20 Year Celebration with Club de Ballet Tem
Spotlight: 20 Year Celebration with Club de Ballet Tem
Prophet Neb Naba Lamoussa Morodenibig is known throughout the world as an authority on Kemetic culture and spirituality, but his expertise and accomplishments are not adequately explained in such general terms.
We are proud to announce that The Earth Center is in the process of organising a grand event to celebrate the success for twenty years of his mission in the West.
The scope of the success of his mission is hard to capture in only a few sentences, but its effect can be recognised again and again when searching for the most tangible solutions for educating humanity on how to live in harmony with the Earth, and when seeking the most practical and uncorrupted explorations of the fields of spirituality and philosophy. If you follow any of the paths in any of these fields to its highest level, you will find him standing there.
The Earth Center is the conduit through which honest seekers can reclaim their Ancestral culture, not simply through an intellectual pursuit, but through a practical transformation in their thinking and, in turn, their lifestyles.
The Earth Center is rooted in the initiations of traditional Meritah (traditional Africa). One of the communities that serve as our principal bases in Meritah is the Tem community. Their initiations are among those that Prophet Neb Naba was raised in. He always made sure to bring his students to Togo during our annual pilgrimages in order to expose us to the profundity of the Tem culture, and to show one of the many examples of Kemetic civilisation as it has been preserved to this day.
We are extremely excited to announce that for this special 20th Anniversary event we will be bringing representatives from the Tem culture to Maanu (the Americas).
This group of representatives is called “Club De Ballet Tem” and will consist of Elders, Priests, Priestesses, traditional musicians, healers, and spiritual dancers.
“Club De Ballet Tem” will not only be performing drum, dance, and cultural exhibitions during these events, but will also be present as a cultural resource to all those associated with The Earth Center for conversations and meetings during their stay in Maanu. The Earth Center and “Club De Ballet Tem” will also be hosting other indigenous communities in the area during our events.
A representative from the Earth Center interviewed the leader of the “Club De Ballet Tem” Alfa-Sika Yacoubou.
EC: What is the history of the “Club De Ballet Tem”? How did it come about?
CBT: The story is this, the roots of the “Club De Ballet Tem” comes from the tradition of Kings. When a King makes a transition, everything the club does, we use it to honour the King after his transition. We honour the King with everything that we do. We also do what we do at other types of events that are organised sometimes.
The club existed long before we had the name “Club De Ballet Tem”, for many years, coming from old times. In 2006, we decided that it would be a good idea to register the entity, and we figured out how to register and have the name. Many people did this before me, generation after generation, but now they have passed the baton to me.
EC: What kind of things does the “Club De Ballet Tem” do?
CBT: “Kagbanga”, the hunters ceremony and dance. During that event, the hunters show the power they have. They dance and sing, and exhibit their powers when they have to go to the bush, to heal someone, or go hunting.
“Gorogoro”, The King dance. The dance of the traditional chiefs.
“Soh”, The long drum that they play when the king transitions.
“Takaii”, A stick dance, done when the King is present or just to honour a traditional event.
“Power Dance”, A show of power. People eat razors, use knives to cut the body but the knives don’t cut, eat glass bottles, dance on the glass bottles, and eat fire.
“Foyissi”, Dance of the flute. They play the traditional flute along with a small drum accompaniment.
And so on, and so on. These are some of the things that we do.
EC: We are going to America. What is the impact that you want to leave on the brains of the people there?
CBT: The goal in going there is to show them, not theoretically, but practically how things work in Meritah (traditional Africa). To show those who are there in Maanu how things are going in Meritah, how they introduce the King, how they know the King, how they celebrate events, and to show them the power of traditional Meritah and the way they use it to create harmony to celebrate the event.
One of the perspective venues for the celebration will be The World Beat Center, located in Balboa Park in San Diego, CA.
This venue has been a nexus for multi-cultural events, classes, and children’s educational programs in the San Diego area for decades. The World Beat Center has received numerous awards and grants for education and environmentalism. It is located in the beautiful historic Balboa Park in San Diego. The main building consists of a large sound stage, theatre with multimedia capabilities, and a vegan soul food restaurant and shop. Adjacent to the building is the World Beat Center Gardens which host environmental education and sustainability projects for children and adults, as well as a peace garden.
Makeda Dread Cheatom, the founder and operator of the World Beat Center has been a leading cultural activist in Southern California and Central America. In 2005, she opened her arms to the Earth Center, and since then we have held classes, events, and lectures there over the years. In the continued spirit of this auspicious relationship, both The Earth Center, and The World Beat Center are looking forward to this important and valuable cultural event.
