Context: Locatora Radio’s [A Radiophonic Novela] episode on Femme Tech (Capitulo 008) calls our attention to the forms of ancestral technology that have gone unrecognized as scientific advancement due to the racist and sexist agendas of western science. Colonization and globalization have centered eurocentricity as elevation, cultivating conditions for the further erasure of Black and Brown technologies, especially those created by women.

Experience: I remember feeling so proud during Black History Month in elementary school when I learned that Black men were responsible for the creation of the original elevator and stop lights. I remember my pride deepening in high school, when I learned that Madam C.J. Walker was recognized as an inventor for her creation of perms and hot combs and that she was the first female self made millionaire in the United States. Unfortunately, it took me until college to acknowledge agricultural advancements from the 2nd century BCE as a source of pride in Black culture. It took me until college to become aware that I had been priding myself on the advancements my community made that were recognized by Europeans as technology and not the true breadth of Black inventions that continue to lay the foundation for most of modern society.

They Stay Having Our Ancestors Fucked Up

Western science has always had difficulty comprehending the accuracy of ancient science and empirical ancestral knowledge. In an attempt to distinguish themselves from the oppressive antics of the Roman Catholic Church, white people separated themselves from each other through the creation of an “objective” branch of science that we know today as “The Enlightenment”. This experience is considered the conception of all modern knowledge production. It relies on the scientific method, a “logical” form of observation, separate from beliefs that The Universe has a creative force that powers all. Newer branches of western science, namely quantum physics, are a source of conflict and debate in scientific communities because through these same “objective” methods it has been able to confirm many of the ancestral awarenesses that were previously discounted due to a lack of “evidence”. New branches of western science are being created to repair the damage created by the degradation of heart-mind curiosity and centralization of the insatiable ego-mind. Unfortunately, just like the sciences of our ancestors their (re)discoveries are ignored and labeled pseudoscience.

The Real

Ancient Black discoveries go back further than the creation of aqueducts in the 2nd century BCE. The Dogon peoples of Mali include various astronomical awarenesses in their oral histories. In the 1300s there is western documentation of Dogon beliefs, inclusive of their knowledge of the orbit of the star Sirius and it’s counterparts, as well as Saturn’s rings and Jupiter’s existence. Despite the accuracy with which the Dogon described the orbit of Sirius, western scientists dispute the origin of these beliefs. We are still taught that William Herschel was the first astronomer to discover a planet, Uranus, in 1781. This, among many other racist western scientific setbacks, cultivates the erasure of ancient spiritual science and technology. Ancestral technologies inclusive of music, visual art, jewelry, dance and devotion to The Divine.

Globally, some of the earliest human civilizations were aware of the power of sound and the power of frequencies to create change in the human body and biofield. Vedic cultures in Asia utilize chanting and various instruments to generate a forcefield around their being that they understand as a generative energetic layer, capable of communicating with the unseen aspects of the universe, which quantum physics refers to as dark matter. Traditional African dance, specifically alongside steady drumming, is also understood as a form of meditation with sound used to cultivate a trance state where everyone involved could communicate with dark matter through their biofield. Ancient herbalists in all traditions understood the power of water and other elements that could penetrate the unseen essences of flowers and herbs for the healing of unseen illness in the physical, emotional and energetic bodies. Women as the keepers of heart and home were often the guardians of ancient sciences. As a result, the production of this knowledge is not considered technological advancement.

Culture is Technology

Experience: Ever since I can remember, I’ve wanted to wear my mom’s jewelry. I have vivid memories of my eight year old self sneaking into her jewelry cabinet to wear the biggest hoop earrings I could find. After a trip to visit our family in the Dominican Republic, my mother returned with an amber jewelry set that I couldn’t get enough of. Traditionally in my family, induction into womanhood is coupled with a gift; I received tri-gold hoop earrings in the percieved appropriate size for a ten year old. Her hand made beaded bracelets from trips abroad, amethyst rings and clear quartz pendants are still on my desired heirloom list. When I was sixteen, I wanted nothing more than to double pierce my ears so I could wear even more jewelry. When I told my mom about my desire, she told me that if I wanted more piercings while living under her roof, I needed to write a research paper on the cultural origins of the piercing. I was so annoyed that day, I couldn’t fathom why I’d need to write a research paper about something that everyone did, something that felt so menial. Before I eventually gave up on writing the paper, I did some research on the origins of ear piercings in Indigenous North American culture. I learned that piercings were considered a rite of passage and that jewelry was utilized as a hooking method for ceremonies and other initiation rites. This was the first time I truly understood that cultural artifacts had a purpose beyond aesthetic beauty; they are instruments for the daily practical application of spiritual science.

In every ancient place on earth, we find archaeological evidence of culture through things like pottery, furniture and jewelry. We know Lapis Lazuli was a gemstone common in ancient Kemet, known more widely as Egypt. In the Congo, the most beautiful forms of citrine are available. Many diamonds are mined in Sierra Leone and gold mining in Ghana, Mali and Burkina Faso is extremely popular. Jade is a gemstone that has folklore dating back to the ancient societies of various parts of Asia and South America. Stones and metals have been attributed with divine essence and unseen power since they were first discovered. Jewelry of the ancient people of these parts of the world include many of these metals and stones alongside the use of symbolism specific to the intentions of the wearer.

Adornment in the form of jewelry, clothing and other instruments, was intended to enhance the energetic field of the wearer by acting as a conduit for energy. This can be understood through the way a modern lightbulb works. Electric currents are carried through the conduit to cultivate light in the vessel. Metals and stones used in jewelry were understood to be conduits that could support the wearer or living conduit in cultivating that energy in their body and biofield. Certain stones, metals and symbols were associated with personifications of the energies, typically understood in western culture as the Gods and Goddesses of these ancestral religions. Metals can be associated with different planets; for example, gold is associated with the sun and silver with the moon. In this way, jewelry is also used to balance the masculine and feminine energies of the wearer. There is jewelry worn for marriage celebrations that enhances the unification of couples and their role in their community. Funeral jewelry is worn to support the recently ascended in their journey to the afterlife. Only under very rare circumstances is jewelry worn with little to no intention at all.

In so many ancient cultures, jewelry is one aspect of the many ways women are responsible for the preservation of ancient practices. So much so that they are utilized today with little awareness of their original intention, but still operating as a form of energetic cleansing. I am often reminded of this truth when my friends, students and I select jewelry from the Slauson Swapmeet, which is seen as a local rite of passage in South Central. Gold molded through casting in the shape of the ancient symbols we select (crosses, hearts, our names) sit atop our hearts pulsating the pure frequency of the sun’s love and protecting us from perceived darkness. Without our awareness, we are enveloped in the love and honor of our ancestors. Protected by the ancient sciences they employed to ensure we never lost sight of our truly divine essence as creators in this human experience. The truth of these sciences echoes in our hearts, regardless of the lack of acknowledgement they receive from objective science. Black and Brown people know that no truly life shattering discoveries come about without the curiosity of our hearts.

Sources

Sacred Adornment: Jewelry as Sacred Technology