Kpakpando Eha-amufu

27/08/2025

My friend sent me a video some days back. When I opened it, it was a woman that was complaining that she bought a fresh watermelon and by next morning it had exploded in her kitchen, spilling a rotten content that in no way resembles watermelon. The woman was lamenting that things we only hear over the media are now with us in Africa and Nigeria in particular.

That video took me on a journey of thoughts and by the time I was coming back from the journey it was clear to me that we are in deep shít.

Almost all our food, fruit and vegetables are compromised, even livestock. From rice to groudnut to beans to oranges to ọkpa to sorghum to banana to cucumbers to watermelon to fowls to nche anwụ etc, everything seem set against us.

But how did we get here? Are we stuck or there's a ray of hope, no matter how slim?

The sustained onslaught on our food cannot be with predetermined objective but why didn't we see it coming? We forgot our mothers’ counsel of nkụ dị na mba na eghere mba nri. We were enticed by the flashy and ready made nature of nkụ dị na mba ndị iro anyị. We are the only race on earth that depend on ndị iro ha for everything they eat, including water.

We embrace everything that come from any other place as long as it is not native to us without questions. The only time we question anything is when such is coming from among us or is native to us. It is a pity.

Most of our indigenous seeds are gone, except those in the wild. What do we do? For now, the only fruits one can comfortably eat now are the wild ones; icheku, udara, karakara, akpụrụ, igoogo, ụtụ etc, we need to guard these with all we've got because the attack is already getting to them.

By now we should be investing in seed banks across Africa, collecting and preserving remnants of our indigenous seeds because we'll be desperately needing them in the nearest future if we'll have any chance at escaping a colonialization more brutal than the one past.

It's time to court our grandmothers in most hard-to-reach villages, encouraging them by any means possible to continue planting indigenous seeds and getting the seeds for ourselves too.

We must save our food today to save our generations tomorrow.

Let me stop here for now but don't forget that na “Nku dị na mba na eghere mba nri”

26/08/2025

Nkụ dị na mba na eghere mba nri

Resource and resource control was the reason war was invented. Someone may erroneously argue that wars have been here with us from the very beginning of humanity on this terrestrial ball or flat tray, depending on your school of thought.

What we have always had and which is naturally embedded into us for healthy growth, competition and advancement of our individual and collective destiny as humans is disagreements. Disagreement is not war, it doesn't lead to destruction of any sort unless there is greed over resource(s) or ego to massage. Naturally, disagreements are designed to help a sane mind to dive deeper into the ocean of his opinion and come up with stronger and clearer arguments or to see the folly of his initial stand thereby giving in to opposing and better opinions for good of humanity. Don't forget the popular saying “we disagree to agree”.

Now back to resources and the lust for control and how they breed wars and destruction. Every type of war, call it lethal, emotional, psychological, mental or what some may choose to call spiritual warfare, the common denominator is an eye fixed on resource or resource control.

Our ancestors in their wisdom knew this and set in motion, modalities and fed ideologies that should prevent physical confrontations. This is why the Igbos of Africa have their worldview rooted in a practical system called omenaala na ọdịnala. This was designed to make you look for solutions within you and your land not outside of it.

It was also evident in their philosophical quotes. You will hear them say, “ọ dị be ndị dịrị ha”, roughly translating to “whatever resources found in a land should be left for the inhabitants of the said land” and “nkụ dị na mba na eghere mba nri” translating to “the firewood available to a people cooks their food”.

These are classic philosophical projections designed to make us look for homemade solutions to our challenges and problems and never to covet another person's resources because doing that will amount to ị kpata nkụ arụrụ with the inevitable visitation of the lizards (war). Our ancestors so much hated the spilling of our priceless red-pigmented fluid (unfortunately today we celebrate the most elaborate spillers and say they are the strongest and bravest) and they knew that the only way to avoid that was to have truly independent minds and nations who are contented with the resources available to them and inspired to make out of that which they have, that which they desire. Do you now see why different communities in igbo land have different deities from different energy sources but do similar work?

This is the reason stealing or theft was a taboo. If you don't have ede to thicken your soup, you should have akparata, if you don't have akparata, you should have achi and if you don't have any, reduce your cooking water knowing that you don't have any thickener. Don't go and steal, learn to adapt. Life is about evolving and adapting to your realities.

The truth is that every land is a womb and every womb in its natural state has all it takes to nourish, nurture and sustain the seeds planted in it as long as the foetus is instinctively alive to access the nutrients available to it. The lands that birthed all of us has all it takes to nurture us and right from her bosoms raise us up; a bright shining star giving light and warmth to the universe while firmly rooted in her, but they came and told us that no country is self-sufficient (to sell their imperialist agenda) and we, unfortunately fell for it.

The result…

We abandoned our ancestral blueprint which is in concrete alignment with nature's template for individual and collective development (agwụ) where every manifestation of nature (land, water, air, fire, trees, insects, animals, birds, humans etc) has a voice and is respected and then embraced time bombs in flashy and enticing packages from a group that only care about dominance and control, whose worldview is rooted in the philosophy of “sọ mụ bụ eze ga-akwụ ọtọ”.

Each day, the bombs tick closer to its explosion time right inside our stomach. Is there any hope for us? Can we still trace our way back, or have the bridges back home been destroyed? Do we still have nkụ in our lands? These and more will inform our next directions in this discussion.

While you await my coming back, don't forget that “NKỤ DỊ NA MBA NA EGHERE MBA NRI”. Ruminate over it, think about the different nkụ in your mba. I will be back soon.

27/07/2025

Omenaala and ọdịnala;my take.

Every land has its peculiarities, identical geographical outlook does not exist anywhere. Some lands has rivers flowing east while others has streams flowing south. Some are rocky while some are swampy. We have deserts and rainforests, savannahs and other vegetation types. Some lands are mountainous, others are full of valleys while some are table lands. Even the soil types differs based on the climatic realities of the said lands.

Some lands grow some selected type of crops, it could be annual, biannual or perennial crops. Some lands are good for vegetables but struggle with tubers, some yield well when you plant legumes but struggle with cereals.

Some lands has underground water while others are sustained by surface water bodies. Some has gold, some silver, carbon, petroleum, natural gas, iron, aluminium etc.

Someone may ask, why bringing all these in a topic concerning omenaala and ọdịnala? Calm down and read on, we are driving at something.

Omenaala is an igbo word made from the combination of three other root words which are ome, na and ala which roughly translates to “How it is done”, “in”, and “land” respectively while…..

Ọdịnala is another igbo word coincidentally made from another combination of another three root words; ọdị, na and ala which roughly translates to “natural order”, “in” and “a land”. Therefore ọdịnala could be translated to mean the “natural order in a particular land” while omenaala refers to “the interactions between a land and her occupants based on the observable natural order in the said land”

Let's take the lands to be houses. House A is in a city where trees are scarce but is well fitted with air conditioners while house B is in an eco-friendly environment where there are trees in the compound but doesn't have an air conditioner or even a fan inside.

When it is hot, the occupants of house A go inside, close every window and doors, switch on the air conditioners to cool down the temperature while the occupants of house B will carry their chairs outside to sit under the trees and catch some fresh air.

The air conditioners and the trees which is the “natural order” of the houses is the ọdịnala while going inside, closing the windows and doors and switching on the air conditioners and carrying their chairs under the trees, which is the interaction with the houses is the omenaala.

Our ancestors in their wisdom, each time they get to a new land, they first carry out holistic observation of the land to understand the natural order existing in the land so that they could figure out how best to interact with the land for a harmonious and mutually beneficial relationship with the land. Yeah you heard me right, your relationship with the land must be mutually benefitting for it to be sustainable.

08/07/2025

How Early Humans Mastered Time Without a Single Clock.

Imagine waking up one morning to find every clock, phone, and calendar wiped blank. No alarms, no schedules, no frantic scrolling to check the date. For our ancestors, this wasn’t a thought experiment, it was daily life. Yet somehow, they knew precisely when to plant crops, when to migrate with the rains, and when to gather under the full moon for storytelling. Their secret? They spoke time’s silent language; written in the moon's brightness, sunlight, stardust, and the rhythms of their own bodies.

Long before the first sundial cast its shadow, humans were telling time through nature’s grand, unbroken symphony. The sun was their first and most faithful clock. They watched as its arc painted moving shadows across the earth; long and lean in the golden hours of morning, shrinking to a dark puddle beneath their feet at high noon, then stretching eastward again as evening approached. These shifting silhouettes weren’t just markers of moments; they were the world’s earliest timekeepers, turning every tree and rock into a celestial hour hand.

But the sun was only the beginning. When darkness fell, the moon took over as nature’s calendar. Our ancestors didn’t count days in neat squares on paper; they counted sleeps between lunar phases. A new moon meant new beginnings; a time to clear fields or start journeys. The full moon’s bright face signaled nights of celebration or urgent hunting under its glow. And when the moon vanished completely? That was the universe’s way of pressing pause, a sacred darkness for rest and reflection. The waxing and waning didn’t just track time, they whispered secrets about when to plant, when to harvest, and when the rains might come.

Above the moon, the stars burned with even deeper knowledge. Particular constellations became seasonal signposts—Orion’s belt appearing to herald the dry season, the Pleiades cluster signaling the time to harvest.

The Dogon people of Mali mapped Sirius’ movements so precisely they predicted its orbit centuries before modern astronomy confirmed it. For ancient navigators, the stars weren’t just pretty lights; they were a celestial GPS, their positions revealing the hour with more accuracy than early mechanical clocks.

Yet the most intimate timekeepers lived much closer to the ground. Birdsong became a morning alarm clock, the first chirp of the daybreak chorus meant dawn was near. Flowers performed their own daily routines, petals opening at first light and closing at dusk like living hourglasses. Even the human body kept its own precise rhythm. Hunger pangs marked mealtimes, the need for sleep arrived as reliably as the sunset, and yes, the simple biological urge to relieve oneself every few hours became one of nature’s most honest timers.

What’s most astonishing isn’t just their methods, but what they understood about time itself. For our ancestors, time wasn’t a rigid grid to obey, but a fluid dance to join.

They knew time was woven into everything; the bloom of a flower, the flight of a bird, the pulse of their own blood. In an age where we constantly chase minutes and curse fleeting seconds, their wisdom whispers a radical truth: time was never meant to be controlled, only observed and honored.

So the next time your phone battery dies or your smartwatch freezes, try an ancient experiment. Step outside. Let the sun’s warmth tell you it’s midday by the shortness of your shadow. Let the evening’s first stars remind you that another day is turning. Feel your body’s natural rhythms sync with the world’s oldest clock; the living, breathing earth itself. After all, we didn’t invent time. We just forgot how to listen to it.

07/07/2025

Reimagining African Kingship: Why Our Coronation Rituals Must Evolve with the Times.

The forest was dark, the air thick with the scent of damp earth and danger. A young prince, destined to be king, stepped forward into the wilderness, his bare feet pressing into the soil as he prepared to face his greatest test. For weeks, he would live alone, hunting wild beasts, sleeping under the stars, and confronting the spirits of the land. Finally, he would be buried "symbolically" and then rise again, reborn as a king.

This was the old way.

And in its time, it made perfect sense.

Why These Rituals Existed.
Our ancestors were not frivolous people. Every rite, every ritual, had a purpose. The coronation ceremonies of old were not mere theatre, they were survival tests designed to produce leaders capable of protecting their people from the threats of their era.

1:The Wild Beast Challenge:
Then, a king had to prove he could defend his people against lions, leopards, and rival warriors. Physical bravery was non-negotiable.
Now, when was the last time a Nigerian king fought a lion? Our battles today are no longer against claws and fangs, but against ignorance, corruption, poverty, and bad leadership

2:The Burial & Resurrection Ritual:
Then,it symbolised the king’s connection to the ancestors and his role as a bridge between the living and the dead. It reinforced the idea that leadership was sacred, not just political.
Now,If a king is "buried" today, it won’t inspire awe, it will inspire memes. Respect is no longer commanded by mystery, but by transparency and competence.

3.Isolation in the Bush:
Then, a future king needed solitude to commune with spirits, learn survival skills, and shed his former self.
Now,a leader who disappears for weeks in 2025 isn’t seen as spiritual, he’s seen as irresponsible. The world moves fast. Leadership requires presence.

Our New Existential Threats (And the Rituals We Need Instead)
If we are to keep kingship relevant, our coronation rites must evolve to reflect today’s battles. Here’s what should replace the old tests:

1. The "Lion" of Today: Corruption.
Old Test: Slay a lion.
New Test:Publicly declare and forfeit all assets before coronation.(leadership must be made unattractive by all means)
Why? A king who can resist greed is far more valuable than one who can wrestle a leopard.

2. The "Burial" of Today: Accountability
Old Symbolism: Buried to rise again as an immortal ruler.
New Symbolism:Spend a week living among the poorest citizens, documenting their struggles.
Why? A king who understands poverty is harder to manipulate by politicians.

3. The "Bush Isolation" of Today: Digital Detox & Strategy
Old Practice: Weeks alone in the forest.
New Practice: A leadership retreat,no phones, no aides to study global/ancestral best practices in leadership, sustainability, and technology.
Why? A king who understands blockchain, climate change, and AI is more useful than one who can track antelopes.

4. The "Ancestral Communion" of Today: Data & History
Old Practice: Consulting spirits for wisdom.
New Practice: A mandatory study of the kingdom’s history, economic data, and demographic challenges before coronation.
Why? The ancestors left clues in our archives,not just in the spirit world and moreover, spirits no longer rule the world, science and technology do.

The Kings We Need Now.
The world has changed. The threats have changed. But the purpose of kingship remains the same: to protect, to guide, and to inspire.

We don’t need kings who perform ancient bravery rituals just because "it’s tradition." We need kings who:
Fight poverty like their forefathers fought lions, leopards and other wild beasts that posed existential threats to them.
Resist corruption like their ancestors resisted invaders and foreign negative influences.
Use wisdom, not fear, to lead.

A Call to Action:
Let us honour our past by evolving it and not embalming it. Coronations should still be sacred but they must also be smart.

Imagine a king’s ascension where, instead of returning from the bush with a lion’s pelt, he returns from the retreat with:
A sustainable development plan for his kingdom.
A public contract with his people, signed and binding.
A council of young tech-savvy advisors, not just elderly titleholders.

That is the kind of king who will earn real respect in 2025 from all class in the society, not just the few sycophantic praise singers

The wild beasts of old are gone.
The new beasts, greed, ignorance, and stagnation are far more dangerous.

It’s time for our kings to face the right enemies.

It is time to have holistic constitutional reviews and put new laws in place that will shape and keep Africa on an upward trajectory of success and greatness for the next generations

05/07/2025

05/07/2025

ARISE OHH.. BLACK GIANTS.

The drums are speaking in our veins again, calling us home through the echoes of forgotten names. Can you hear it? That steady rhythm beneath your feet, the one that matches your heartbeat? It's the pulse of a thousand generations, the song our ancestors buried in the soil for us to find when the world needed remembering.

They tried to silence these rhythms, to drown them in foreign hymns and colonial psalms. They burned our sacred groves and called our gods demons, but the fire of our memory could never be extinguished. For we are the children of the soil that birthed civilizations, the descendants of star-readers and healers, the inheritors of a wisdom that flows like Idemili through time.

Awaken, oh sleeping giants! The old ones are whispering through the rustling leaves, through the crackling fire, through the dreams you dismiss as mere fantasies. That voice you hear in the quiet hours? That's not just your imagination - it's the chorus of your lineage singing you back to wholeness.

We've wandered too long in the wilderness of borrowed identities, wearing cultures that don't fit our spirits. But look - our roots are still there, waiting patiently beneath the concrete of foreign ideologies. The medicine our grandmothers knew still grows wild at the edges of their paved world. The constellations our fathers mapped still hold the secrets they preserved for this very moment.

This is not about rejecting progress, but about remembering what true progress means. It's about taking back our narrative from those who painted our past as darkness when it was actually the purest light. Our ancestors weren't primitive - they were profound. They didn't lack knowledge - they understood the interconnectedness of all things in ways modern science is only beginning to grasp.

So let this texts be the drumbeat of our renaissance. Let it shake the foundations of mental colonialism. Let it call back the scattered fragments of our collective soul. For when we remember who we truly are, we don't just heal ourselves - we heal the very fabric of existence.

The time for shame is over. The season of return is here. Walk barefoot on ancestral soil again. Drink from the well of your own wisdom. Wear your truth like the royal garment it always was.

We are the ones our ancestors dreamed into being for such a time as this. Now rise, oh mighty ones - the world needs the medicine only we can bring. The earth is waiting. The ancestors are cheering. The future is calling.

Kpakpando Eha-amufu

18/06/2025

Let's go back to where we missed it.

05/12/2024

Check out Kpakpando Eha-amufu’s post.

28/10/2024

UPDATE......
You are more important to this world than all the gods and messiahs you know put together.

That's why you are here live and they are not.

28/10/2024

Work work work

27/10/2024

Prayer is not the key, rather it is a cell