– as African community pays homage to past leaders

MEMBERS of the African community paid their respects to several of Guyana’s late leaders during an all-white Libation Ceremony Sunday evening at the Square of the Revolution.
Among those of our ancestors being honoured were Presidents Arthur Chung, Forbes Burnham, and Desmond Hoyte; Father of the Trade Union Movement in Guyana, Hubert Nathaniel Critchlow; Governor-General David Rose; veteran politicians Shirley Field-Ridley and Dr Ptolemy Reid; and doyen of the art community, Philip Moore.
Libation is a very integral part of the African spiritual tradition, commonly seen leading up to Emancipation Day in Guyana but can also take place when there is a birth, death or even a wedding.

Sunday’s ceremony was led by Bishop Andrew Irving of the Ifá House of Santería and involved the singing of hymns, recital of prayers, drumming and dancing all in an effort to pay tribute to the memory of our ancestors.

Set up near the 1763 Monument was a variety of offerings to the ancestors, among them candles, incense, water and sweet and strong beverages to sate their thirst, and coffee and sandwiches in case they were hungry.

Explaining the concept behind this year’s ceremony, Bishop Irving said:
“We’re honouring the men and women who would have made significant contributions for us being free and enabling us to live a good a comfortable life.

“We do this for them, that in turn we would be honoured; they, now, by way of vision, by way of inspiration give us that direction so that we know where to go, what next to do, so that we can be able to accomplish all that we’re setting out to do.”
According to Bishop Irving, this year’s event was intended to serve two purposes, the first of which was to educate the youngsters, many of whom weren’t even born when some of those leaders were around.

“Some of our young people attending schools today do not know who these people are,” he said, “so it’s not about just honouring them for the work that they did, but to help the young people to know who are some of the men and women who really rolled up their sleeves and got into the gutters.

“Be it in education, be it in economics, be it in whatever form, they fought to make things better; we want them to know and to understand and to respect these people always.”
He further explained that in the African culture, people not only believe that there is one God who is God the Creator, but also that that God can manifest him/herself in many forms and through various natural elements such as water, air and fire.

“People have this notion that when we deal with ancestral work, it’s that we’re worshiping our ancestors,” he said, adding:

“We do not worship our ancestors; we merely honour them by respecting them. We worship the Creator, who is the giver; the sustainer of all life. And after the Creator, then we give respect to our ancestors, and then we give respect to the elements.”
In a message to his fellow Afro-Guyanese, Bishop Irving said:
“If we want to have a good, healthy and prosperous life, if we want to be better than we are today, we need to embrace our African spirituality; to become economically strong that we can help our brothers and sisters; the menfolk respecting the womenfolk and likewise the womenfolk respecting the menfolk so that children can respect them. This is what African spiritualty teaches us.”

The Ifá House of Santería is collaborating with the African Cultural and Development Association (ACDA) as the organisation celebrates its 25th year of service to the country.
Today, the ceremony will enter its third night with a candlelight procession and grand libation ceremony at midnight to usher in Emancipation Day.