Nature’s civilization was what invented all the mountains and valleys, beautiful pearls and jungles, nature’s music and the millions of species. There were caves and creations of nature and the natural man that took care of the natural needs of all his needs without defying nature. There was a balanced kind of relationship between man and beast. Certain kinds of beasts were held sacred and not to be killed. An older source has it that in fact there was a time when all of nature was held sacred by man and they only took from it what their natural desires sought and compensated with positive giving too.
For instance, man in his original state, especially here in Africa, the cradle of creation, enjoyed a predominantly vegan diet. Even up until recent history in many Igbo settlements, our soup were made solely with vegetables. The idea of meat, and in this case, very dry meat, was a delicacy reserved for men who needed that extra drive to fight wars that became a routine after man discovered fire. These men transcended from being gatherers and farmers to becoming hunters and predators. In return, man would pass faeces into the ground to fertilise it and even get buried in the earth after he dies to become food himself, thereby completing his lifecycle.
Moving on, before the introduction of artificiality from poor mimicking of nature by the western world, man was enjoying nature’s civilization. The societies formed cultures and traditions over time to condition all their members to be functional members of the society.
It is no longer news that originally, the Igbo tribe in Africa practiced an advanced form of democracy that worked for them. As well, the Igbo cultural mould for women, men, children and the adults were so in sync with the way of nature that, aside a few excesses like the banishing of twins and all who were born deformed, the Igbo man was really civilised. Note I said ‘banish’ because the Igbo people my father told me about were not ones that could shed human blood, no matter the offense of the person. The greatest punishment the Igbo community would give even one who committed murder or a grievous sacrilege was banishment from the fold. We held the earth so sacred and ensured that from our homesteads to our feeding, to the way we relate with man, nature and beast were all in sync with the way of nature. This was nature’s civilization. There were people who got very advanced in medicine, in the arts, in naturotechnology, and so on, and they passed on their knowledge from generation to generation while keeping mother nature holy.
Olaudah Equianoh was the first Igbo man to write about his personal experience of the original Igbo culture, which in this discourse, represents the African culture in all its diversities. He was recorded as saying that in Igbo land before the corruption of western civilization, there was no such thing as prostitution.”In the morning, Igbo man would engage in meditative interaction with his ancestors in the morning using certain symbols and rites and then go ahead to engage in positive affirmations for his sake and that of members of his household. This would be a time of deep reflection when he can properly analyse his itinerary for the day, before embarking on anything. Deep insights and immense mental strength are gained from such exercises and have been proven by modern science. So, nature’s civilization was very functional and lifespan was enhanced. The air was clean, the waters too. And the nutritional content of fruits, vegetables and nuts which were the mainstay of their diet was as rich as should be.
But along came western civilization. It is said that the industrial revolution (the mother of western civilization)started in England and then spread to the US and the rest of Europe. It was then that mass production machines, automobiles and suchlike, which hitherto were figments of imaginations, commenced and consumerism became deeply rooted in the society.
But the question is, if indeed western civilization was better than nature’s civilization, why do we now have more sicknesses, more deaths, more wars, more injustices, more illnesses and unnaturalness all around us even with the lightning speed of new inventions.
Tell you what I think; I think we have been retrogressed as humans, thanks to western civilization. Our lifespan has been greatly reduced. Our waters are much more unhealthy now. There are more sicknesses now. Our marriages are more dysfunctional now and our children are more distracted now. Our mental health is in a worse state now and the air we breathe is just horrible. Thanks to western civilization, people have discovered faster ways of killing one another. The earth is being irresponsibly exploited, raped, disorganized and sapped. Ultimately, humans have brought herself closer to getting annihilated by his own senseless form of civilization that wants to desecrate nature just to wear diamond and to fuel machines he uses. The list is endless.
So, let the conversation continue. What do you think about this assertion? Do you think that the world can listen on time and do something about stopping the use of hydrocarbons and mining and deforestation, return to nature’s civilization, to save the planet?
