ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a much needed context to understand why ancient Africans prescribed communication praxis with an emphasis on listening, science-based thinking, truthfulness, and silence. It delves into the ontological and epistemological foundations of ancient Kemet to tease the kind of being that fits their definition of what it means to be human and how they adduced evidence and truth. In examining the dialectical relationship between scientific and spiritual knowledge as it relates to ancient Kemetic Maatian principles, Kiekegaard’s dual framework of direct and indirect communication is contrasted. Sacred science is presented as a reflection of the sacredness that Kemites attributed to all cosmic substances. Scientific exploration played a crucial part in the spiritual actualization of each human being. While Kemet is wildly recognized as the home to some of the wonders of the world and as having achieved technological and scientific feats that defy explanation even by today’s standards, little attention is paid to the type of value system that fostered such intellectual curiosity and rewarded such scientific innovation. Finally, given the reach of the Maatian ethic approach to spiritual science in antiquity, the possibility exists that someone of the depth and erudition of Socrates would have potentially been inspired, motivated, and dedicated to the pedagogical wisdom contained in Maat. The chapter considers whether “Maieutic artistry” (the Socratic method) was a reflection of “Mayetic” or “Maatian” ethical principles.
