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Ancient Africans Invented Logic |
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Logic is reasoning that starts with assumptions or evidence and follows rules leading to a valid conclusion. Philosophy in its truest application is properly a matter of pure logic.
The three parts of a logical syllogism are:
(1) a major premise (that which is assumed to be true);
(2) a minor premise (supporting "evidence");
(3) a conclusion (resultant beliefs which impart a sense of stability and strength for initiating conduct or actions).
Logic is an advanced form of Rational Thinking. Rational Thinking (e.g. the scientific method or "fair-play" judgement) is an advanced form of common sense.
Common Sense is specialized feelings integrated with organized thoughts that gives a practical understanding of how to live within life's everyday problems. Common sense originated tens of thousands of years ago when Africans used the familiar to explain the unfamiliar -- a process called Reasoning By Analogy.
Their next advancement occurred by starting with a generalization to understand a particular thing. A current example is seen when youth learn the codes of the street (the general) and then draw from these codes to solve a specific problem (i.e. Deductive Reasoning).
But, when a youth observes something and applies that observation (the specific) to form an approach (i.e. the general), this is Inductive Reasoning. Naturally, the earliest African designed these three reasoning patterns for practical matters. Further progress occurred when they transferred deductive and inductive reasoning to practical things that could be seen (e.g. natural disasters) in order to explain what could not be seen (e.g. the supernatural forces).
The Black Egyptian Hermes Trismegistus (?4000 BC) presented "Seven Laws" as a way to discover principles of the truth. For example, his Principle II of Correspondence enabled thinkers to reason from known truths to unknown truths (see the Kybalion p 113 for details) as well as enabled one to create principles harmonized in their right relations -- principles true for everyone, anywhere, anytime.
Because these principles were devoid of personal feelings, sympathies, or prejudices, this African approach was incorporated into the Egyptian Kemetic Texts and became the first formed logic (Asante "Afrocentricity" p. 87).
By contrast, when 5th century ancient Greeks borrowed these African concepts, their idea of logic was concerned primarily with the correctness of the pattern of thought by analysis rather than with the African's truth of thought by synthesis.
Whereas correct Greek logic may start with the correct or the wrong assumption for a foundation, African logic always started building from a "real" foundational base. In other words, Greek logic is about how one thinks when one thinks correctly; African logic, about what one thinks to build a solid thoughtful structure. Nevertheless, the original principles of greatest concern to ancient Africans were of a scientific, esoteric (knowledge beyond reason), and logical nature.
They understood that knowledge advances by finding how similarities and differences are related, harmonized, and synthesized. Then they positioned facts and evidence on the proper rung of the universal ladder and maneuvered them according to the unique rules operating on that rung. The result was solid logical knowledge basic to scientific and esoteric realms.
Regardless of the rung of the ladder, ancient Egyptians said mathematics is the one and only key to clear thinking, meaning, and communication. Mathematics was part of all their principles. Logical thinking directed toward spiritual perfection developed the first and the highest form of abstract thinking known to mankind. For practical matters, ancient Africans needed mathematics to count herds, to measure crop lands (by means of geometry), and to develop the world's first 365-day calendar (in 4236 BC). The Black Egyptian Imhotep (c 2600 BC), the world's earliest known multi-level genius, logically combined spiritual and concrete thinking to design and build The first Step Pyramid.
Joseph A. Bailey, II, M.D
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