The post is dedicated to Abiake and the many worshippers of the African river and sweet waters of the earth embodied as the Spirit of Osun.
Following is a true story....
On May 28, 1837, United States Col. Harney, in Florida, dispatched to General Thomas Sidney Jesup that “A party of negroes had surrendered who give information that Micanopy (an Indian) has been
 |
| Abiake or Sam Jones |
disposed, and
that Abiaca (sp) is now the principal chief of the nation- that the
Indians had resolved not to emigrate, and would fight if the attempt was
made to force them off.”
The above quote was taken from the war diary of General Thomas Sidney Jesup. Abiaka, also known as Sam Jones, was known as a Seminole, which is really not a tribe, but means ‘free or wild man’. It was a group or band of freed black men, runaway slaves and a few Asian-Indians that joined with them and refused to "emigrate" to new lands. Abiaka was a lower Creek medicine man of the Panther Clan (negro) and prophet who was named as a chief when all the other chiefs died or agreed to go to less desirable territory where many died along the way.
One interpretation of his name was 'binocular' because he could see afar off. Abiaka used prayer, his black drink, the art of purification (which included fasting), guns and resolve to maintain his territory until numerous sick military men died, were shipped out or gave up.
The American military men called them runaways, but they were indigenous people of Turtle Island or America. Muskogee or Miccosakee Indians of Georgia....... my family. Abiake lived to be 92 years old and the Seminoles remain in Florida TO THIS DAY and some consider the swamps there to be haunted! The swamp personified before him, married him and his people and protected them by swallowing the bodies of his enemies. I call the swamp or the river, Osun, the Yoruban goddess of the sweet water.
What struck me about Abiake is his resemblance to a picture of my father, when he was 17. My father told me as a child he had nightmares of hiding in the swamps at night, but that he always found his way out. As a young boy, my father was the darkest in his family with silky, black hair. Members of my extended blood family still live on lands acquired by my great, great, great grandfather. Ironically my father was not interested in his portion, but it is still in the family. I am honored that my ancestors reached out to me to reveal this story of Owepi (a word revealed to me in a dream, which means 'family')!
Creek Indians were called Creeks because that is where the white man found them.......at creeks, near the sweet waters. I believe these were the descendants of the worshipers of Osun from Africa.
Muskogee is a derogatory Spanish term. The tribes were jumbled up and given various, descriptive names so that those from England could easily identify them, however we are in many cases of the Chi: Ouati (or 'Wati')-Chi or Hiti-Chi -- Mami 'Wati' or Witi-Chi (Witichi) of Mami 'Wata'.
And we are still here.
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The 12th #President, #Zachary #Taylor, was the last to fight Abiake and the Seminoles and the general decided to call it a day and say the US won (because they could not fish the Indians out of the waters of the swamps, and most of the Indians had died or been relocated or ‘exported’ as they called it.) His proclaimed victory earned him a seat in the white house, but he served one year before dying instantly of a mysterious stomach ailment -- ironically, he fell sick on Independence Day -- the day of the free. Many of his cabinet members died with him.
The US tried dogs, but many times the dogs wouldn’t go into Abiake’s camp. The cypress trees of the swamp blocked the paths of the US soldiers and their horses. The general’s request for small pox in the form of fake vaccines were not approved. Abiake would not have taken them anyway. Many times US soldiers would find camps of hammocks and cooked food, but no Indians -- the swamps would cloak them.
Abiake and the Seminoles introduced the US to a new form of warfare called ‘guerilla warfare’, which was later taught within the US military. It was a type of ‘hit and run’ where they would hide out, destroy the enemy and disappear. This form of warfare has not been successful for US soldiers because it lacks the power of the gods behind it.
Abiake used his knowledge of herbs and foresight to keep his soldiers from being sick in the swamps and to know when the enemy was coming before they got there. This man lived under constant attack with one foot in the water and his hand in the hand of the Great Spirit. Abiake was written out of the text books and annals of American history, however, when searching for something totally different, Spirit led me to him and revealed his story to me from the mouths of the generals themselves.
It is said that a cook, Martha Jane, who prepared a treaty meal with Abiake and General Worth in 1847 is quoted as saying ” He (Abiake) jest look at de Colonel aní I smelled the trouble then, aní he up aní say, “My mother died heah, my father died heah, aní be demned I die heah; Yo-Ho-ee, Hee-ee!í ” – Martha Jane, who cooked the Treaty dinner for General Worth in 1842 (Willson 1910:45)
Yo-Ho-ee, Hee-ee is an Indian war cry. Eventually Abiaka refused to be in the presence of the enemy and is known to have slit the throat of a sister who considered emigrating to a reservation.
Years after reading this, I learned that the call or welcome of the Yoruban goddess Osun, goddess of the sweet water and the river is 'Ore yeye oo'. Sound familiar? Please understand that many black Indians were great sea navigators and were in the Americas prior to colonization. They brought their African customs, which were passed down word of mouth and morphed into some of the current Native American shamanism that we enjoy today.
This story never ceases to amaze me. The Spirit is willing, when the flesh is weak. Abiake did not try
to be chief, he had no choice because the others all sold out or were
killed. There are those who believe that whereever their feet trod, belongs to them. NOT SO!
I have included a picture of Abiake, and a dedication to his forever memory because of the struggles we freed men still face today.
2020 Update
Recently I visited the Seminoles of South Florida and they had their histories displayed, which included information about Abiake. I asked them how they venerate him and was told they do not call upon him because when they do, awful things happen. They did not go into details, but I can understand how that could be. Powerful spirits of warriors are not to be dealt with lightly and should not be awakened unless it is a dire necessity.
"When faced with the water and the enemy, the water (spirituality) will aid you"....RT
#hiphop , #rap , #ferguson #nativeamericans #orisha
I have included a picture of Abiake, and a dedication to his forever memory because of the struggles we freed men still face today.
2020 Update
Recently I visited the Seminoles of South Florida and they had their histories displayed, which included information about Abiake. I asked them how they venerate him and was told they do not call upon him because when they do, awful things happen. They did not go into details, but I can understand how that could be. Powerful spirits of warriors are not to be dealt with lightly and should not be awakened unless it is a dire necessity.
"When faced with the water and the enemy, the water (spirituality) will aid you"....RT
#hiphop , #rap , #ferguson #nativeamericans #orisha