anada nyt in da slum still ghetto yut ah try

We the great kushites

1. Created the first civilizations worldwide--in Africa, Mesopotamia, the Indus Valley, etc.

2. Created the first nation in Africa--Ta Seti--with Pharonic government and Divine Kings.

3. Created a wholistic, communal or spiritual culture--discovering and implementing Divine laws, with a value system based upon "Deep Thought" or profound philosophy, including Divine Speech and Good Speech (Carruthers, 1995) -- one that is worthy of emulation:

A. Reverence for God (Monotheism).

B. Tehuti & Maat--spiritual development in a moral culture or community.

C. Generic man and universe perceived primarily as spiritual.

D. Individualism subordinated to communalism

E. Respect for parents and elders.

F. Generosity or assistance to less fortunate.

G. Responsible communal service.

H. Modesty or gentleness in human conduct.

I. Love for wife and children.

J. Abhorrence of greed.

K. Devotion to duty or work.

L. Just or righteous leadership.

M. Balanced or righteous friendships.

N. Social order perceived as extension of Divine order (Maat).

O. Respect for sacrifices and spirits of ancestors.

P. Highest duty of generic man--a god--was to become Godlike.

Q. Rites of passage through evolutionary, developmental stages of life.

4. Created or promoted initial concepts of major religions of the world, including the virgin birth, Divine Savior or hero (Heru-Krishna-Jesus, etc), the judgment and "the word of God," i.e., GOD or Creative Divine Speech (the Maa Kheru, Voice of Truth or Logos) and other sacred writings or Scriptures before any other spiritual writings, including the Holy Bible, were written. For generally, the same basic spiritual principles reflected in sacred writings of the major religions of the world, including the Holy Bible and Koran, ,may be found in ancient Kushite/Kemetic sacred literature or oral traditions. And the Bible, essentially, is an African book; for the origin of the ancient Black Hebrew-Israelites has been traced to ancient Kush-Kemet. Therefore, even the modern-day Christian "Jesus," either historically or mythologically perceived, was-is a Kushite brother. Indeed, the historical Jesus, to the degree that he may be authenticated or "found" by generic man, was a social revolutionary hero who was stoned to death and hanged on a tree. Moreover, the mythological Jesus of the gospels, who was physicaly abused and hanged on a cross, also promoted a revolutionary message of LOVE in a too often corrupt mundane world. Bottom line: A Divine hero promote revolution.

5. Developed astronomical mythology--much of which is reflected or misinterpreted in the Bible as "history"--a solar calendar and the zodiac. (Note: A group of Kushites, the Sabaens, were called "Star-Gazers").

6. Founded Ancient Kemet (Egypt) and were leading rulers in this great nation during four "Golden Ages" of civilization (Hilliard in Egypt Revisited, Van Sertima, Editor, 1989).

7. Created the first university--"Ipet-Isut," the "Holiest of Places"--with the renown so-called "Mystery System" of wholistic development which provided education or civilization to Greeks teachers or "philosophers," who transmitted it to other parts of Europe and which is now grossly distorted-corrupted or misnamed "Western civilization." And this great Wholistic System--the real "Old Time Religion" (Foluke, 1997) which was emasculated by Europeans--is often imitated today by "New-Age" groups, looking erroneously to the "East," in lieu of Africa, for a sound theological foundation; however, our ancient African system has not been duplicated authentically by these groups--or any other group.

Conclusion: "We--The Great Kushites" have a heritage of greatness, spirituality and pride. Hotep (Peace)-Amun-Amen!

*As used by our organization, Kushite is a generic term that we apply to ancient Black civilizations, before the common era--in Africa, Mesopotamia, the Indus Valley, etc., as documented by multiple scholars

I AM HIP HOP

The world-class University of Sankore, Timbuktu

Sankore's achievement in higher education is important to Islamic civilisation even though it was less known compared to Al-Azhar, Al-Qairawan, Al-Qarawiyyin and Qurtuba Universities. It is also a pride among the whole black community around the world as it was a great intellectual institution of the black civilisations of Mali, Ghana and Songhay particularly during 12th to 16th centuries.University of Timbuktu often referred to, as the ‘University of Sankore', as there are two other universities in Timbuktu, 'Jingaray Ber' and 'Sidi Yahya' universities. The University of Sankore is located in the north east district of Timbuktu and housed within the Sankore Mosque.The Sankore Mosque was founded in 989 by the erudite chief judge of Timbuktu, Al-Qadi Aqib ibn Mahmud ibn Umar. He had built the inner court of the mosque in exact dimension of the Ka'abah in holy Makkah. A wealthy Mandika lady then financed Sankore University making it the leading centre of education. The Sankore University prospered and became a very significant seat of learning in the Muslim world, especially under the reign of Mansa Musa (1307-1332) and Askia Dynasty (1493-1591).\

The University of Sankore had no central administration; rather, it was composed of several entirely independent schools or colleges, each run by a single master (scholar or professor). The courses took place in the open courtyards of mosque complexes or private residences. The primary subjects were the Qur'an, Islamic studies, law and literature. Other subjects included medicine and surgery, astronomy, mathematics, physics, chemistry, philosophy, language and linguistics, geography, history and art. The students also spent time in learning a trade and business code and ethics. The university trade shops offered classes in business, carpentry, farming, fishing, construction, shoe making, tailoring, navigation etc. It prospered and became a very significant seat of learning in the Muslim world. It was claimed that the intellectual freedom enjoyed in Western Universities was inspired from universities like Sankore and Qurtuba (Muslim Spain) universities.Memorizing the Qur'an and mastering Arabic language were compulsory to students. Arabic was a lingua franca of the university as well as the language of trade and commerce in Timbuktu. Except from a few manuscripts, which are in Songhay and other a'jami language, all the remaining 70,000 manuscripts are in Arabic. (Al-Furqan Heritage Foundation-London publishes a list of the manuscripts just in Ahmed Baba library in 5 volumes.) The highest "superior" degree (equivalent to PhD) takes about 10 years. During the graduation ceremony, the graduates had to wear the traditional turban to represent the name ‘Allah' and which symbolizes divine light, wisdom, knowledge and excellent moral conduct. The graduates had to demonstrate excellent character and care for Islamic values and education.

Like all other Islamic universities, its students came from all over the world. Around the 12th century, it had an attendance of 25,000 students, in a city of 100,000 people. The university was known for its high standards and admission requirements. It produced world-class scholars recognised by their publications and graduates. Quoting the French author Felix Dubois in his book, Timbuctoo the Mysterious""The scholars of Timbuctoo (Timbuktu) yielded in nothing, to the saints in the sojourns in the foreign universities of Fez, Tunis, and Cairo. They astounded the most learned men of Islam by their erudition. That these Negroes were on a level with the Arabian savants is proved by the fact that they were installed as professors in Morocco and Egypt. In contrast to this, we find that Arabs were not always equal to the requirements of Sankore."Felix DuboisThe most famous scholar of Timbuktu was Ahmad Baba as-Sudane (1564-1627), the final Chancellor of Sankore University. He wrote more than 60 books on various subjects including law, medicine, philosophy, astronomy, mathematics etc. He was a matchless jurist, professor and Imam of his time. In 1593, during the Moroccan invasion, he was deported to Fez, while most of his work was destroyed.Other eminent names from Sankore include: Mohammed Bagayogo as-Sudane al-Wangari al-Timbukti (Conferred an honorary Doctorate from Al-Azhar University during his visit to Cairo en-route to Haj), Modibo Mohammed al-Kaburi, Abu al-Abbas Ahmad Buryu ibn,  Ag Mohammed ibn Utman and Abu Abdallah and Ag Mohammed Ibn Al-Mukhtar An-Nawahi.Most of the scholars were of the Maliki school of thought and followed the Qadiriyyah tariqat (spiritual path). The scholars were graduated from Fez, Tunis, Cairo and Makkah in the early history of Sankore.The University of Sankore is still functioning but with little resources. The Muslim world and UNESCO need to preserve, maintain and to support what used to be a great institution of learning, which contributed to our present Civilisation.For a review of the historical development of Sankore University, we give below a timeline for the period 900 to 1960.