Emmanuel Iniobong Archibong, Abiodun Paul Afolabi
Abstract
Traditional African understanding and treatment of being has symmetry among Africans of all
tribes and ethnic polarisation, perhaps with a few “insignificant” variations. Hence, in the discussion
of the hierarchy of being, there is God at the apex, down to plants and animals. Man occupies a
prominent position in the whole scheme of things, as he is at the middle of it all. This understanding
of being with its fusion of the physical and spiritual dimension opens up a vista of interpretation
of the whole gamut of reality with the spiritual given so much prominence by Africans. This
preference affects the emphasis and outcome of reality for the Africans in matters of knowledge
(epistemology), the nature of reality (ontology), and the structure and behaviour of matter (science).
As a consequence, this creates a problem of imbalance by the holistic assessment and
interpretation of reality from a spiritual point of view, thereby stifling the scientific spirit, which
sought to unveil nature’s mystery through observation, systematic experimentation, and building of
hypotheses and theories. The philosophical method of critical analysis was employed in the study
to redirect the focus of Africans to the need for a balanced interpretation of reality with much
attention paid on scientific inquiry because of its practical utility and gains in the contemporary
world.
Keywords: Being, knowledge, science, method, balance, utility, reality, comparative advantage
