Gye-Nyame Journey Media

  Great Ujamaa in this week of Ujima: These are two beautiful principles especially when they come together like today. we are forced to look at them and then take a hard look at ourselves, and think about whether we are exercising them. Ujima (which is the week that we are in) speaks to us about collective work and responsibility, but also in our system it represents the powerful and necessary principle of respect. Without respect nothing moves. Respect is like oil; it allows different parts to run smoothly together, and it reduces friction. Today's Principle is Ujamaa which talks to us about cooperation and resources, but it also represents the principle of gratitude, and reciprocity in our tribe. When we take the time and put these two principles together we get an unbeatable combination. A combination sorely needed in our communities. "Ujima reminds us of collective work and responsibility; but also respect, without it nothing moves." Today, I want to take a look at t

Reciprocity is the act of returning something to someone who has given you something. In Gye Nyame culture, reciprocity is an integral part of daily life. To  understand why, one must first understand that the Ujamaa concept does not exist in isolation; it is at the very heart of our belief system and culture. Ujamaa requires reciprocity from everyone throughout the community which includes both giving and receiving within it. No other element or quality can be found in our system without it being regarded as lacking in some way if there was no reciprocity involved with it. The individual members of our community are taught that when they receive something, they must return the favor so that they are experiencing a balance of giving and receiving throughout their lives. This balance then allows us to experience an overall sense of harmony throughout our group which is necessary for us to function together in peace and tranquility since our group members recognize that they will be depe

  You Don't Owe Anyone $#!+ For Free. This might sound harsh, but it's not—it's inspiring. It's liberating. It means that you don't have to do things just because they want you to. You don't have to conform. You don't have to give in or give up your dreams and goals. Everyone is trying to get you to give up something of value to them, whether it's your time, your money, or even just your attention. But you don't owe anyone any of that. You can choose to do what you want, when you want, and how you want. You can choose to be selfish and self-centered if you want. It's all a matter of choice. The world is made of people who choose to make choices that benefit themselves in both a good as well as a bad way. And because everyone has a different set of values and things they're looking for in this world, the best way for us to create wealth is to make sure we have something valuable to offer and then make sure others have access to it. That requir

"How can we overcome failure if not through action?" Today we are called to look at the power within the cycle of reciprocity. The power to overcome failure, the power to lead yourself and those around you, and the power to build strong communities that break the shackles of poverty. The cycle of reciprocity is built on a fundamental truth: Sow what you want to reap. What this means is if you want to reap something in your life, you must sow it first. As Marcus Garvey would say: "A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots." So first we must understand where we come from and what our history has been in order to change our future. It is our goal today to learn more about the roots of reciprocity so that we can continue to sow seeds of success for ourselves and others. In order for us to create a healthy environment for our children, there must be an understanding that we have all sown some good and some bad i

I think we could all agree, at the least abstractly, that we want to live in a world without fear. Let's break it down and go on a run-through of some ideas, principles and practices which are fundamental to overcoming fear. Then maybe you'll see why you should take a closer look at the principle of Ujamaa, and how it's intersection with other principles helps us overcome fear and build friendship through the proper use of reciprocity and gratitude. The first idea I'd like to bring up is Ma'at, which is roughly equivalent to the western idea of justice - but with an important distinction. Ma'at wasn't about punishment or vengeance; it was about restoration, harmony and balance. One way to think about it is this: when someone violates a boundary, they have knocked the system out of balance, and Ma'at is there to restore that balance by restoring that boundary. If someone steals your bike, Ma'at seeks not to punish them as much as it seeks to return yo

  The concept of Grace has weighed heavily on my mind as of late. I was shocked at the power of this simple principle as I looked into it. I was truly acquainted with Grace as I put together the Millennium 7. I had to find a few new principles to use for a character building curriculum that I was putting together for young people.  I first had to research and replace some of the principles that I had always used. This is when I ran into the principle of gratitude. I placed it among many of the principles that I had used from the Nguzo Saba and replaced cooperative economics. I figured Gratitude would be a good replacement for it, and that I would be able to use the basic lessons that I had used for cooperative economics. I began my research and was amazed at where it took me. I began by breaking down the word gratitude and found that it lead to the word grateful. Both of these words meant being thankful. Grateful lead me to the word gracious, which was basically a thankful attitude,

On this Journey it is important that we begin to show gratitude for all the blessings that we receive. This is a challenge in a world that seems to want to help you find all that is wrong in your life. Let us take a closer look at this thing gratitude and then talk about an exercise that can help you in finding those bright spots. I know that many of you may think that there are no bright spots, but trust me they are there. Through my research and even more importantly my experience I have learned that the human mind and brain are tools to be used in life. We can train them to seek out certain things in the world. If you chose to seek out things to be grateful for you will find them. Without going into the complicated science of the brain, and what we know of the mind these tools have been shaped by evolution (if you prefer God) to seek out what we want from the world. This effect is the result of us descending from hunter gatherers in the past. Hunters had to be able to read signs,