስ – 5. ‹‹ሊቆጥራቸው ያልቻለ እንደ ሰንሰለት የተያያዙ ከመሃላቸው ደካማ ሰከንዳዊ ረፍት ያስገቡ ጡጦችና ቁቆች ፓራሞችና ዘረጦች እያከታተለ ለቀቀ››
6. “የወረወረው ማስታወሻ መቀመጫውን እንደነካ ቆጣ ያለች አጭር ፈስ አመለጠችው”
በመጨረሻም፡
https://twitter.com/zelalemkibret/status/352772792963448833
እስኪ አዳም ሙሉውን መፅሃፍ ያሳትምልን እና ደስታን እንመገብ፡፡
In his bestselling Autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom Nelson Mandela wrote:
“No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.”
This is the enduring Madiba’s iconic status. He forgives his jailers, He forgives his haters, he forgets what is inflicted in him by the apartheid regime in a nearly 3 decade imprisonment. For some he was ‘a freedom fighter’, for others he was ‘a terrorist’. But, by his release from jail he unifies the two extreme views into one – become the symbol of love and Freedom.
The whole world talks about Madiba and his legacy since forever and there are many stories hang around. Here I want to share Madiba’s Ethiopia via his Autobiography and later developments.
The first time Madiba landed in Ethiopia was 1962, when he came for OAU meeting. Madiba puts his first Flight experience to Ethiopia as of the following:
We put down briefly in Khartoum, where we changed to an Ethiopian Airways flight to Addis. Here I experienced a rather strange sensation. As I was boarding the plane I saw that the pilot was black. I had never seen a black pilot before, and the instant I did I had to quell my panic. How could a black man fly an airplane? But a moment later I caught myself: I had fallen into the apartheid mind-set, thinking Africans were inferior and that flying was a white man’s job. I sat back in my seat, and chided myself for such thoughts. Once we were in the air, I lost my nervousness and studied the geography of Ethiopia, thinking how guerrilla forces hid in these very forests to fight the Italian imperialists.”
Madiba’s Ethiopia seems a historic and gigantic, that is why he explain his imagination to Ethiopia as:
Ethiopia has always held a special place in my own imagination and the prospect of visiting Ethiopia attracted me more strongly than a trip to France, England, and America combined. I felt I would be visiting my own genesis, unearthing the roots of what made me an African. And he continue to imagine the meeting with the then Ethiopian emperor as:Meeting the emperor himself would be like shaking hands with history.
However, Ethiopia of Madiba’s imagination fails to fulfill what he thought. Ethiopia seems a a bit embarrassing and he confess his first real Ethiopian experience in a saddening way:
Our first stop was Addis Ababa, the Imperial City, which did not live up to its title, for it was the opposite of grand, with only a few tarred streets, and more goats and sheep than cars. Apart from the Imperial Palace, the university, and the Ras Hotel, where we stayed, there were few structures that could compare with even the least impressive buildings of Johannesburg.
Moreover, Madiba witness the then Ethiopia’s political sphere as of:
Contemporary Ethiopia was not a model when it came to democracy, either. There were no political parties, no popular organs of government, no separation of powers; only the emperor, who was supreme.
Madiba imagines meeting with the emperor as ‘shaking with history’ and when he meet with the emperor, he says:
His Imperial Majesty, who was dressed in an elaborate brocaded army uniform. I was surprised by how small the emperor appeared, but his dignity and confidence made him seem like the African giant that he was. It was the first time I had witnessed a head of state go through the formalities of his office, and I was fascinated. He stood perfectly straight, and inclined his head only slightly to indicate that he was listening. Dignity was the hallmark of all his actions.
In a 2010 released book, Conversations with Myself that was printed after a transcribed 50 Hour conversation with the editor and the then ghost writer of Madiba’s Autobiography ‘Long Walk to Freedom’, Richard Stengel, Again Madiba put his raw Memories of Emperor Haileselassie as:
That was an impressive fellow, man, very impressive. It was my first time to watch…a head of state going through the formalities… the motions of formality. This chap came wearing a uniform and he then came and bowed. But it was a bow which was not a bow –he stood erect, you see, but just brought down his head…then…took his seat and addressed us, but he spoke in (Amharic)…Then, at the end of the conference he saw every, each delegation…and Comrade Oliver Tambo asked me to speak for our delegation, to speak to him. And I explained to him very briefly what was happening in South Africa…He was seated on his chair, listening like a log…not nodding, just immovable, you know, like a statue…The next time I saw him was when we attended a military parade, and that was very impressive (whistles), absolutely impressive. And he was then giving awards…to the soldiers; everyone who had graduated got a certificate… A very fine ceremony-a very dignified chap- and he also gave medals. There (were) American military advisors… (and) groups of military advisers from various countries …And so he gave medals to these chaps too. But to see whites going to a black monarch emperor and bowing was also very interesting.
Later in the same year for the second time, Madiba found himself in a passport name of a driver named as David Motsamayi in Ethiopia. This time for military training. That would long for six months.
Madiba’s Ethiopian Passport
In his Autobiography, he express about his training and his trainer:
I was lectured on military science by Colonel Tadesse, who was also assistant commissioner of police and had been instrumental in foiling a recent coup attempt against the emperor.
Madiba’s trainer Colonel Tadesse Biru with Madiba
During the training Madiba’s discontent with Ethiopia continues and he report:
The country was extremely backward: people used wooden plows and lived on a very simple diet supplemented by home-brewed beer. Their existence was similar to the life in rural South Africa; poor people everywhere are more alike than they are different.
But, the planned six month training can’t goes as it is planned, because of ANC’s call for Madiba to join them in the main land South Africa. Madiba farewell to Ethiopia was:
Colonel Tadesse rapidly arranged for me to take an Ethiopian flight to Khartoum. Before I left, he presented me with a gift: an automatic pistol and two hundred rounds of ammunition. I was grateful, both for the gun and his instruction. Despite my fatigue marches, I found it wearying to carry around all that ammunition. A single bullet is surprisingly heavy: hauling around two hundred is like carrying a small child on one’s back.
After he released Madiba,was in Ethiopia to give thanks for those help South African’s in their battle against apartheid and here is a video of the former Ethiopian president Mengistu Hailemariam with Madiba that, Madiba declares his ‘Manness’:
Recently, on Sheger FM [A Local Radio], a former security guard to Nelson Mandela, during his time in Ethiopia – Shambel Gutta Dinaka [76] speaks [Amharic] about the plot to kill Mandela and how it was foiled. Moreover, Capitan Gutta gives an extended interview of the plot against Mandela on a local Talk Show called Late Night Show with Seifu Fanthahun as of:
And the plot is being part of the Movie Long Walk To Freedom.
