The Egyptian Philosophers: Ancient African Voices from Imhotep to Akhenaten (Paperback)

by Molefi Kete Asante (Author) "Suppose you walked out of your front door and looked up into the sky and instead of seeing the stars as separate entities saw them..." (more)
Key Phrases: Step Pyramid, Old Kingdom, Two Lands (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Since the 18th century, Greece has been heralded as the cradle of Western civilization, with Plato, Pythagoras, and Thales touted as the world's first philosophers. But as Temple University scholar Molefi Kete Asante writes in this slim, spectacular book, those men all studied in ancient Egypt and took credit for the concepts created by Imhotep, Ahmenhotep, Akhenaton, and other Egyptian intellectuals, scientists, theologians, and moralists. Asante, the major proponent of the concept of Afrocentricity, draws from a number of primary sources to reveal what he claims to be the true origins of medicine, astronomy, ethics, scientific inquiry, and civics. "The antiquity of African philosophy is unique and stands alone and is older than all other philosophies," Asante writes. "It would be much later, nearly two thousand years, before the Greeks, who were influenced by the Egyptians, would develop their philosophy."

From 2700 to 1290 B.C., the Egyptians were the light of the ancient world. They produced many early medical instruments, designed the world's first step pyramid, and laid the empirical groundwork for scientific reasoning. Akhenaton, the rebel pharaoh, is even cited as "the Father of Monotheism." Asante stresses throughout the book that these developments came from a confluence of African cultures, and not from other parts of the world. "The practice of the African philosophers along the Nile was a practice of maintaining Maat [the principle of truth, order, and justice] in every aspect of life," he writes. "If we could only learn from them the value of harmony, balance, and righteousness, we would be on our way toward a revival of the spirit of human victory." --Eugene Holley Jr.

Product Description
Traditional Eurocentric thought assumes that Greece was the origin of civilization. This book dispels this and other myths by showing that there is a body of knowledge that preceded Greek philosophy. The author documents how the great pyramids were built in 2800 B.C., 2,100 years before Greek civilization. The popular myth of Hippocrates being the father of medicine is dispelled by the fact that Hippocrates studied the works of Imhotep, the true father of medicine, and mentioned his name in his Hippocratic oath. Eleven famous African scholars who preceded Greek philosophers are profiled: Ptahhotep, Kagemni, Duauf, Amenhotep, Amenemope, Imhotep, Amenemhat, Merikare, Sehotepibre, Khunanup, and Akhenaten. These scholars' ideas on a variety of topics are discussed, including the emergence of science and reason, the moral order, books and education, and the clash of classes.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 126 pages
• Publisher: African American Images; 1 edition (March 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0913543667
• ISBN-13: 978-0913543665
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #350,060 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Recommended for Black Studies, philosophy & science history., June 6, 2000

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

Molefi Asante's Ancient Egyptian Philosophers: From Imhotep To Akhenaten is a timely redressing of a serious omission in the human history -- the antiquarian contributions of African philosophers to medicine, philosophy, science, and the birth of civilization itself. Beginning with a chronology of Ancient World Philosophers, this scholarly, superbly crafted survey covers Imhotep and the "emergence of reason", Ptahhotep and the "moral order", Merikare on "common sense", as well as the contributions and insights of Akhenaten, Amenemope, and others whose work was ignored, suppressed, or simply unknown to the academia based on Greco-Roman sources and histories. Ancient Egyptian Philosophers: From Imhotep To Akhenaten is highly recommended reading for students of Black Studies, philosophy, and the history of science.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Buy "The Husia" instead, September 12, 2006

By	The Djeli (Ile Ife, Nigeria) - See all my reviews

As much as I support people of African descent reclaiming our stolen heritage (at the hands of Greeks, Persians, Romans, Arabs, English, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch and more)which I think Asante is attempting to do, he does so poorly.

No wonder so many people reduce Africana work to being just rants by people of African descent attempting to reclaim glory. Books like these, as valuable as they may be, are hardly done in a scholarly fashion. They ramble on about issues without being professional (using references from other scholars or their own archaealogical research).

This book is about Asante's idea of Kemetic philosophy but it is not a translation of what the Kemetic philopsophers had to say. For this reason it is a poor introduction to the actually philosophy.

If you wish to introduce yourself to the ancient African philosophy of Kemet then I recommend "The Husia". It is a contemporary translation of actual Kemetic documents. Though all translations are only interpretations (especially when translating from a dead language) this book does it justice. On the other hand, Asante's book is purely his voice and not direct translated quotes from the scriptures of our African ancestors in Kemet.

10 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Intellectual curiosity and rigor, January 2, 2004

By	mizrahi fan (Wellesley, MA USA) - See all my reviews

If you prefer revisionist history, this book will mean nothing to you. If, however, you have a scintilla of interest in the possibility that other than white europeans made enormous contributions to this world, you can begin by reading this book.