THE LITERACY OF BELIEF. Uju C. Ukwuoma
My mother reiterated, “They’ve killed my son!”
She began to spoon-feed me. My father instructed her to bring me to the presence of everyone so I could explain what had happened to me. From my room upstairs, I could hear them deliberating in the downstairs living room on what they would do concerning me. Some said it might be some evil spirits that made me sleep for so long. Our house became even more congested as more people traipsed in. Amidst the confusion, my mother snuck me out of the house.
“We are going to Nkwerre to see Daddy,” she said to me. “Daddy” was the name we fondly called the founding Reverend of my mom’s church, one of the largest in Africa. I narrated to Daddy how I wanted to end my life because I had failed my third term exam. Everyone in the room was shocked that I could do such a thing. So, Daddy asked for a cane and told me that I needed some whipping. As I wrote in a previous chapter, spanking was a reasonable kind of corporal punishment at home and in school, which I received on an almost daily basis in my younger years. So, I quickly stretched my right hand in obedience. Holding the little stick firmly, Daddy raised his right hand, ready to lash me.
As seconds progressed to minutes, I awaited the first stroke. The silence was deafening; I could hear a pin drop. Daddy held his hand in the air for about five minutes. I saw the surprise on everyone’s face. When he lowered his hand, he gave the cane to one of his assistants to throw away. Then he told the appalled bystanders that God instructed him not to flog me. I brought down my hand, but I did not understand what he meant.
“You will do so well in school that you will forget that you once failed an exam,” he said to me. “You will also reach the peak of the academic ladder. Perhaps, that is why the devil wants to take your life.” He then told my mom to continue praying for me at our home. Finally, he prayed for everyone present and asked one of his assistants to give me some biscuits and soft drinks. My mom and I left the church for our home, but I remained perplexed.
In spite of all that happened, I was not fully aware of all of my family’s belief systems. Also, I did not understand in its entirety what the family deity implied. Additionally, I did not comprehend the April ceremony or why uncle Bryan killed those innocent animals. I did not understand why Daddy said I would do well in school while I drowned in shame for not doing well on my exam. I did not know why my Hindu cousin had a unique hairstyle or moved in groups with other Krishna devotees. Notwithstanding, I continued to feel the impact of those belief systems in my life, negatively and positively. In other words, what I believed influenced what happened to me even when I understood little to nothing about such belief systems. Indeed, looking at the dynamics of belief now shows that what we say and do in the absence of insanity when we are not acting or pretending, depicts our belief systems.
CHAPTER 5
The Irony of Belief: Victimhood Spurring Creativity
May what I don’t know ignore me as what I know recognize me.
T here were various agricultural roads in our village. My male cousins and I followed these tracks to farms and streams, from which we fetched water. I enjoyed taking strolls on these paths because it was a chance to see sacrificial items littered on the roadside. We often saw pieces of gum, candies, coins, and, on rare occasions, ornaments. I collected these items and used them to decorate my room. Before I obtained the trinkets, I would always repeat this: “May what I don’t know ignore me, as what I know recognize me.” My cousins would reprimand me, warning that I would run mad by touching sacrificial items. I chose to ignore their warnings.
I believed those items to be impotent and incapable of inflicting any real harm on me. In hindsight, I should’ve taken their admonitions to heart. Indeed, I engaged in such silly behavior because I was unaware that I was a victim of my beliefs. Many people, just like I was, can unconsciously become victims of their ideas. This consequence makes it imperative that we learn to be literate in belief. You are literate in belief when you have a clear understanding of the spiritual influence you have experienced throughout your life. Whether we acknowledge it or not, there are beliefs upon which our lives revolve. We do everything in our power to perpetuate these beliefs after forming them, because they influence our capabilities. Indeed, humans behave in this manner because of the pervasive and persuasive role of belief in our lives.
While my immediate and extended family consisted of individuals with various belief systems, they were very loving and united. They found a common ground in having guiding belief systems. As such, growing up in their midst helped to spur a quest for meaning in me. At a tender age, family members exposed me to the knowledge they believed would help me to find my meaning and understand the purpose of life. In spite of the variations in belief, I noticed that they shared a common view amongst themselves. Indeed, they believed in God — each family member had a different definition—evolution, creationism, reincarnation, the divinity of the supernatural, fate, the power of the human brain, and great reverence for the dead. Some professed the belief that the spirit of family members who have passed away continued to influence the affairs of those who remained.
Such a multiplicity of belief systems soothed anxieties and the troubles of life by changing the way I perceived things. As I reflect on those belief systems, I am tempted to conclude that they were nonsense, but I hesitate to do so because I learned so much from them. For example, I learned how to love my neighbor and understood that whatever I do to him or her directly, I do to myself indirectly. I learned how to meditate, which regulated my emotions. I developed a possibility mindset from observing a series of rituals and understanding the enormous power of the human brain. Also, I recognized early in life that there is a purpose for our existence on Earth.
Most importantly, being a part of many belief systems taught me how to understand and tolerate opposing views. Thanks to those belief systems, I now know that no one can control everything in life. However, Belief Literacy Steps, outlined in-depth in a later chapter, have taught me that human beings can lead successful lives by adhering to uncomplicated beliefs and using their brains correctly. An example of such uncomplicated knowledge is a belief in oneself, which mirrors a faith in your Source, God or Creator. Also, you can organize your life successfully by using your brain (or mind) appropriately through careful thinking. Because the human brain has been featured many times in this book, it is vital to say that I have been taught in school that the human brain is divided into two hemispheres, left and right. Our primate brothers and sisters, the chimpanzees (chimps), have a similar brain distinction. Scientists have also classified our brain into frontal, temporal, parietal, and occipital lobes, features that are similar to primates like the chimps.
In short, the majority of other mammals have the same brain makeup as humans, including the neocortex. While it is difficult to detect the basis of human distinctiveness in our brain, everyone agrees that we have the ability to self-reflect, unlike other mammals.
From a quick and furtive look at Belief Literacy Steps (BLS), which is yet to come, we see that the core of BLS is two-fold. The first is that the greatest asset of every human being is the ability to self-reflect and rationalize, which mirrors the image and likeness of our creator. Secondly, the factors we reflect on or rationalize, often emanate from our beliefs. Thus, human beings ought to work on what they believe and how to regulate their thinking process to make headway in life. Such regulation would enable them to engage in thoughts that facilitate beliefs that build rather than those which destroy.
Another essential factor is the need to understand how the cortex of our brain interacts with what we believe. Without trying to sound academic or prescriptive, we need to realize that what we think is critical to how we live our lives. As a result, it is crucial to understand our beliefs. Similarly, we should watch what goes into our brain as a way to control our thinking process.
Accordingly, the strategy for understanding our