A PHILOSOPHICAL ANALYSIS OF THE CONCEPT OF GOOD AND BAD AS IT EXISTS IN

CLASSICAL YORUBA (AFRICAN) MORAL SYSTEM

Onifade Temitayo Abayomi

yocrates@yahoo.com , +234 8164029905

Abstract

This paper attempts a philosophical analysis of the concept of good and bad as it
exists in classical Yoruba-African moral system. It tends to encapsulate the fact that
unlike in the western conception where the concept of good is taken to be a
“given”, there is a sharp contrast in the African context. Good or rather the
“common good” is a notion that is conceptually affiliated to the communalistic
orientation in African societies. The Yoruba moral worldview offers an example of an
African moral system. This paper attempts to show that a sense of the common
good, which is a core of shared values, is the underlying presupposition of African
social morality. Taking character as a salient element of the Yoruba moral system, this
work attempts to affirm “omoluabi”- the good person, as not just an attribute. There is
a distinction between the human being in the generic sense and the human person
in the specific sense.

Introduction

The African continent at some period, for diverse reason has been perceived and
described with various degrading, abusive, demoralizing and uncomplimentary
words. This we have come to believe is/was a basic fall out of the slave trade cum
colonization era. The black man did acquired the role or title of “sub-critical” or “pre-
logical” in mentality, sociality and every other sphere of life you can name, or as
Rudyard Kiplin had put it, “he the (African) is “half devil and half child” and needs
the anodyne of brutality or physical violence to make him truly human.” 1 Hegel had
referred to the African continent as ahistorical i.e. not concerned to or taking

1
account of history or historical development. Even renowned thinkers like J.J.
Rousseau, David Hume and even Immanuel Kant all had uncomplimentary things to
say about the black man.

Moral thinking is concerned with the issues of good conduct among people of a
human community. In most cultures the words moral and ethical are often used
interchangeably, though there is a clean cut distinction between them.
Etymologically, ‘moral’ is derived from the Latin word “mores”, meaning “that which
concerns character, behavior or actions. This brings to bear that morality is about
both action and inactions. “Morality is a set of rules, particularly prohibitions and
prescriptions which guide human actions.”2 Morality refers to the moral principles
pertaining to a distinction between right and wrong or good and evil. Morality is the
sense and view of what is right and wrong and that which constitutes an absolute
reference for character and behavior. It is an authoritative code of conduct in
matters of right and wrong. It is usually seen in a broader sense than “ethics”,
although the margins are diffused.

Ethics in its broad sense refers to the acts of human behavior informed by moral
principles of good and evil (right and wrong). However, ethical principles of conduct
relate to absolute values that condition human behavior, and in this sense it may
correlate with moral assumptions of good and evil. If “ethos” is to denote categories
and system of prescribed or recommendable conduct, we are then tempted to
conclude that “ethos” and “morality” are interchangeable. Some philosophical
discourses tend to include “ethics” as a category of reflection on the fundamental
nature of morality and moral values. It is therefore obvious that in issues of narrower
discussion, the interchangeable use will be noticeable and understandable when
speaking of moral or ethical conduct.3

For the purposes of this discussion, “morality” will be taking to refer to the moral
system and “ethics” of actions relating to morals. As such, our reflections on African
morality as the moral disposition of the African will be on the absolute (normative)

2
system informing the assumption and judgment of the nature and character of
human actions. The aim of ethics is to elucidate the grounds for the morality of our
actions. The scope of ethics practically covers all actions of human life, so long as
the act is morally responsible, rational, and taken as an act of freewill.

Man is perceived in the African perspective as a being with:

 an ontological propensity to goodness,

 moral self-actualization and perfection;
 a moral agent infused with an inner moral principle – an in-built conscience
open to divine and human positive laws;
 a social being who fulfills himself only within the context of unceasing dynamics
of social interaction.

In every culture, there exists a word expressing good in the sense of having the right
or desirable quality and bad in the sense of undesirable. Sometimes, this serves as a
sense of moral judgment and a distinction between “right and wrong”, “good and
bad”.

Jeremy Bentham, using the utilitarian theory prioritized goods by considering

pleasure, pain, and consequences. In the interaction with others in society(s), there
emerges an issue of “rightness” and “wrongness”; “good and bad” etc. It is the
reaction of society to this issues and its relation to other members of the society that is
conceived as a moral system.4

The Yoruba moral system and the concept of “good and bad”

The African moral system could be described with the cultural values it includes. This
values includes; (i) sense of community life; (ii) sense of good human relations; (iii)
sense of the sacredness of life; (iv) sense of hospitality; (v) sense of the sacred and of

3
religion; (vi) sense of time; (vii) sense of respect for authority and the elders; (viii)
sense of language and proverbs.5

The African moral system of which the Yoruba moral world view will serve as an
example is both “super-sensible” and “material” in its terms of reference. Both are
found in a society that is believed by the Africans to be originally "god made";
“Super-sensible”; and "man-made". By super-sensible, what is meant is that this
worldview is not free from a spirited harmonized balance that which is supervised
and kept in check by spirited beings that are believed to transcend the people who
at present live in it. And secondly, it is “man-made” because it cannot be culturally
understood independent of those who live in it at present. As such, it will be logical to
say that the authentic African is known and identified in, by and through his
community. It is this communal system that is referred to by professor (Mrs.) Sophie
Oluwole as “African humanism”, “where there is always the drawing from a common
pool…and existence –in relation, is- for self and others.”6 Relationship between
individuals is grounded primarily on the recognition of their worth as human beings
and not only about what they possess or what they can do for one other.
Although recognition on social worth and potentiality can come as secondary
considerations, especially when reciprocity and inter-personal relationship is
involved, however, it is customary for people in these cultures to help one another
without demanding immediate or an exact equivalent remuneration. Everyone is
mindful of the fact that each person has something to contribute to the general
welfare of the entire community.
This African sense of accommodation is what accounts for the reason "in traditional
African culture, the weak and the aged; the incurable, the helpless, the sick etc.
were affectionately taken care of in the comforting family atmosphere" 7. The
"comforting family atmosphere" is a necessity that is always provided by the
extended family pattern of traditional African society. In consonance with this are
the “sense of respect”, and the idea of the sacred which fills the African as he
approaches religious elements and matters. 7

4
It has been admitted by Africans and Europeans authors alike that Africans do not
know how to live without religion. The Yoruba moral system though has its foundation
in religious peculiarity, is a secular morality with a rational bias. This certainly does not
mean that the gods do not play any role in the moral system but between our
choice of exhibiting our moral freedom and the deterministic effect of the gods and
spirit beings lies our moral epistemic capacity. And definitely, it will be difficult or
rather impossible to talk about moral responsibility unless it presupposes the existence
of free moral agents.
A moral agent definitely is one whose actions could be adjudged as either moral or
amoral. For a conduct to be subjected to a moral appraisal, it has to satisfy certain
conditions chiefly of which are:
(i.) it must be a human behavior.
(ii) it must be by choice and
(iii) there must be to it some relevant moral principle or rule.
it is at this that our actions are described as good and bad; right and wrong; just and
unjust e.t.c.8
“Good” and “bad” are always used in our daily usage to depict the ideal or
standard to which everyone possesses. Good like every other conceptual issues in
ethics manifests in diverse folds and domains. What is good has to do with benefits.
For Russell, defining “good” is not in a verbal definition, but in such a characterization
as shall project the appropriate idea to the mind of the questioner. In Russell’s very
word, “this characterization, may, and will itself contain the idea of good, which
would be a fruit in the definition, but harmless when our purpose only is to stimulate
the imagination to the production of the idea which is intended.” 9
The Yoruba conception of the meaning of bad is in cogent relation with the concept
of evil. For the Yoruba bad is anything not desirable, just as evil too. But the origin,
nature and source of evil to them are quite different from that obtainable in other
cultures. Generally speaking for the Yoruba, evil means anything that is injurious,
painful, hurtful or calamitous. The Yoruba word for evil, “ibi”, denotes something that

5
is not good, it is the absence of good or the “corruption of goodness”. this explains
why to the Yoruba, anything that impedes the achievement of goals, ideal,
happiness or general wellbeing may be regarded as a form of “ibi” (bad or evil).9
The Yoruba strongly believe that it is possible for men to inflict pains and afflict fellow
human beings. This kind of evil is what the Yoruba would refer to as human
wickedness. Human wickedness is the hazard acts perpetrated by man in order to
subject his fellow man to torture and all forms of pains. People who perpetrate
human wickedness are regarded as “ika eniyan” (wicked people) or “onise ibi” (evil
worker). The “onise ibi and ika eniyan” are all referred to in the generic sense as “eni
buburu” literally connoting a bad person.
The Yoruba believe that human wickedness which now abounds all over the world
today can be performed both naturally and supernaturally. In fact, it is possible in
Yoruba cultural belief for men to physically torture fellow men, that is, to afflict him
and cause painful damage to his personality and character. Also, the Yoruba
believe that through the use of supernatural means it is possible for a man to inflict
and afflict a fellow man from afar with evil even without physical contraction. 11 there
is also the conception among the Yoruba that attest to the fact that the Yoruba
believe that the operation of the world is predicated on the dialectics of “goodness”
(ire) and evil (ibi).
In the Yoruba worldview, there are various kinds of evil. In line with the philosophy of
Hegel, evil or bad is not perceived as an abrogation to good, but purely as a
necessity to its existence. One of the evils recognized by the Yoruba is physical evil.
Physical evil comprises of all the pains and discomforts that arises from diseases,
accidents, or from duress upon the body like headaches e.t.c. 12
The notion of the common good features manifestly in the Yoruba world view. It
manifest as the balance of the societal harmony and the categorization of virtue
and vices are based on the knowledge of good and bad. In its communitarian
outlook, the common good is eschewed as an essential feature of the ethics
espoused by the society. This inspires the creation of a moral, social, political or legal

6
system in a community. Such human desires like peace, security, freedom, dignity,
respect, justice, equality, satisfaction and so on are among the moral notion that are
embraced by the common good. We might want to say that the establishment of
institutions- legal; political; economical; moral; etc. is set up in pursuit of a common
goal which is to enhance the wellbeing of the people.
Barry Hallen says about the Yoruba that man is not by nature “good” or “bad” (evil).
It is by what he does or does not do that he is categorized as such.13 This is obvious in
the explanation given by Russell, that to define good is not in a verbal definition, but
in such a characterization as shall provide the appropriate idea to the mind of the
questioner. This characterization will itself contain the idea of good.
From a more distinct dimension, the word “iwa” can be used in denoting “being” or
“nature”. Iwa is a central notion in the Yoruba moral system and this is evident in
various proverbs, folklore, and other oral traditions which are a means by which
members of the society pick up the knowledge of the moral norms.
The Yoruba identity is summarized in the age long concept of “omoluabi” which is
taking to be the total embodiment of who a good person is. Omoluabi is the
contraction of a sentence with the following components
omo + ti + olu + bi
This as a statement will be
Omo ti oluwa bi
And literally pronounced will give us different statements. But the one adapted for
our usage will be
The child birthed by the creator.
As such the word omoluabi in the generic sense is etymologically an achievable
character or quality attributed to the divine.
“And in the same vein, in an attempt to elucidate the concept of omoluabi (good
person), Wande Abimbola makes it clear that omoluabi is a function of exhibiting
and demonstrating the inherent virtue and value of iwapele”. Thus, iwapele, as
Abimbola tells us is “good or gentle character” and it is “ultimately the basis of moral

7
conduct in Yoruba culture and a core defining attribute of omoluabi, set as a
conglomeration of principles of moral conduct demonstrated by an omoluabi with
the most fundamental of these principles to include: oro siso, (spoken word),
iteriba(respect), inu rere(having good mind to others), otito(truth), iwa(character),
akinkanju (bravery), ise (hard work) and opolo pipe (intelligence)”14
In another dimension, Oluwole extends the word omoluabi to mean
Omo ti o ni iwa bi eni ti a ko, ti o si gba eko.
This translated as
A person that behaves like someone who is well nurtured and lives by the percepts of
the education she or he has being given. As such, the Yoruba word omoluabi may
be appropriately rendered as a conflation of three inter related descriptions. And
these are:
Omo ti o ni iwa bi… (A person who behaves like…)
…eni ti a ko… (…someone properly nurtured…)
…ti o o si gba eko. (…and who behaves accordingly.)
From the popular conception of Omoluabi, Gbadegesin out rightly identifies Olu-iwa
as God, i.e. the creator. But definitely, Olu-iwa is ambiguous and can mean the
fountain of character, or one with impeccable character. 15
Contrasted with Omoluabi, in the Yoruba thought system is Omokomo. Omokomo
literally denotes a worthless child. As such Abiodun Rowland “identifies the artistic
process in the aesthetic concept of iwa, where he defines omoluabi as highly
cultured and contrasted with omo ‘lasan or omokomo, a description of misfit, and
everything that the omoluabi stands against.16
In encapsulating the concept of iwa-pele, we will introduce here one of the logico-
morality of the Ifa corpus. A thought here is invoked by Oluwo Philips, in projecting a
central belief of the Yoruba. “Where does good character fit into this original
science? Oludumare (god) in his infinite wisdom constructed a universe that worked
through certain logical principles, in other words, if you plant an acorn (fruit of the
oak tree), no matter how many prayers, sacrifices or ebo(yoruba word for sacrificial

8
offerings to the gods) you might make, it will only grow an oak tree and not the twin
towers!”17 in examining the concept of iwa-pele, it is necessary to emphasize the fact
that the Yoruba world view is one of causality, where one tends to reap what he
sows. Here Oluwo Philips explains that there is a logic that works in the universe. He
takes character to be an accumulation of sowed habits that goes on to manifest as
iwa-pele. He explains a model similar to Kant’s categorical imperative, as explained
in the logic of the Ifa corpus in demanding for good characters, it is founded “… not
on a moral, but on a practical basis of how we must interact with the other energy
around us. It is that logical interaction that is the essence of iwa pele. To use an
example: “thou shall not steal” is a logical conclusion. If one were to steal, you begin
to set up the situation where others steal from you, where possessions that we have
earned are not safe, where force begins to play the dominant role in success. The
same applies to “coveting thy neighbors’ wife”. If you sleep with your neighbors’
husband or wife, you are setting the moral groundwork for your own marriage and
relationships to be at risk. But, here is the essential point: these are common sense
observations about how the universe works…and we hardly need a set of “god’s
rules” to act upon them. Whereas rules require blind obedience, logic requires
thoughtful examination and intellect. Western religion sought blind obedience as a
measure of control. The Yoruba sought thoughtful intelligence.”18
Oluwo Philips further emphasizes the spiritual harmony in the world by explaining that
“iwa pele is not a matter of obeying some set of god given moral rules. it is about
working within the logical matrix of the universe to improve our lives without
damaging those around us or the universe” in contrasting the Yoruba indigenous
thought in the Ifa corpus with western religion, Oluwo Philips quickly brings to the
table, the ethical question, “why live a life of good character”. He was apt to spot
the difference. He exclaims that “our children and grand children must live here, and
to pollute or harm it is simply stupid…or bad character. Western religion thought you
were too stupid to understand that, and so created “god’s list” for you to obey. The

9
Yoruba knew you were intelligent enough and simply asked for good character in
your life”19
How then does one achieve being a good person? Barry Hallen is of the opinion that
a person is what he is because of what he does rather than what he does because
of what he is… man is not by nature either “good or bad”(evil) except in terms of
what he does and does not do.
Conclusion
In traditional Yoruba morality, there are no uniformities but differences, there are no
absolute but the objective. There are no absolutes because morality can change,
depending on whether or not it serves human interest. It is objective because it is not
based on personal predictions and subjective enterprise.21 These are grounds that
help us to hold on to the conception of “good and bad” in the Yoruba moral system
as one which is not defined as a concept (unlike in western philosophy) rather it is
viewed in the generic sense and at the same time personified, so that when we talk
of the good person (omoluabi) we not only refer to a definition but also to a
personality.

References
1. Agulana C., “Moral Thinking: A Reconstructive Interpretation” In Prajnavihara:
A Journal of Philosophy and Religion, Assumption University, Thailand Vol. 8,
No.1, 2007. Retrieved from the internet from www. agulana.blogspot/2008/06
2. Oke M., And Esikot I.F., Elementary Ethics, Lagos: Minders Publishers, 1999, p.1
3. Omorege, J.I., Ethics: A Systematic and Historical Study, Ikeja: Joja Publishers,
2006, p.137.
4. ibid p.137
5. Agulana c., op.cit
6. Oluwole, S.B., “The Rational Basis of Yoruba Ethical Thinking” in The Nigerian
Journal of Philosophy, vol.4, p. 19

10
7. Oke, M., op.cit, p.18
8. ibid
9. Abiodun Rowland, “Identity and the Aesthetic Concept of Iwa” ,Journal of
cultures and ideas, vol. 1 no. 1
10. African Ethics, Entry in Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, www.sep.org/ethics;
first published in September 16, 2002, retrieved 5th march, 2012.

11. ibid
12. Bewaji, J.I., “Olodumare: God in Yoruba Belief and the Theistic Problem of Evil”,
African quarterly, vol. 2, issue 1, 1998
13. Barry Hallen, “The Good, The Bad, and The Beautiful: Discourse on Values in
Yoruba Culture, Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2000. p.137
14. Ibid.
15. Oluwole, s.b., op.cit,
16. Abiodun r., op.cit
17. Oluwo, philip, iwapele, ifa foundation, a federal govt of nigeria, non- for profit
organization.
18. op.cit
19. op.cit
20. Hallen, Barry, op.cit
21. Azenabor, G., The Golden Rule Principle in an African Ethics, and Kant’s
Categorical Imperative: A Comparative Study on the Foundation of Morality In
an African Philosophy. In An African Journal of Philosophy, xxi: pp.239

11