Our African Unconscious - 3rd Edition by Edward Bruce Bynum (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Reveals how spirituality and the collective unconscious of all of humanity originated in Africa

- Examines the Oldawan, the Ancient Soul of Africa, and its correlation with what modern psychologists have defined as the collective unconscious

- Draws on archaeology, DNA research, history, and depth psychology to reveal how the biological and spiritual roots of religion and science came out of Africa

- Explores the reflections of our African unconscious in the present confrontation in the Americas, in the work of the Founding Fathers, and in modern psychospirituality

The fossil record confirms that humanity originated in Africa. Yet somehow we have overlooked that Africa is also at the root of all that makes us human--our spirituality, civilization, arts, sciences, philosophy, and our conscious and unconscious minds.

In this extensive look at the unfolding of human history and culture, Edward Bruce Bynum reveals how our collective unconscious is African. Drawing on archaeology, DNA research, depth psychology, and the biological and spiritual roots of religion and science, he demonstrates how all modern human beings, regardless of ethnic or racial categorizations, share a common deeper identity, both psychically and genetically--a primordial African unconscious.

Exploring the beginning of early religions and mysticism in Africa, the author looks at the Egyptian Nubian role in the rise of civilization, the emergence of Kemetic Egypt, and the Oldawan, the Ancient Soul, and its correlation with what modern psychologists have defined as the collective unconscious. Revealing the spiritual and psychological ramifications of our shared African ancestry, the author examines its reflections in the present confrontation in the Americas, in the work of the Founding Fathers, and in modern Black spirituality, which arose from African diaspora religion and philosophy.

By recognizing our shared African unconscious--the matrix that forms the deepest luminous core of human identity--we learn that the differences between one person and another are merely superficial and ultimately there is no real separation between the material and the spiritual.

Review Quotes

"All in all, Bynum has made a comprehensive case for the need to rekindle the connection to our African unconscious, which has not just been lost, but actively repressed. I'm deeply impressed with the objectivity Bynum maintained while writing so passionately about this subject. With a topic that could run high with tension and volatility, Bynum has taken a measured, level approach to present this information, and I admire how he calls for honoring and celebrating common roots, rather than further separation among humankind. I will absolutely be integrating Bynum's wisdom for a while and I know I will be returning to Our African Unconscious time and again, as I'm sure there's more to absorb with each and every read."-- "Alanna Kali, Musing Mystical"

"The author of this book does a very comprehensive and compelling job of revealing the all too often neglected role that Africa played in the earliest stages of humankind's development. And that would not be just in regards to the fossil record evidence, but also our very humanity, of the emergence of civilization itself - that while Western thought tends to emphasize how civilization was spawned from the Greeks, Egypt, and various other Mediterranean cultures, we all have a deep connection to what he describes as a kind of primordial African unconscious."-- "Alternative Perceptions Magazine"

"Our African Unconscious is indeed a daring work and a unique contribution to African diasporic studies. It is a must for all students of human psychology"-- "Rowland Abiodun, coeditor of The Yoruba Artist"

"Human biology originally found its footing in Africa and spread geographically outward. Bynum makes a comprehensive argument for Africa's primal influences on human consciousness evidenced in the spiritual outlook and practices of ancient cultures worldwide."-- "Laird Scranton, author of Sacred Symbols of the Dogon"

"I read with awe this passionate, billiant, epic work. . . . One of the most exhuastive and revealing studies of Black and human origins I have ever seen."-- "Lee S. Sannella, M.D., author of The Kundalini Experience"

"The scope of the author's knowledge is simply awesome. . . . For those who entertain notions of collective unconscious and deep-structure racial messages, I cannot think of a better text that navigates such thinking."-- "William E. Cross Jr., Ph.D., author of Shades of Black"

"What Bynum has accomplished in pulling together such a mammoth body of knowledge and research into one cogent volume and theme is remarkable. . . . A contribution of this magnitude seldom comes once in a decade."-- "Linda James Myers, Ph.D., author of Understanding an Afrocentric World View"

About the Author

Edward Bruce Bynum, Ph.D., ABPP, is a clinical psychologist and former director of the behavioral medicine program at the University of Massachusetts Health Services. The 2005 recipient of the Abraham H. Maslow Award from the American Psychological Association and the author of several books, including Dark Light Consciousness, he is currently in private practice in Hadley, Massachusetts.