Crossroads, Cosmograms & Sacred Space

8/7/2019 Crossroads, Cosmograms & Sacred Space

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Historical archaeology has revealed many examples of the ways in which sacred spaces became

the corner stone of resilience for the African captives of North America as they were subjugated

to the ‘peculiar institution’ of slavery. Likewise, the deliberate placement of sacred, secret and

symbolic objects in spatial contexts, for the purpose of evocation, protection and direction, are

an inherent aspect of HipHop cosmology. From the hidden sub-floor deposits of plantation life,

to the inner ciphers of dance, to the prayer circles of testifiers, I will draw on examples from my

ethnographic work (conducted in archaeological and other contexts) to explore how the African

worldview is relived in, and power is attributed to, the spiritual objects and artifact contexts that

are unearthed by archaeology and manifested in contemporary HipHop.

HipHop is present day African American culture, thus I will continue to inject the terminology in

lieu of the latter, because African people have invoked the meaning of Kujichagulia (Self-

Determination) and have for the last 30 years or so stating that, “We are HipHop!” This is how

we identify ourselves in the Americas, just as other Africans throughout the diaspora refer to

themselves as Ibo, Akan, Zulu, Hausa, and Rastafarians and so on.

The dynamics of performance and evoking spirit in a spatial context exceeds the mundane of the

public or spiritual arenas but rather migrate between both worlds, enabling the participants to

experience transcendental experiences between the two realms. How can the people of HipHop

(African American culture) and outside the community understand that what exists today are not

just remnants, retentions or “Africanisms” of the past, but rather a cultivated and continuation of

a Pre-Colonial African culture that is still prevalent in the now.

HipHop culture is a system of accumulative knowledge, shared experiences, beliefs, rituals,

customs, practices, art, acculturation and new creations rooted in Pre-Colonial African

cosmogony; it is a process which gives people a general design for living and patterns for

interpreting their reality. The manifestations of culture consists of behaviors, values and attitudes

and are expressed and recreated with freestyle and rhythm through Emceein’, Breakin’,

Deejayin’ and Graffiti. The culture is accompanied by an attitude of rebellion, kujichagulia (self-



determination) interdependence and entrepreneurialism. HipHop perpetuates its cosmological

view into the world through art, science, religion, spirituality, philosophy, education and politics.

Captured and enslaved Africans had to rely on the cosmological commonalities they shared

instantly in efforts to establish communicative forms across linguistic barriers. Fortunately for

these ancestors, the 13th, 14th and 15th century systems of migrations, trade and commerce

established a Pre-Colonial multi-cultural environment. This African multiculturalism would

become a powerful rallying point for an emerging cultural unity that would become more

fortified throughout the Middle Passage, slavery and the Maafa as a whole. Archaeologists and

historians have uncovered an increasing amount of evidence to suggest the various ways

Africans and their descendants carved out social spaces in the New World, where they continued

the observances and expressions of core value systems, beliefs and practices. Although not being

able to express themselves’ overtly, the integrity of the collective cosmologies was maintained.

The covert operations, yield a watered down understanding of the originally intents of the

ancestor, yet they remained and transformed those expressions into vibrant and vital exercises of

cultural traditions that led to further developments and changes of those customs, motifs and

beliefs over time. (Fennell, 2007)

Over and over you can be sure

There will be sorrow but you will endure

Where there's a flower there's the sun and the rain

Oh and it's wonderful there both one in the sameJoy and pain are like sunshine and rain

– Frankie Beverly & Maze “Joy & Pain”

So the question is, what happens to this cosmological perspective when the people are entrapped,

injured, abused, rape and exploited by an oppressive materialistic regime. Just because the

people lost their freedom, did they lose their integrity as well? Does their world view become

distorted and clouded by the dominating culture to a point where they are no longer recognized

as Africans. Or is it possible that a legacy of powerful spiritual conceptions gives them the

ability to revitalize themselves in spite of great suffering and imminent devastation? (Ani, 2004)

African Cosmology

If you can see if you can solve the mystery

The answer revolves around your history



So carefully I drop this degree

Scientifically and realistically (Who is God?)

– Rakim “The Mystery”

The development of African cosmological views are the results of millions of years of

formulation which was spent battling the calamities and hazards of nature on one hand, and the

military and cultural imperialisms of human invaders from other geographic areas outside the

continent on the other. (Nyang, 1990) African culture is tenacious and will find any number of

ways to maintain itself; the millions of years of development have created a strong base of

fortification. Thus it is resilient and morphs under certain pressures only to morph into its

original form. This paradoxical dynamic of culture helps to explain the phenomenon of African

culture throughout the diaspora. (Ani, 2004)

The essence of the worldview is depth and multi-dimensional, incorporating that all is a part of

the whole and the whole is comprised of all. The interdependence of all beings in a cyclical

motion of unborn-life-death-ancestry, accounts for a cosmological view that is a pervasive

elements of all the various societies on the African continent and abroad. The relations between

the cosmic forces of the universe, particularly the sun moon and stars are mirrored through

rituals, ceremonies and symbols. The valued attributes of life and death are entwined with divine

motions of celestial bodies and are expressed in esoteric symbolisms. Even today, Africans old

and young will often reaffirm the affirmation of “What goes around, comes around”, illustrating

their understanding and incorporation of cosmology in their daily life-ways.

This rich symbolic system requires each person to go inside themselves for the inner meaning.

As these truths are gained, they are consumed like food; they provide nourishment for the soul,

and a guide for placing the interpreter in greater harmony with the universe. (T’Shaka, 1995) An

African person cannot detach themselves from the spirituality of the group, to be without this

connection amounts to self excommunication from the entire life of society. African people do

not know how to exist without such a spiritual connection to one another. To be human is to

belong to the whole community. And to do so involves participating in the beliefs, ceremonies,

rituals and festivals of that community. (Mbiti, 1999)



Symbols are often created to be long-lasting expressions of points of view, in the context of this

study; symbols are the oral and written expressions of cosmology. As Oba T’Shaka stated earlier,

they are designed for the person viewing them to search for inner truths and to arrive at a

conclusion without going through a thinking process. For many people who choose not to

question the fact of why they do what they do, when asked their only response may be, “That’s

the way it’s always been.” or “That’s the way my grandmother and her mother did it, so that is

why I do it.” Sometimes forms endure while the meanings once associated with them shift, in

other instances, meanings persist and the shapes evolve. Knowledge of ideas and techniques for

creating arts are not necessarily verbalized, written down, or expressly transmitted within a

family, nor are all levels of meaning always known to everyone in a community (Tobin and

Dobard, p. 7-8)

Being that certain symbols such as crossroads and cosomograms are intrinsic ideas and motifs in

the minds and hearts of HipHop, it is only fitting that we explore the simplicities and

complexities of these symbols to arrive at an understanding of the usefulness in creating sacred

spaces for the evocation of spiritual realities. The most import aspects of both crossroads and

cosmograms are the motivations of the people who are at the center of it all and the actions,

rituals and ceremonies that occur in this sense of time and space. So now, let’s take a closer look

at the symbols in both the archaeological and ethnographic contexts, to see how this all comes

together to understanding the utility and attributed power of HipHop conception and

actualization of sacred spaces.

Crossroads: The Brick Streets of Freedmans Town to the Corner Scene

The brick streets of Freedmans Town were laid in the early 1870’s with free and formerly

enslaved African hands, hands that were connected to accumulative cultural knowledge. This

connection enhanced the functionality of a transportation system, into a system for the spiritual

and unseen realities of African culture. For Africans just out of slavery, Freedmans Town

Houston, Texas represented the epitome of hope, freedom and the possibility of prosperity. With

more liberties than their rural counterparts, these urbanized Africans were able to sustain an



independent economy and a community of educators, religious leaders and professionals. As a

densely established neighborhood in the wake of freedom, Freedmans Town was the place to be,

it was the crossroads for the intersecting lives of the enslaved and the free. Rutherford B.H. and

Paul Yates, sons of the Rev. Jack Yates, discuss the notoriety of Freedmans Town in their

biographical work, “The Life and Efforts Jack Yates”

Dating as far back as the mule car which was replaced by the electric car, on the San Felipe line whichcurved at the corner, the residence of the late Jack Yates was looked upon as being a point from which to

direct visitors and strangers coming to the Fourth Ward. “Ride the San Felipe Car and ask the conductor to

let you off at Jack Yates’” was a familiar expression during that time. (Yates and Yates, p. 23)

A closer look at the harrowing bone patterning of the streets, suggest the combination of

intersections and crossroads are defining factors as to the interpretative meaning of the brick

streets in Freedmans Town. Understanding the brick streets involves accepting the Africanisms

of the architects and brick masons who built Freedmans Town. “The “turn in the path,” i.e., the

crossroads remains an indelible concept in the Kongo-Atlantic world, as the point of intersection

between the ancestors and the living.” (Thompson, p. 109) Freedmans Town grew, “becoming

one of the most colored sections of the city, for its size, and particularly the center of Houston’s

religious, social, and business life, this surely was not brought about just incidentally.” (Yates, p.

22) The interlocking crossing patterns at each intersection reflect deeper meanings of life and

culture. The intersection was the place in which people crossed paths throughout the day,

exchanged greetings and communicated.

Standing at the crossroads symbolically related to a greater

understanding of life and living as each person arrive at the

crossroads in some point in time and must make a definitive

decision about her life. The crossroads in the square are the

chief places for conducting rituals, meetings and performing

offerings to God. These spiritual crises are the most important

events in our spiritual development, they mark our spiritual growth. (Amen) Through gaining

knowledge, wisdom and understanding at the crossroads, truth is discovered, thus aiding the

person or community to acquire the direction sought by arriving willing or unwilling at this

junction in life. Thus the sacredness of the crossroads is in the ability to find direction through



truth by coming in contact with the vortex of the mundane and spiritual for the sole purpose of

person or communal growth of prosperity and joy. In contrast to the positivity of this statement,

it is also well understood that sometimes adverse or bad decisions are made at the crossroads,

and renders the participant(s) to suffering and pain. Still to this day, you can observe the people

of the community gathered at intersections in Freedmans Town at any time of day or night

hanging out on the corner.

The Crossroads Scene: as I was laying in the cut, standing at the corner waiting for the bus.

About four cars like I done had now encounters me as a pedestrian in the path. Then passing by

was a brotha I know; once recognized we building fo’ sho’ about how we gonna change the gameand make it happen, cause the world is amoral and now is the time to get the riches and the spoils.

By that time my bus had come, so

“I’ll check-ya latta, maybe tomorrow sometime we can finish tha rhyme. PEACE, Bro.”

“Peace to the GOD!” he responded and made tracks again along his path. -thaBFAP

The Science of Crossroads

Geometrically speaking a cross is the intersection of a horizontal and vertical line, creating four

adjacent 90° angles counter opposed to the 4 hypotenuses, thus forming a square. The composed

cross, is the convergence of all activity. The X and Y axis are only two of many dimensions, but

for the sake of the people, the third aspect of this intersection is the Z axis which intersects the

previous two, creating a 3D perspective that is essential to our understanding of the metaphysical

realities of these signs. The crossroads themselves are the symbolic meeting place for humans to

determine relations and guidance in terms of which direction to travel. A person can decide to go

in any of the four two-dimensional directions or take the third dimension to ascend or descend

along the Z axis.

Drawing patterns on the ground is clearly an African retention with little to no creolization

involved. Through the Caribbean and the southern United States, Africans were noticeably

engaged in drawing points on the ground, signifying the connection of two worlds. When

standing on these points drawn at the crossroad, a person’s direction in life was determined as

crucial and must be seriously contemplated. This practice of people meeting each other at the

crossroads can be witnessed when there appears to be a crowd, but actually it is a circle of

interdependent people engaged in a conversation, a game or a dance. Here in this sacred space is



where decisions are collectively decided and the fate of theNomad (Those Having Encountered

Numerous Oppositions Manifesting African Destiny) is ultimately determined.

Cosmograms: The Praise House to the Church House

From the present vantage point it may seem quite strange that initially, the colonists had no

desire whatsoever to Christianize the Africans they held captives as slaves. The souls and

salvation of African people were not a priority over slave labor in addition to the prevailing

thoughts of the day, were if Africans were Christians, they would be inclined to expect the same

freedoms as their European counterparts. After years of deliberations, debates and laws such as

the Slave Codes, colonists and planters decided the enslaved did required “A Detail of a Plan for

the Moral Improvement of Negroes on Plantations” as stated by Thomas S. Clay in 1833. Many

planters also felt concern, that if the African were not given an expressive outlet, rebellions were

imminent and feared the systematic destruction of the slavery. Juxtapose, it became an

advantageous to use religion as a means of installing obedience and pride in servitude and

maintaining the established order of slavery. After religious gatherings of enslaved Africans

became legal, between 1820 and Emancipation in 1865 the church was the only institution in

which Africans were permitted to exist for their own needs. Offering the only avenue for the

expressional activities of the race, the church answered many of the social and spiritual

necessities for Africans, unlike other groups whose circumstances had never before been

required to serve in such a manner. It was the place, a center at which friend looked forward to

meeting friend, contact with whom was denied by the rigorous demands of slavery. (Woodson,

1921) Before this time, the ceremonies only existed as invisible and covert operations, in which

people would secretly gather under the cover of darkness to express their spiritual devotions to

the God and the ancestors. As a response to such hooligan behaviors, plantation owners began to

establish the Praise House or utilized certain plantation structures for the purpose of gatherings.

Africans would be allowed to attend once a week, and in some areas twice a week, to gather for religious and social reasons. The Praise House would thus become the predecessor of modern

churches, who still serve the community as not only a place of religious worship, but

socialization and political organization.



The excavation of the 1848-1887 enslaved African tenant community of the Levi Jordan

Plantation located in Brazoria County, Texas presented a wealth of information on the structural

design and activities that took place in the Praise House. The sub-floor deposits located in the

center of the Praise House on the Jordan plantation are comprised of a collection of coins, a

knife, a cross, ash deposits of the hearth planted in a four cardinal directions pattern, formulating

a cosmogram with the cross in the center. Thus the archaeological data clearly supports the

notion that the deposits recovered equate to the utility of symbolism beneath the floor of the

cabin. A collection of data recovered from the Frogmore Manor Plantation of St. Helena, South

Carolina presented similar patterns under the area conjurer Dr. Buzzard’s cabin.

Of importance here was the discovery of four sub-floor features centered on each of the four wallsof the cabin. Two of these deposits consisted of the intentional burial of articulated animals, one

storage pit, and the other a deposit of ash and burned shell and metal. These four deposits appear

to form a cosmogram below the floor of the cabin” (Brown, 107).

Once again, we can see the intentional placement of items to establish these hidden cosmograms,

yet they must have served a greater purpose above the floors they were shield by, the activities

that take place on and within these “points drawn” on the ground transports us into the

ethnography of the Praise House that would later evolve into some of the practices and motions

that can be identified in the HipHop community today.

Over the past two years, I have been attending to 1st Central Baptist Church located on Staten

Island, NY. I have witnessed the drama of life and death take place in the center of the sanctuary;

from events like my own wedding, the Christening of babies, to the funeral of a dear friend of

mine and weekly prayers circles of testimonies and revitalization. All of these events take place

in the center of the church and all share the same sacredness in respects to Spirit of God and the

congregation. One day when group pictures were being

taken, I stood in the balcony overlooking the sanctuary and

was able to see the floor plan as a set of concentric circles,

with the pulpit being at the apex of it all. I also noticed that

the cross behind the centerpiece Bible had a circle in the

center, and the cloth that hangs over the pastor’s podium has



a cross with pointed ends going through a crown (another circular object). In the midst of all of

this is where the congregation is seated in the southern most region, the mothers and elder

women sit on the eastern side, the elder men and band is on the western side and the choir is

seated behind the ministers, who are in a half circles themselves, seated behind the ordained

minister of the church at the center of it all standing on the apex of the concentric circles. I have

seen the same format with some variations in all of the Baptist churches I attended in different

parts of the United States and noted that these patterns are not necessarily found to be in

Caucasian churches, unless they are Baptist.

The Science of Cosmograms

The cosmogram is comprised of the crossroads as the center piece,

but also has a dynamic of counter-clockwise motion component,

as seen in this example. Like a low pressure convergence in the

formation of weather conditions; the counter-clockwise motion from a low center of air pressure,

forces the air to move upward into the atmosphere. Another way to look at the counter-clockwise

motion is the notion of wavelengths in physics and sound waves, the counter-clockwise motion

propels the energy forward or upward. The cosmogram is not

merely a symbol; it is believed to mediate power between the

spiritual world of the ancestors and the world of the living.

(Bellegarde-Smith) Some Africans studied in the diaspora

remember the precise Ki Kongo terms for the cardinal points

emphasized by the drawing: Heaven (Nsulu) at the top, the land

of the Dead (nsi a fwa) below, and the Kalungu line dividing the

realm of the living, earth (ntoto, from the dead” (Holloway, p.155) Even everyday people are

believed to be able to invoke God and the ancestors by combining the cosmogram with song.

Marshall Stearns describes a ring shout he witnessed in the 1950’s

The dancers form a circle in the center of the floor, one in back of another, then they begin to

shuffle in a counter-clockwise direction around and around, arms out and shoulders hunched. A

fantastic rhythm is built up by the rest of the group standing back to the walls, who clap their



hands and stomp the floor…. Suddenly sisters and brothers scream and spin, possessed by

religious hysteria. (46)

HipHop Crossroads and Cosmograms Conclusively

There is a thin line between the interpretations of the sacred and the mundane, often the line is so

blurred it can be confusing to both observers and participants, but these are only the dynamics of

the Z axis which transcends both worlds. This axis may account for members of the HipHop

community tapping into transcendental and possession-like properties, whether they are in the

center of the club dancing or the center of the church worshiping. “The Spirit” has the ability to

be “caught” and receive in just about any location or environment. Even in the worst

environments of drug and crime infested communities, the main corner or crossroad, where

everything goes down, the lives of the people can be determined by the decision that are made if they are active participants in the activities that take place, from the block party, community

rally or the exchange of gang warfare.

In order for me to proceed on my quest to definitely define HipHop, modern African American

culture, I had to take the conversation out the clutches of artists, entertainers or the latest fads

and dance craves and moves to bring to light the structural components of culture. The

sacredness of HipHop lives in the family reunions, house parties, religious centers, communityevents and political rallies, where we gather in circles at the crossroads and stand on

cosmograms to perform the rituals and ceremonies that maintain and propels our worldview. The

experiences of 4.5 million years of human cultural development and the intensity of the

“Peculiar Institution” slavery have formed a culture not solely based on retentions or totally new

cultural forms, but rather a revitalized and unwavering cosmological foundation. As the African

proverb states, “I am because, you are. You are because I am, therefore we are.” We are a circle

of interdependence. We are HipHop.



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