charles liburd
Jul 21, 2017 · 2 min read

I think it’s a great idea but also a flawed one and itself is birthed in the Anglo- Saxon idea of what a name is -- functional within an ownership or achievement (meritocratic)system. Jay-Z or Beyonce or Malcolm X — referencing themselves or their ‘non-selves’ functions in the same way. African names and the giving of names functions very differently. I’ll stick with a beautiful example. Among the Dagara tribe of Burkina Faso, a name is given to denote the gift a child is going to bring into the world. They hold a listening ceremony to find out what that gift will be. This ceremony involves ancient ritual. They say ALL of the troubles in the world come from a child not knowing what his gift is. They also say that for the first five years the child owns his name and after that the name owns him. The name is a function of his connection, and therefore empathy, with the world - - and cannot be randomly chosen or achieved within any man made matrix. In effect, giving yourself a name itself references the disconnect you are trying to heal. However, being given a name that connects to your true purpose, is a whole different way of being. It will also help those of us of the diaspora to think outside the box of the drop in the ocean of time that was spent in slavery and connect us to our heritage while speaking to our purpose within the context of our arrival in these and other lands. That purpose is deep, meaningful and profound. It has, I am sure, many names awaiting many people. The Shaman and Elder Malidoma (meaning ‘friends with strangers’) Some is far more eloquent on this than I am. I like your stuff!

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    charles liburd

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