Ancient Sumaria and Alien contact

The term 'Ancient Astronauts' generally refers to extraterrestrials who came to Earth and were in some way responsible for seeding the human race.
There are references to these entities in the bible, in ancient art and other texts. They are all linked with myths about creation found in all ancient civilizations.
As we search to find the truth behind the illusion, who created the human race - or biogenetic experiment - we look to those who came from the stars - ancient astronauts - creational gods - for our answers. All is theory, virtual reality, consciousness, and for the most part not proveable - subject to the interpretation of the researcher or experiencer.
Most of us would love to find evidence of ancient astronauts - be visited by friendly aliens who could enlighten us to our true creational blueprint. Throughout the history of the human drama - we find all sorts of evidence that makes us think, believe, and quest for the greater truth. They are all just myths, legends, and theories...
Theories about Atlantis often link sightings of ancient astronauts to Atlantean space ships. This goes to the ancient gods called the Zep Tepi.
In China we find theories about an alien race called the Dropa who left behind fascinating discs.
The Popol Vuh, sacred to the Mayans, unequivocally states, "Men came from the stars, knowing everything, and they examined the four corners of the sky and the Earth's round surface."
Brazilian UFO researcher Jean Alencar has noted that the mythology of this country is replete with descriptions and statuettes of beings endowed with the power of flight. The legends of Brazilian natives, like those of other countries, detail experiences of gods or travelers from the sky who descended to earth when humans were little more that animals to instruct them in the arts of agriculture, astronomy, medicine, and other disciplines. Alencar points out one figure in particular, Bep-Kororoti, a space warrior worshipped by the tribes of the upper reaches of the Xing River. Not unlike the heroes of India's Mahabarata, Bep-Kororoti possessed a flying vehicle capable of destroying anything in its path. His aspect terrified the primitive natives, until he stepped out of his "raiment" and revealed himself to be fair-skinned, handsome, and kind. He amused the natives with his "magic" until he grew restless for his land in the sky and returned there.
The Chilam Balaam, is even more explicit and states "Beings descended from the sky in flying vessels...white men in flying rings, who can touch the sky."
There are indications that something very strange took place on our very own continent hundreds of thousands of years ago, before humans arrived on this continent (according to the canon of anthropology). Santa Maria Canyon holds evidence pointing toward the existence of a culture of intelligent beings who raised cattle, built weapons, and practiced funeral rites -- one million years ago. If we decide to stick with what academia has to say, in no way could these beings have been humans. Were they survivors of a Race of Aliens? This brings to mind theories of marooned spacemen, or colonists trying to tame a new planet? During the Prehistory Conference held during 1962 in Rome, Dr. W. Matthes presented the oldest carvings known to exist, created by a forgotten artist two hundred thousand years ago, when humans had allegedly just discovered the use of fire.
Discovered by the 19th century French explorer Henri Lhote, these figures were so unusual he dubbed them Martians, explaining their contour is simple, unartistic, and with rounded heads; their only detail is the double oval at the figure's center, which evokes the image we currently have of Martians.
Great Martian Gods c.6000 BC from Tassili Mountains

Sahara Desert
North Africa
Lhote's round-headed denizens of the Red Planet were depicted by the primitive cave artists as wearing suits strongly reminiscent of those worn by our own astronauts on the Moon, down to the detail of the boots. Several hundred such drawings exist, scattered over many miles of desert: strange helmeted and figures with antenni, often floating in weightlessness as if the artist had been able to witness one of our modern space walks. Other images are of a technological bent, showing what could be taken as solar panels, space stations, floating spheres containing humanoid figures. Unwilling to be caught up in the ancient astronaut craze, anthropologists have suggested that the Tassili "roundheads" are merely ceremonial dancers or priests wearing empty gourds over their heads. The problem with this rational approach is that the agricultural know-how and resources to grow pumpkins were nonexistent in North Africa at the time the Tassili drawings were created, and would probably not have been available for another thousand years.
Sego Canyon, Utah, c. 5,500 BC
Val Comonica, Italy, c. 10,000 BC
More Images
The examples of cave art found in the Spanish caverns of Ojo Guarea and Altamira, and the French ones at Lascaux and Font de Gaume, have proven that our distant ancestors were able to represent what they saw with a clarity and simplicity that is stunning to twentieth century eyes. This skill extends to depictions of things that anthropologists and archaeologists often find troublesome: equally faithful representations of domed objects, some of them in threes, others with legs or antennae.
Ancient astronauts have been described as bi-pedal entities often with beaks or wings, or reptilian looking, gray aliens, ethereal, or humanoid coming and going in space craft of some kind or moving in and out of our dimension. Different theories or stories of creation cite these entities - not unlike gods from heaven who many believe seeded the human experiment and will return one day. The feeling of a god returning to Earth, a savior, if you will, who restores balance, is a metaphor in the journey of the human experiment in linear time and emotion. All virtual created by consciousness. All are theories.
The Ojo Guarea complex, weaving its way for miles into the earth, poses an undecipherable riddle. In his book En Busca de la Historia Perdida (In Search of Forgotten History), Spanish author and filmmaker Juan G. Atienza states that some of the cave systems many entrances are considered "evil," and the local farmers will not till the soil near them nor even come close to them. Contained precisely within one of these "evil" points of access is an ancient petroglyph of what could only be, astounding though it might seem, a representation of the helicoidal structure of DNA.
Erich von Daniken
One of the strongest proponent of ancient astronaut theory is Erich von Daniken, author of several popular books on the subject. His best-selling Chariots of the Gods, published in 1968, argued that spacecraft landed long before modern humanity peopled the Earth. The ancient visitors carried out breeding experiments and produced a creature intelligent enough to have the rules of society imparted to it. These new beings invented agriculture and became the first artists, then created their own warlike civilizations. Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed by an atomic bomb. The Ark of the Covenant was allegedly an electrified transmitter that allowed Moses to communicate with the astronauts. Von Daniken claims that ancient astronauts - complete with space helmets - were carved on stelae at the Mayan city of Copan.
All creational myths speak of Gods and Goddesses who came to Earth in some sort of magical scenario - or riding in chariots of fire - and creating a race called Humans. Most of these myths refer to their primary God as a Sun God meaning from the Light [male] and a moon Goddess [female]as all things in or reality are bipolar in design - duality - Sacred Geometry. In Egypt this God was called Ra, Re, Ray of Light. These gods flew in space ships and were therefore looked upon as ancient astronauts.
In India the chariots were called Vimanas. Egyptian hieroglyphs depict the same images carved in stone.
Creational legends are a global phenomenon. Records of the belief systems of ancient astronauts coming to Earth can be found on Rock Art -- Ancient Sumerian clay tablets and cylinder seals, and in the Bible.
The Bible speaks of the Hebrew word 'Elohim', meaning 'God' or 'those who came from the sky'.
Elohim or Eloah is a Hebrew word related to deity, but whose exact significance is often disputed. It is the third word in the Hebrew text of Genesis and occurs frequently throughout the Hebrew Bible. In some cases (e.g. Ex. 3:4 ... Elohim called unto him out of the midst of the bush...), is generally understood to denote the God of Israel but from a neutral point of view there is no evidence proving that this originally meant one rather than several acting in accord. In other cases (e.g. Ex. 20:3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.), it refers to the polytheistic notion of multiple gods. In still other cases, the meaning is not clear from the text, but may refer to powerful beings (e.g. Gen. 6:2 the sons of Elohim saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them for wives..., Ex. 4:16 and you [Moses] will be as Elohim to him [Aaron], Ex. 22:28 Thou shalt not curse Elohim, or curse a ruler of your people, where the parallelism suggests that Elohim may refer to human rulers).
Genesis Chapter 1:26, states 'And God said, let us make man in our own image, after our likeness'. This quote still uses the plural 'us' rather than the singular 'I', suggesting that God was not a single entity, as many of us have been brought up and conditioned to believe.
The Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh is filled with mentions of fiery chariots and people being taken up to the garden of God. The Epic also contains a whole host of parallels to our very own old Testament. For instance, it mentions a great flood, and relates a story very close to that of Moses being cast downstream as a child. The Sumerians also had an Eden, known as Dilmun, which is described in the Epic of Enki and Ninhursag - the creation stories of both texts bear a striking resemblance.
Dilumn the Alien
In 1989, years just before I met Zecharia Sitchen, I did not knew about his theories about an alien race called the Anunnaki, and an ancient civilization called Sumer As a psychic medium, I talked with a Reptilian alien who called himself Dilmun. I also did not realize at the time that Dilmun is associated with ancient sites on the islands of Bahrain in the Persian Gulf. Reptilians, snakes, dragons, are all metaphors for human DNA - as a biogenetic experiment.
Nibiruan Gods on Earth
Dilmun told me about a civilization that was destroyed - its inhabitants leaving on a planetoid named Nibiru and coming to Earth. [Tales of destruction of an alien planet, whose inhabitants came to Earth and seed a race, are common in the grid program of our reality. They are just myths and metaphors.] Dilmun said he was six hundred years old as we measure time. [6=flower of life metaphor] His people were warriors, conquering planets for gold and riches. [gold - alchemy of time and consciousness] He did say he would return one day, as all myths speculate. It was years later that I would discover that I was connecting with the grid system - matrix - akashic records - hall of records through which we virtually experience in linear time.




Zecharia Sitchen
The Sumerian cuneiform deciphering skills of Zecharia Sitchen, a linguist in command of many ancient languages, has set the scientific world on its ear with his astounding interpretations of ancient writings. In 1976, Sitchin's first book, The Twelfth Planet - Planet 'X' - began an odyssey that has literally transformed the field of ancient history. Sitchen says this planetoid named Nibiru. This planet, unlike the other planets in our solar system, has an elliptical orbit and moves clockwise rather than counterclockwise. Nibiru's orbit passes through our solar system only once every 3,600 years, which is equal to one Nibiruan year.
Nibiru is called the 12th planet or Planet 'X'. [Metaphors ::12 Around 1 and 'X' as 10 = 1= new beginnings. 10 = 1010 binary code - as our reality is a computer program.]
Sitchen's controversial theory is based on his interpretation of ancient Sumerian texts, with its origin in the Bible, in the book of Genesis. Sitchin has spent decades as an archeologist and historian in the Middle East, researching ancient writings from the Sumerian civilization into a 5-part paperback series, The Earth Chronicles, documenting the Nibiruan interaction on Earth in ancient times. Nibiru is allegedly inhabited by the Anunnaki - Nefilim - Elohim - Giants of the Bible - Those Who From Heaven To Earth Came. They are allegedly a Reptilian Race.
The Dogon Tribe of Africa also have a fascinating creational myth that speaks of a race of reptoid aliens, Nommos, who came to Earth from Sirius, embuing the Dogon with ancient wisdom, that in the 20th century, would be proven as fact. The Dogons originated with ancient Egypt, [Middle East - area of the Cradle of Civilization] the source of their knowledge perhaps coming from ancient Egyptian priests. There is also a resemblance in alien description of the Nommo and Anunnaki.
Dogon Gods
According to Sitchen, the Nibiruans landed on Earth, colonized it, mining the Earth for gold and other minerals, establishing a spaceport in what today is the Iraq-Iran area - the Cradle of Civilization - and lived in a kind of idealistic society as a small colony. They genetically interfered in our indigenous DNA to create a slave-race to work their mines, farms, and other enterprises in Sumer. They created HuMans, Homo Sapiens, through genetic manipulation with themselves and ape man Homo Erectus.
The Great Flood allegedly was an attempt to destroy the slave races of humanity by the Nibirians because they had rebelled against their Nibiruian Gods - Enlil and Enki - who were in a heated dispute over whether to destroy or preserve the slave races.
Every 3,600 years Nibiruan will return for more gold. This myth is based on the same Sacred -Creational Geometry Grids that is found in all other myths. The patterns - 6, 12, 24, and 36 are here once again.
From Zecharia Sitchen's Earth Chronicles
Events Before the Deluge
Years Ago:
450,000 on Nibiru, a distant member of our solar system, life faces slow extinction as the planet's atmosphere erodes. Deposed by Anu, the ruler Alalu escapes in a spaceship and finds refuge on Earth. He discovers that Earth has gold that can be used to protect Nibiru's atmosphere.
445,000 Led by Enki, a son of Anu, the Anunnaki land on Earth, establish Eridu -Earth Station I - for extracting gold from the waters of the Persian Gulf.
430,000 Earth's climate mellows. More Anunnaki arrive on Earth, among them Enki's half-sister Ninhursag, Chief Medical Officer.
416,000 As gold production falters, Anu arrives on Earth with Enlil, the heir apparent. It is decided to obtain the vital gold by mining it in southern Africa. Drawing lots, Enlil wins command of Earth Mission; Enki is relegated to Africa. On departing Earth, Anu is challenged by Alalu's grandson.
400,000 Seven functional settlements in southern Mesopotamia include a Spaceport (Sippar), Mission Control Center (Nippur), a metallurgical center (Shuruppak). The ores arrive by ships from Africa; the refined metal is sent aloft to orbiters manned by Igigi, then transferred to spaceships arriving periodically from Nibiru.
380,000 Gaining the support of the Igigi, Alalu's grandson attempts to seize mastery over Earth. The Enlilites win the War of the Olden Gods.
300,000 The Anunnaki toiling in the gold mines mutiny. Enki and Ninhursag create Primitive Workers through genetic manipulation of Ape woman; they take over the manual chores of the Anunnaki. Enlil raids the mines, brings the Primitive Workers to the Edin in Mesopotamia. Given the ability to procreate, Homo Sapiens begin to multiply.
200,000 Life on Earth regresses during a new glacial period.
100,000 Climate warms again. The Anunnaki (the biblical Nefilim), to Enlil's growing annoyance marry the daughters of Man.
75,000 The "accursation of Earth" - a new Ice Age-begins. Regressive types of Man roam the Earth . Cro-Magnon man survives.
49,000 Enki and Ninhursag elevate humans of Anunnaki parentage to rule in Shuruppak. Enlil, enraged. plots Mankind's demise.
13,000 Realizing that the passage of Nibiru in Earth's proximity will trigger an immense tidal wave, Enlil makes the Anunnaki swear to keep the impending calamity a secret from Mankind.
Events After the Deluge
B.C.
11,000 Enki breaks the oath, instructs Ziusudra/Noah to build a submersible ship. The Deluge sweeps over the Earth; the Anunnaki witness the total destruction from their orbiting spacecraft.
Enlil agrees to grant the remnants of Mankind implements and seeds; agriculture begins in the highlands. Enki domesticates animals.
10,500 The descendants of Noah are allotted three regions. Ninurta, Enlil's foremost son, dams the mountains and drains the rivers to make Mesopotamia habitable; Enki reclaims the Nile valley. The Sinai peninsula is retained by the Anunnaki for a post-Diluvial spaceport; a control center is established on Mount Moriah (the future Jerusalem).
9780 Ra/Marduk, Enki's firstborn son, divides dominion over Egypt between Osiris and Seth.
9330 Seth seizes and dismembers Osiris, assumes sole rule over the Nile Valley.
8970 Horus avenges his father Osiris by launching the First Pyramid War. Seth escapes to Asia, seizes the Sinai peninsula and Canaan.
8670 Opposed to the resulting control of all the space facilities by Enki's descendants, the Enlilites launch the Second Pyramid War. The victorious Ninurta empties the Great Pyramid of its equipment.
Ninhursag, half-sister of Enki and Enlil, convenes peace conference. The division of Earth is reaffirmed. Rule over Egypt transferred from the Ra/Marduk dynasty to that of Thoth. Heliopolis built as a substitute Beacon City.
8500 The Anunnaki establish outposts at the gateway to the space facilities; Jericho is one of them.
7400 As the era of peace continues, the Anunnaki grant Mankind new advances; the Neolithic period begins. Demi-gods rule over Egypt.
3800 Urban civilization begins in Sumer as the Anunnaki reestablish there the Olden Cities, beginning with Eridu and Nippur.
Anu comes to Earth for a pageantful visit. A new city, Uruk (Erech), is built in his honor; he makes its temple the abode of his beloved granddaughter Inanna/lshtar.
Kingship on Earth
3760 Mankind granted kingship. Kish is first capital under the aegis of Ninurta. A calendar came into use at Nippur. Civilization blossoms out in Sumer (the First Region).
3450 Primacy in Sumer transferred to Nannar/Sin. Marduk proclaims Babylon "Gateway of the Gods." The "Tower of Babel" incident. The Anunnaki confuse Mankind's languages.
His coup frustrated, Marduk/Ra returns to Egypt, deposes Thoth, seizes his younger brother Dumuzi who had betrothed Inanna. Dumuzi accidentally killed; Marduk imprisoned alive in the Great Pyramid. Freed through an emergency shaft, he goes into exile.
3100 - 350 years of chaos ends with installation of first Egyptian Pharaoh in Memphis. Civilization comes to the Second Region.
2900 Kingship in Sumer transferred to Erech. Inanna given dominion over the Third Region; the Indus Valley Civilization begins.
2650 Sumer's royal capital shifts about. Kingship deteriorates. Enlil loses patience with the unruly human multitudes.
2371 Inanna falls in love with Sharru-Kin (Sargon). He establishes new capital city. Agade (Akkad). Akkadian empire launched.
2316 Aiming to rule the four regions, Sargon removes sacred soil from Babylon. The Marduk-Inanna conflict flares up again. It ends when Nergal, Marduk's brother, journeys from south Africa to Babylon and persuades Marduk to leave Mesopotamia.
2291 Naram-Sin ascends the throne of Akkad. Directed by the warlike Inanna, he penetrates the Sinai peninsula, invades Egypt.
2255 Inanna usurps the power in Mesopotamia; Naram-Sin defies Nippur. The Great Anunnaki obliterate Agade. Inanna escapes. Sumer and Akkad occupied by foreign troops loyal to Enlil and Ninurta.
2220 Sumerian civilization rises to new heights under enlightened rulers of Lagash. Thoth helps its king Gudea build a ziggurat-temple for Ninurta.
2193 Terah, Abraham's father, born in Nippur into a priestly-royal family.
2180 Egypt divided; followers of Ra/Marduk retain the south; Pharaohs opposed to him gain the throne of lower Egypt.
2130 As Enlil and Ninurta are increasingly away, central authority also deteriorates in Mesopotamia. Inanna's attempts to regain the kingship for Erech does not last.
The Fateful Century
B.C. continued ...
2123 Abraham born in Nippur.
2113 Enlil entrusts the Lands of Shem to Nannar; Ur declared capital of new empire. Ur- Nammmu ascends throne, is named Protector of Nippur. A Nippurian priest-Terah, Abraham's father - comes to Ur to liaison with its royal court.
2096 Ur-Nammu dies in battle. The people consider his untimely death a betrayal by Anu and Enlil. Terah departs with his family for Harran.
2095 Shulgi ascends the throne of Ur, strengthens imperial ties. As empire thrives, Shulgi falls under charms of Inanna, becomes her lover. Grants Larsa to Elamites in exchange for serving as his Foreign Legion.
2080 Theban princes loyal to Ra/Marduk press northward under Mentuhotep I. Nabu, Marduk's son, gains adherents for his father in Western Asia.
2055 On Nannar's orders, Shulgi sends Elamite troops to suppress unrest in Canaanite cities. Elamites reach the gateway to the Sinai peninsula and its Spaceport.
2048 Shulgi dies. Marduk moves to the Land of the Hittites. Abraham ordered to southern Canaan with an elite corps of cavalrymen.
2047 Amar-Sin (the biblical Amraphel) becomes king of Ur. Abraham goes to Egypt, stays five years, then returns with more troops.
2041 Guided by Inanna, Amar-Sin forms a coalition of Kings of the East, launches military expedition to Canaan and the Sinai. Its leader is the Elamite Khedor-la'omer. Abraham blocks the advance at the gateway to the Spaceport.
2038 Shu-Sin replaces Amar-Sin on throne of Ur as the empire disintegrates.
2029 Ibbi-Sin replaces Shu-Sin. The western provinces increasingly to Marduk.
2024 Leading his followers, Marduk marches on Sumer, enthrones himself in Babylon. Fighting spreads to central Mesopotamia. Nippur's Holy of Holies is defiled. Enlil demands punishment for Marduk and Nabu; Enki opposes, but his son Nergal sides with Enlil.
As Nabu marshals his Canaanite followers to capture the Spaceport, the Great Anunnaki approve of the use of nuclear weapons. Nergal and Ninurta destroy the Spaceport and the errant Canaanite cities.
2023 The winds carry the radioactive cloud to Sumer. People die a terrible death, animals perish, the water is poisoned, the soil becomes barren. Sumer and its great civilization lie prostrate. Its legacy passes to Abraham's seed as he begets -at age 100- a legitimate heir: Isaac.

Baalbek
Recent evidence dates the site to 8000 B.C. The stones are perfect constructed for predicting and sighting a wide variety of astronomical alignments including the precession of the equinoxes. There are a total of 60 standing stones and lintels, the classic Anunnaki sexagesimal number which is also embedded in our standard of time (60 seconds X 60 minutes=3,600, the number of years in Nibiru's orbit).
This massive three million square foot stone platform contains huge stones, including 'The Trilithons' which each weigh 1200 tons, that's 2.4 million pounds. Much later, the Greeks and Romans built their temples on top of it. Legend has it that the Sun god Helios landed upon the platform with his fire chariot. The site is also described in the ancient flood stories of Gilgamesh. ['Flood' in this case, is a metaphor for creation from the sea - the collective unconscious - grid programs of our reality, etc.]
Enigmas -- Were they built by ancient astronauts on major points in the planetary grid?
The Great Pyramid - The Giza PlateauWho build the Great Pyramid?
Stonehenge
Easter Island Megaliths
Large carved stone heads weighing an average of 13.78 tons are arranged all over the island. There are no known written records to explain their purpose or origin. Some of the Moai carved in the quarry are as much as 165 tons. Some suggest that the workers who vandalized the Anunnaki Nazca lines fled to Easter Island and constructed the Maoi with the techniques they learned from the Anunnaki.
The Nazca Lines of Peru
The Nazca Lines are spread over the arid plain and stretch for many kilometers with almost no deviation in the straight line sections. The lines can best be seen from the air which, suggests they may have been designed by an airborn civilization.
Pyramids of Mexico
For centuries, Teotihuacan was the Mesoamerican region's cultural, religious, political, economic, and social center. The massive temples of the Sun, Moon, citadel, temples, palaces, plazas, and paved streets were said built by a Pre-Mayan civilization. Once again, another incredible site, the builders of which are unidentified before one considers the Anunnaki paradigm.
In conclusion, as souls of light, experiencing in many realms of reality, simultaneously, we are all ancient astronauts. Unidentified flying objects are reported in all corners of our planet, as they continue to intrigue with possibilities of our origins. Again, all is possible, and anything can happen through the alchemy of time and consciousness.
SUMERIAN GODS
CREATION - GODS WITH WATER BUCKETS
AMPHIBIOUS GODS
ANCIENT AIRCRAFT VIMANAS
EXTRATERRESTRIALS

Does Alien Life Exist? Are We Alone?

Alien Presence on the Moon?

Is there an "Alien Base" on the Moon? More and more people are coming forward with stories of an Alien presence on the Moon. Rumors say that there is an Alien Moon Base on the far side of the moon, the side we never see from Earth.
Did you ever wonder why the Moon landings stopped and why we have not tried to build a Moon Base? It does seem like a better and easier idea than a floating space station with no access to any raw materials or supplies? According to the NASA Astronaut Neil Armstrong the Aliens have a base on the Moon and told us in no uncertain terms to get off and stay off the Moon!
Sound far fetched? Milton Cooper a Naval Intelligence Officer tell us that not only does the Alien Moon Base exist but the U.S. Naval Intelligence Community refers to the Alien Moon Base as "Luna", that there is a huge mining operation going on there, and that is where the Aliens keep their huge mother ships while the trips to Earth are made in smaller "flying saucers".
LUNA: The Alien base on the far side of the Moon. It was seen and filmed by the Apollo Astronauts. A base, a mining operation using very large machines, and the very large alien craft described in sighting reports as mother ships exist there. - Milton Cooper


Did Apollo 11 Encounter UFOs on the Moon? from the Book "Above Top Secret" by Timothy Good
According to hitherto unconfirmed reports, both Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin saw UFOs shortly after that historic landing on the Moon in Apollo 11 on 21 July 1969. I remember hearing one of the astronauts refer to a "light" in or on a carter during the television transmission, followed by a request from mission control for further information. Nothing more was heard.
According to a former NASA employee Otto Binder, unnamed radio hams with their own VHF receiving facilities that bypassed NASA's broadcasting outlets picked up the following exchange:
NASA: What's there? Mission Control calling Apollo 11...
Apollo: These "Babies" are huge, Sir! Enormous! OH MY GOD! You wouldn't believe it! I'm telling you there are other spacecraft out there, Lined up on the far side of the crater edge! They're on the Moon watching us!
In 1979 Maurice Chatelain, former chief of NASA Communications Systems confirmed that Armstrong had indeed reported seeing two UFOs on the rim of a crater. "The encounter was common knowledge in NASA," he revealed, "but nobody has talked about it until now."
Soviet scientists were allegedly the first to confirm the incident. "According to our information, the encounter was reported immediately after the landing of the module," said Dr. Vladimir Azhazha, a physicist and Professor of Mathematics at Moscow University. "Neil Armstrong relayed the message to Mission Control that two large, mysterious objects were watching them after having landed near the moon module. But his message was never heard by the public - because NASA censored it. "According to another Soviet scientist, Dr. Aleksandr Kazantsev, Buss Aldrin took color movie film of the UFOs from inside the module, and continued filming them after he and Armstrong went outside. Dr. Azhazha claims that the UFOs departed minutes after the astronauts came out on to the lunar surface.
Maurice Chatelain also confirmed that Apollo 11's radio transmissions were interrupted on several occasions in order to hide the news from the public. Before dismissing Chatelain's sensational claims, it is worth noting his impressive background in the aerospace industry and space program. His first job after moving from France was as an electronics engineer with Convair, specializing in telecommunications, telemetry and radar. In 1959 he was in charge of an electromagnetic research group, developing new radar and telecommunications systems for Ryan. One of his eleven patents was an automaticãflights to the Moon. Later, at North American Aviation, Chatelain was offered the job of designing and building the Apollo communications and data-processing systems.
Chatelain claims that "all Apollo and Gemini flights were followed, both at a distance and sometimes also quite closely, by space vehicles of extraterrestrial origin - flying saucers, or UFOs, if you want to call them by that name. Every time it occurred, the astronauts informed Mission Control, who then ordered absolute silence." He goes on to say:
"I think that Walter Schirra aboard Mercury 8 was the first of the astronauts to use the code name 'Santa Claus' to indicate the presence of flying saucers next to space capsules. However, his announcements were barely noticed by the general public. It was a little different when James Lovell on board the Apollo 8 command module came out from behind the moon and said for everybody to hear: 'PLEASE BE INFORMED THAT THERE IS A SANTA CLAUS.' Even though this happened on Christmas Day 1968, many people sensed a hidden meaning in those words."



Rumors persist. NASA may well be a civilian agency, but many of its programs are funded by the defense budget and most of the astronauts are subject to military security regulations. Apart from the fact that the National Security Agency screens all films and probably radio communications as well. We have the statements by Otto Binder, Dr. Garry Henderson and Maurice Chatelain that the astronauts were under strict orders not to discuss their sightings. And Gordon Cooper has testified to a United Nations committee that one of the astronauts actually witnessed a UFO on the ground. If there is no secrecy, why has this sighting not been made public?
A certain professor, who wished to remain anonymous, was engaged in a discussion with Neil Armstrong during a NASA symposium.
Professor: What REALLY happened out there with Apollo 11?
Armstrong: It was incredible, of course we had always known there was a possibility, the fact is, we were warned off!(by the Aliens). There was never any question then of a space station or a moon city.
Professor: How do you mean "warned off"?
Armstrong: I can't go into details, except to say that their ships were far superior to ours both in size and technology - Boy, were they big!...and menacing! No, there is no question of a space station.
Professor: But NASA had other missions after Apollo 11?
Armstrong: Naturally - NASA was committed at that time, and couldn't risk panic on Earth. But it really was a quick scoop and back again.
Armstrong confirmed that the story was true but refused to go into further detail, beyond admitting that the CIA was behind the cover-up.
(thanks to BBS)
More information: Sensation: Cities Found on the Moon!
Reasonable activity of an alien civilization showed up unexpectedly close to us. We were not ready for it psychologically
We still can come across publications trying to find an answer to the question: Are we alone in the universe? At the same time, presence of reasonable creatures has been detected just close to our home, in the Moon. However, the discovery was immediately classified as secret, as it was so much incredible that even could shake the already existing social principles, reports Russia's newspaper Vecherny Volgograd.
Here is an extract from the official press-release: “NASA scientists and engineers participating in exploration of Mars and Moon reported results of their discoveries at a briefing at the Washington national press club on March 21, 1996. It was announced for the first time that man-caused structures and objects had been discovered on the Moon.” The scientists spoke rather cautiously and evasively about the functioning objects, with the exception of UFO. They always mentioned the man-caused objects as possible, and pointed out the information was still under study, and official results would be published later.
It was mentioned at the briefing as well that the Soviet Union used to own some photo materials proving presence of reasonable activity on the Moon. And although it wasn't identified what kind of reasonable activity it was, thousands of photo-and video materials photographed from the Apollos and the Clementine space station demonstrated many parts on the lunar surface where the activity and its traces were perfectly evident. The video films and photos made by US astronauts during the Apollo program were demonstrated at the briefing. And people were extremely surprised why the materials hadn't been presented to the public earlier. And NASA specialists answered: “It was difficult to forecast the reaction of people to the information that some creatures had been or still were on the Moon. Besides, there were some other reasons to it, which were beyond NASA.”
Specialist for lunar artifacts Richard Hoagland says that NASA is still trying to veil photo materials before they are published in public catalogues and files, they do retouching or partially refocus them while copying. Some investigators, Hoagland is among them, suppose that an extraterrestrial race had used the Moon as a terminal station during their activity on the Earth. The suggestions are confirmed by the legends and myths invented by different nations of our planet.
Ruins of lunar cities stretched along many kilometers, huge transparent domes on massive basements, numerous tunnels and other constructions make scientists reconsider their opinions concerning the lunar problems. How the Moon appeared and principles of its revolving around the Earth still pose a great problem for scientists.
Some partially destroyed objects on the lunar surface can’t be placed among natural geological formations, as they are of complex organization and geometrical structure. In the upper part of Rima hadley, not far from the place where the Apollo-15 had landed, a construction surrounded with a tall D-shaped wall was discovered. As of now, different artifacts have been discovered in 44 regions. The NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, the Houston Planetary Institute and specialists from the bank of space information are investigating the regions. Mysterious terrace-shaped excavations of the rock have been discovered near the Tiho crater. The concentric hexahedral excavations and the tunnel entry at the terrace side cant be results of natural geological processes; instead, they look very much like open cast mines. A transparent dome raised above the crater edge was discovered near the crater Copernicus. The dome is unusual as it is glowing white and blue from inside. A rather unusual object, which is unusual indeed even for the Moon, was discovered in the upper part of the Factory area. A disk of about 50 meters in diameter stands on a square basement surrounded with rhombi walls. In the picture, close to the rhombi, we can also see a dark round embrasure in the ground, which resembles an entry in an underground caponier. There is a regular rectangular area between Factory and the crater Copernicus which is 300 meters wide 400 meters long.
Apollo-10 astronauts made a unique picture (AS10-32-4822) of a one-mile long object called Castle, which is hanging at the height of 14 kilometers and casts a distinct shadow on the lunar surface. The object seems to be consisting of several cylindrical units and a large conjunctive unit. Internal porous structure of the Castle is clearly seen in one of the pictures, which makes an impression that some parts of the object are transparent.
As it turned out at the briefing where many NASA scientists were present, when Richard Hoagland had requested originals of the Castle pictures for the second time, no pictures were found there at all. They disappeared even from the list of pictures made by the Apollo-10 crew. Only intermediate pictures of the object were found in the archives, which unfortunately donut depict the internal structure of the object.
When Apollo-12 crew landed on the lunar surface, they saw that the landing was observed by a half-transparent pyramidal object. It was hanging just several meters above the lunar surface and shimmered with all rainbow colors against the black sky.
In 1969, when the film about astronauts traveling to the Sea of Storms was demonstrated (the astronauts saw the strange objects once again, which were later called “striped glasses”), NASA finally understood what consequences such kind of control could bring. Astronaut Mitchell answered the question about his feelings after a successful return the following: “My neck still aches as I had to constantly turn my head around because we felt we were not alone there. We had no choice but pray.” Johnston, who worked at the Houston Space Center and studied photos and video materials done during the Apollo program, discussed the artifacts with Richard Hoagland and said, the NASA leadership was awfully annoyed with the great number of anomalous, to put it mildly, objects on the Moon. It was even said that piloted flights to the Moon could be banned in the programs network.
Investigators are especially interested in ancient structures resembling partially destroyed cities. The orbital shooting reveals an astonishingly regular geometry of square and rectangular constructions. They resemble our terrestrial cities seen from the height of 5-8 kilometers. A mission control specialist commented on the pictures: “Our guys observed ruins of the Lunar cities, transparent pyramids, domes and God knows what else, which are currently hidden deep inside the NASA safes, and felt like Robinson Crusoe when he suddenly came across prints of human bare feet on the sand of the desert island.” What do geologists and scientists say after studying the pictures of lunar cities and other anomalous objects? They say, such objects cant be natural formations. “We should admit they are artificial, especially the domes and pyramids.” Reasonable activity of an alien civilization showed up unexpectedly close to us. We were not ready for it psychologically, and some people hardly believe they are true even now.
Translated by Maria Gousseva
original source=http://english.pravda.ru/main/2002/10/05/37771.html
Thank to Billie Brinkley for send this along. You're a JEWEL!
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UPDATED INFO: New crater revives Moon mystery
13:30 11 January 03
Special Report from New Scientist Print Edition
A mysterious flash on the Moon caught on camera 50 years ago is still provoking disagreements about its origin. Astronomer Bonnie Buratti says her new results show that the flash was caused by a 20-metre asteroid hitting the Moon.
If Buratti is right, such impacts may be more frequent than thought - about once every 30 years on the Earth, and every 500 years on the Moon. But other asteroid watchers think the flash was due to a small meteor burning up in Earth's atmosphere.
Amateur astronomer Leon Stuart's 1953 photograph of the Moon shows a light spot near the centre of the Moon's visible surface. It would take a half-megaton explosion to produce such a flash, says Buratti, of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory at Pasadena.
The resulting crater would not be visible from Earth, but it should appear on close-ups taken by lunar probes. In a future issue of the journal Icarus, Buratti reports a fresh impact scar at the site of the 1953 flash on images collected by the Clementine spacecraft as it orbited the Moon in 1994. A bright blanket of ejected material covers an area that is about 1.5 kilometres across, and the colour of the debris indicates that the crater is relatively new.
Point meteors
But the odds against such a big lunar impact are too long for Peter Brown of the University of Western Ontario, who has used US military satellite data to estimate meteor impact rates on the Earth.
"I think they are going too far," he told New Scientist. Instead, he believes that the flash was a meteor falling to Earth, which appeared as a bright spot because it was moving directly towards the observer.
Although such "point meteors" are rare, they are much more common than lunar impacts. He is not impressed by the crater's appearance. "We have no absolute criteria" for the age of lunar craters, he says. "'Fresh' could be 20 million years old."
Buratti calls Brown's claim "preposterous". She says Stuart was an experienced observer, his half-second exposure shows no trace of motion, and the flash was near a point on the leading edge of the Moon where impacts are most likely. "Our identification of the crater validates Stuart's claim that it was an impact."
Jeff Hecht

Black Moors

Early in the eighth century Moorish soldiers crossed over from Africa to the Iberian peninsula. The man chosen to lead them was General Tarik ibn Ziyad. In 711, the bold Tarik, in command of an army of 10,000 men, crossed the straits and disembarked near a rock promontory which from that day since has borne his name--Djabal Tarik (`Tarik's Mountain'), or Gibraltar. In August 711, Tarik won paramount victory over the opposing European army. On the eve of the battle, Tarik is alleged to have roused his troops with the following words:
"My brethren, the enemy is before you, the sea is behind; whither would ye fly? Follow your general; I am resolved either to lose my life or to trample on the prostrate king of the Romans."
Wasting no time to relish his victory, Tarik pushed on with his dashing and seemingly tireless Moorish cavalry to the Spanish city of Toledo. Within a month's time, General Tarik ibn Ziyad had effectively terminated European dominance of the Iberian peninsula. Musa ibn Nusayr, Arab governor of North Africa, joined Tarik in Spain and helped complete the conquest of Iberia with an army of 18,000 men. The two commanders met in Talavera, where the Moors were given the task of subduing the northwest of Spain. With vigor and speed they set about their mission, and within three months they had swept the entire territory north of the Ebro River as far as the Pyrenees Mountains and annexed the turbulent Basque country.
In the aftermath of these brilliant struggles, thousands of Moors flooded into the Iberian peninsula. So eager were they to come that some are said to have floated over on tree-trunks. Tarik himself, at the conclusion of his illustrious military career, retired to the distant East, we are informed, to spread the teachings of Islam.



A good knowledge of history will also help in identifying who has what genes and so on. But here is the trick and Cheikh Antah Diop, made it very clear in one of his books. All populations outside of Africa have African genes from a small group of Africans who left the continent about 150,000 years ago.
Now let's look at Africa, as Diop clearly explained, you can find a Swede and a Nigerian with the same identical genetic makeup because, that Swede's prehistoric ancestors would have come from the same prehistoric ancestors as the Nigerian.
However in Africa, where there are about 900 million people (counted and uncounted), the genetic variation in some nations such as Nigeria is greater than the whole world combined. Then you take one group like the people of Namibia and another like the people of parts of Kenya and there are variations. Take the genes of people from Kenya and match it with people from Fiji and Papua New Guinea and don't be surprised if there are identical marks. Why? That would be possible because thousands of years ago, groups from the Somalia to Mozambique area of East Africa ventured as far as Hawaii. That was before the Polynesians. They settled all over the South Pacific as was made clear by the Fijian Representative to Los Angeles, I. Raikodraka some years ago in the newspaper, Shekere (of the African Marketplace and Cultural Faire)
Now the above is merely the ancient connection. Now let's look at the more recent connections. We know that there are basically two types of Europeans, even though they all have pale to light brown skins, certain characteristics show African as well as Mongolod blood. In Southern Europe, you find many brown-eyed, dark-haired, olive-skinned people. Well we know that as early as 50,000 B.C., groups of Africans called "Grimaldi Negroids" lived in Europe and brought the Arignacian Culture there. In fact, many of the paintings found in caves in Europe are identical to Bushmen paintings found all over Africa. In places from Central Germany to Southern France, you had a belt of Blacks in prehistoric times.
During the period of the Egyptians and Canaanites (aka Phonecians) the Canaanites founded colonies all over Europe. They built the city of Kart Hardast (Carthage) in North Africa, but also Cadiz in Spain, long before he Germanic tribes or the Romans entered the region. The Egyptians were also in Central Europe and England, where they looked for tin to make bronze weapons. The Egyptians and Nubians were all over the European region, long before the southern sweep of the "Aryan Speakers" (the people who spread the ancestral languages of Latin, Germanic, Slavic, Doric Greek, Celtic and so on. Who lived in these areas before the European whites migrated from the Caspian Sea and Central Asia region. Well, historians point to the Black Madonna cult and Black Goddess worship that was followed by Blacks who lived in Central to Southern Europe.
The very first mass migrations of fair skinned people in large groups to enter Western Europe were the Kurgans. They came from the Tamrin Basin Region west of China and included a mixture of Caucasians and Mongoloids. The women as well as men were warriors who rode on horseback. When they arrived in Central to Southern an Western Europe, they met the few groups of Caucasians and large groups of Blacks in the region. The mixture produced what is called the "Mediterranean Type." In fact, into the Minoan Civilization, one sees these two groups.

EUROPE DURING THE MIDDLE AGES
The Black Moors and "colored" Moors who existed in an area from Nigeria to Morocco invaded Spain under Gabel Tarik in 7-11 A.D. (watch that number "11"). They brought in African culture and civilization from these Africans who had only recently converted to Islam based on trade with the Saraseans (Arabs), AND NOT BASED ON ARAB CONQUEST OF ANY LANDS IN WEST AFRICA.
The Black Moors laid the foundation for science, culture and civilization in Iberia and the rest of Europe. In fact, they started the first renaissance before the European Renaissance of the 1600's. During the period of about 1000 A.D., GROUPS OF ARABS FROM SYRIA INVADED IBERIA AND FOUGHT WITH THE BLACKS. So you had Black Muslims and Semitic Arab Muslims fighting against each other for control of Spain. During the same period, lots of Semitic Sephardic Jews also entered Spain, while Ashkenazi Jews from Turkey associated with the Khazaks migrated into Northern Europe.
So, the Europeans are probably more mixed racially than Blacks are, especially Blacks of West African origins or Central/Southern African origins. J.A. Rogers is a facinating historian and researcher who presented some very good pictures and referencs on the mixture of whites in Europe, especially Southern Europe, England, Germany and Russia. His book, "Sex and Race, Volume 1, 2, 3 are good books on that issue.
Finally, if you take any name such as Moore of Salazar, or any name that sounds Moorish or Arabic from the Latin/Spanish nations or any European nation and look at the origin of the name, you may find a black Moore's head on the family crest, representing the Black Moor who founded that family.
As for the Germans and Russians, they are highly mixed with both African and Mongoloid and the name "Schwartzenegger" and many names with "negger" as the other part of the word gives a hint since both "schartz" and "negger" both mean Black and refer to people, rather than rocks, things of peat bog as some people like to assume.

Bilal: Black History in Islam

Bilal Ibn Rabah, the first Muazzin of Islam, was one of the most trusted and loyal companion of Holy Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.).He was a true model of the morals and customs of Islam. He cherished unbounded love for the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) and was deeply devoted to Islam. He was a staunch foe of the infidels and idolaters but this involved no personal feelings. He held the infidels in deep contempt because they were the enemies of Islam and the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.). He is, generally, known as "BILAL HABASHI", but actually his features were not identical with those of the. Habashi or Zangi, His complexion was black but his hair was not curly, it was thick. Actually, his complexion was dark-brown. His body was tall and slim and his chest prominent. His cheeks were thin but his nose was not snub. Thus, as the historians opine, he was not a pure Abyssinian. His father was an Arab hut his mother was an Abyssinian. His fathers name was Rabah and his mother was called Hamama, It is likely that Hamama was a slave girl from Mecca or Sarat, Sarat is a town between Yemen and Abyssinia, Some of the historians claim that he was born at Mecca, but the majority of the historians opine that Bilal was born in Sarat, And the latter view seem to be acceptable for there could be a mixed race in Sarat. There is also a difference of opinion about his date of birth. According to some of the historians he was born 53 years before Hijra but according la some others, he was born about 43 year before Hijra, and this latter view seems to be preferable. Bilal (R.A.A.) was brought up at Mecca, in a well known Quraishi tribe called Abu Jamah. During the Days of Ignorance, the members of this tribe were thought as experts in palmistry-reading the lines of hands. They also drew out lots with the help of arrows. This tribe had a constant dispute with Banu Abd Manaf because, when there was a conflict between Banu Abd Manaf and Banu Abd Dar, it had sided with the latter, The other Muazzins of the Prophet (S.A.W.) – Abu Mahzura and Amr bin Umm Kulsum -were also brought up in the tribe Abu Jamah. It is difficult to state whether it was a mere chance or it was due to melody and harmony of voice. It is not known with authenticity as to who amongst the tribe of Banu Jamah was the master of Bilal and his father. Some have written that he was the slave of a noble woman of that tribe, while others claim that a widow related to Abu Jahl was his mistress. Again, some others have writer that he was the slave of Umaiya bin Khalaf. Bilal (R.A.A.) had a natural hatred against the customs and practices prevailing in the Days of Ignorance, The people in those days were devoid of good morals, kindness and of other human values, deceit had become their second nature. Allah had endowed Bilal with righteous nature and he remained true to it in his whole life. It is, therefore, held that he readily responded to the call of Allahs Messenger (S.A.A.) when he came out with the Message of Oneness or Unity of Allah. It is an established fact that Bilal (R.A.A.) had not embraced Islam with any worldly motive or securing relief from the torments of slave life On the contrary by accepting Islam, he had invited upon himself torment of double even treble intensity. He had only one purpose in view and that was to win the favor of Allah. Allah had illuminated his heart with the light of faith. Hence he endured all kinds of atrocities with remarkable patience and fortitude. It was in accord with his nature to accept the Truth unreservedly. As soon as he heard the clarion call for the acceptance of faith in One Allah and the equality of all human beings issued by the noblest personality of the most respectable family, Banu Hashim, he at once made an affirmative response. His heart was as clean as Mirror, it was filled with the sentiments of affection, sincerity, obedience and devotion. The thought crossed his mind like a flash of lightning that the person who wanted to liquidate class differences in order to put the master and slave equal, was a man who belongs to the noblest class in Mecca. Yet he was a staunch champion of the equality of all human being, could not be but the Truthful Messenger and the Prophet of the Creator. He must have thought that it was impossible for a person, who enjoyed exceeding popularity in the whole of Mecca and commanded deep respect from the rank and file of Mecca, to risk to the loss of his popularity and reputation unless this person was the Messenger of the Lord who makes no discrimination between the high and the low, the rich and The poor, The Arab and the non-Arab. Those who accepted Islam in the beginning were, except few, generally weak and helpless. They had no supporters or sympathisers. So the infidels inflicted endless in human tortures on them. Tying ropes to the legs of the Muslims, they dried them on the stony ground of the desert. They stripped the poor Muslims need and throwing them on the burning sand and often on red embers, placed heavy stones on their bodies. They forced them to stand in the blazing sun. Bilal too was tortured like that, They wanted him to make statement which suited the infidels purpose But he displayed unflinching self-control, patience and perseverance. They employed all sorts of cruelties to divert Bilal from the True Faith but could not succeed. There was no form of threat which was not held nut to him, and there was no form of torture which the infidels did not execute on him, but Bilal (R.A.A.) on the face of all this, held firm to his faith. In reply to all of their coercion and tortures he said, "There is none to be worshipped but Allah." Bilals master Umaiya Bin Khalaf was his greatest tormentor. In spite of all these tortures Bilal would utter, Ahad, Ahad (Allah is One, Allah is One), When the tormentors demanded of him to respect what they said, Bilal would reply, "No, my tongue is not supposed to utter what you say." According to historical records, Bilals master often tied him and threw him down and flung a stone and cow hide over him and said, "Your gods are Lat and Uzza so testify your faith in them." But he continued to say "Ahad, Ahad." The infidels tied a rope round his neck and allowed the street urchins to drag him to and from between the two hills of Mecca. Even, under this severe torment, Bilals tongue repeated only one word "Ahad, Ahad." Thereupon, the infidels gave him a severe heating and stretched him on the burning Sand.A heavy stone was placed over his body, still he uttered nothing save the word "Ahad, Ahad." One day Abu Bakr Siddiq saw the heart touching plight of Bilal(R.A A.) and he came to his rescue. "How long will you oppress this poor fellow?" said Abu Bakr to Bilals master and bought him paying men Uqia (about 23 grams of Gold) to his master. Siddiq then declared Bilal (R.A.A.) a free man. By enduring all sorts of atrocities and humiliations in the path of love for Allah and His Prophet, Bilal (R.A.A.) set an example and a beacon light till the end of this world, for the seekers after Truth and Righteousness. He knew well the consequences of renouncing idol-worship and offering devotion to One God Allah, yet so deep was the imprint of the righteous life and the unparalleled good morals of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) upon his heart that no degree of savage oppression and violence could blot it out. Some historian state that when the price for Bilal was being paid, Bilals master increased the price from 7 Uqias to 9 Uqias and Abu Bakr said to him, "Even if you raise the price to 1000 Uqias, I will definitely buy him." It is stated that Siddiq bought Bilal at the advice of Allahs Messenger (S.A.W.) and the Prophet (S.A.W.) also offered him half of the price in order to mitigate the burden of Siddiq. But Siddiq begged pardon from the Prophet (S.A.W.) for not accepting this offer and he himself emancipated Bilal. He then appointed Bilal(R.A.A .) as his own store-keeper. Later on Bilal was made to serve to the Messenger of Allah (S.A.W.). When the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) granted permission to his companions to migrate, Bilal, along with the other companions of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.), migrated to Medina. In Medina Bilal lived in the same house with Abu Bakr Siddiq and Aamir bin-Fahria. In Medina when the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) established the bond of brotherhood between the Muhajireen (Migrants) and Ansar (Helpers), Bilal and Abu Rouwaiha (R.A.A.) were brothers unto each other. This clarifies that Abu Rouwaiha (R.A.A.) was not the blood brother of Bilal (R.A.A.) As in Mecca, so in Medina, Bilal could not endure separation from the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.).He always accompanied the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) in all the Holy wars that look place during the Holy Prophet lifetime. He also remained with the Prophet (S.A.W.) in the course of all journeys he undertook. It was for this reason that he was appointed the first Muslim of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.). Bilal (R.A.A.) continued to the post of Muazzin of the Prophets Masjid till the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) left this world for his heavenly abode He was preferred over all the Mauzzins during the Prophets lifetime, the cause of this preference being his precedence in embracing Islam, his rich and melodious voice and his excellent utterance. When he recited the call of prayer and wished to inform the Prophet (S.A.W.) that the time for leading prayer had come, he would stand by the door of the Prophets room and would shout "Hasten to the prayer, Hasten to well-being. O Messenger of Allah, prayer." Hearing his these words the Prophet would come for leading the prayers. Bilal (R.A.A.) would say Iqama before the prayers commenced. While going to Salat-el-Eid or Salat-Istisqa (prayer for rain), Bilal used to walk ahead of the Prophet(S.A.W.) holding a spear and would pitch it on the ground one or two yards away from the place where the Prophet (S.A.W.) wished to lead the congregation of the prayer. The spear was one of those three, sent by the King of Abyssinia in homage to the Prophet(S.A.W.), The Prophet (S.A.W.), gifted one of the three spears to Umar (R.A.A.) and kept the third one with himself, Thus Bilal had the honor of keeping the Prophets spear throughout his lifetime. Traditions relate that Bilals marriage had been arranged by the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) himself, It is stated that the sons of Abul Bukair one day came to the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) and said, "0 Messenger of Allah, find a match for our sister. "The Holy Prophet observe, "Why do you not marry her to Bilal Hearing this they went back, but after a few days they came again and repeated the same request, and the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) gave the same reply. Thus after a few days they came third time with the same request. This time also the Prophet (S.A.W.) giving the same reply added, "Bilal is an inmate of Paradise; you should marry your sister to him." So, having heard the Prophets advice, they married their sister to Bilal. Bilal (R.A.A.) took more wives after this marriage. According to Qatadah he had married a lady of the tribe of Banu Zuhra. It is also recorded that one of his wives was Hin-ul-Khulania who belonged to Yemen. Bilal has no issue from any of his. Once Bilal related to his wife a Tradition of the Holy Prophet(S.A.W.) but his wife expressed some doubts about the authenticity of his report. Bilal in a mood of anger went to the Prophet (S.A.W.) and recounted his dispute with his wife, The Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) went with him to his house and observed to his wife, "You should take Bilals words for any Tradition of mine, and do not give him cause for anger." Bilal(R.A.A.) had given up announcing Azan after the demise of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.). He cherished such deep love for the Prophet (S.A W.) that he could not bear the thought of announcing the call after his demise. In fact he used to announce especially for his Master, the Prophet (S.A.W.), in response to which the Prophet (S.A.W.) would arrive for prayer. During his stay in Medina and Syria, after the demise of the HoIy Prophet (S.A.W.), people made entreaties to him on several occasions to call the Azan, but he always declined, except once when Umar (R.A.A.) had visited Damascus and had requested Bilal to call the Azan. He complied with the request of the Caliph, and this was his last Call that, he delivered in his lifetime. As soon as the news got around that Bilal would deliver the Azan for the Dawn prayer, a great excitement was observed among the people . Everyone rushed towards the mosque with great fondness and in frenzied state of mind As soon as Bilals voice resounded in the air, it produced a great excitement among the people . They recalled to their imagination the times when the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) was alive and Bilal used to recite the Azan . It is recorded in history that the whole congregation in the mosque burst into tears Umar (R.A.A.) and the bravest of the warriors Islam, who were present there, could not check themselves so all wept. Some scholars are of the opinion that the present rhythmical form of recital of the Azan in the Muslim world, is the same as was originated by Bilal. One thing, however ,must be clarified in this connection. The Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) had not appointed Bilal as the Muazzin for his masterly rhythm or melody of the rules but it was his exceeding piety, devotion to worship and regular attendance in the mosque that the choice of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) fell an him for the performance of this important duty. It is reported in the Traditions that the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) paid close attention to the education and training of Bilal (R.A.A.). Once the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) said, "O Bilal, The best deed that a believer can perform is to struggle for the cause of Allah. The Prophet (S.A.W.)also taught him concerning humility " 0 Bilal always live in humility and with contentment and die with those who feel contented." The Prophet (S.A.W.),off and on gave him instructions concerning distribution of the surplus wealth with him i.e. the Prophet (S.A.W.) He would say, "Bilal, a quantity of wealth has accumulated with me I do not wish to keep it, so take it and give it away to the needy so that my heart may he alleviated from its burden " Actually the Messenger of Allah (S.A.W.) intended to teach Bilal by example how a man should cultivate the virtue of contentment in life and abstain from wealth. Bilal observed with great attention all the instructions and precedent of the Holy Prophet and proved to he a true follower and a devotee of the Prophet (S.A.W.) till the end of his life. He was in constant attendance on the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) day and night, because he derived delight from the sight, love and kindness. He performed the duties of an attendant upon the Holy Prophet in all circumstances, during journeys and stay in camp, in war and peace, but was never treated like a servant by the Prophet (S.A.W.), Bilal expressed deep devotion for his master and leader, He could not bear even the slightest discomfort of the Prophet (S.A.W.) and was alive ready to respond to his masters call. Throughout the battles he kept running between the Prophets camp and the battlefield, bearing communications , orders and instructions from the Prophet (S.A.W.).to the troops when the Prophet (S.A.W.) made a victorious entry into the city of Mecca and the Prophet(S.A.W.) entered Holy Kaba, there were three men. accompanying him and one of them was Bilal (R.A.A.), the other two were Usman-bin-Talha , the key-bearer of Kaba and Usman bin Zaid (R.A.A.). Bilal performed the duty of reciting the call to prayer. He recited the Azan for a few days only after the demise of the Prophet (S.A.W.) and then requested Abu Bakr Siddiq(R.A.A.) the Caliph to release him of the duty of calling Azan, and grant him leave to go to Syria with the Mujahideen (soldiers). It is stated that when in the absence of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) he pronounced the name of the Prophet while calling the Azan ,he could not bear the absence of his master and burst into uncontrollable tears . His audience too, stricken with grief, broke down. He felt oppressed in Medina without the Prophet, so in spite of being sixty years of age, he resolved to forsake his peaceful life in Medina and devote rest of his days to holy war in far-away lands. He then participated in a number of battles. He then went to his small piece of land in the suburbs of Damascus, which he cultivated and lived on its produce. It is not known how long Bilal(R.A.A.) remained in the company of Abu Bakr(R.A.A). After the reign of the first Caliph, Bilal was assigned some state duties, It is recorded in history that when the second Caliph Umar Bin Khattab (R.A.A.) called upon Khalid-ibn El Waleed - the Sword of Allah- to explain in connection with some of his alleged irregularities and errors, it was Bilal who took off Khalids turban from his head and tied his hands with if in open assembly and did not untie him until Khalid (R.A.A.) had furnished a satisfactory explanation of all the charges made against him. After this he offered his sincere apology to Khalid(R.A.A.). There is another episode that reveals the high esteem in which Bilal was held by Umar. It is stated that one day Abu shufyan-bin-Harb, Suhail- bin-Amr and some other prominent Arab Chiefs came to the Caliph for an interview. By chance Bilal and Sahib (an ex-slave) also arrived to meet the Caliph, When Umar learnt of their arrival he called in Bilal and Sohaib at once and the Arab Chiefs, who had come earlier, stood waiting outside. Abu Sufyan could not restrain himself turning to his companions he remarked, "It was our fate to endure this disgrace. The slaves are admitted to audience while we the nobles of Arabia stay at the door," Hearing this remark Suhail Bin Amr retorted, "But who is to be blamed for this? The Messenger of Allah invited us all with one voice but we refuted his call and offered severe resistance to him On the other hand these slaves came forward "and made a positive response, It is their right now to get preference over us in this world and the next. We have no cause for complaint," During the Caliphate of Umar (R.A.A.), when the registers of salaries and allowances were being prepared, the Caliph dispatched a letter to Bilal – who was with the army in Syria - asking him to intimate with whom his name should be entered. "Enter my name with Abu Rouwaiha whom I shall never abandon on account of the fraternal bond established by the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) between him and me," replied Bilal (R.A.A.). Except the episodes mentioned above, history furnishes no further record of his life after the demise of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.), It is recorded that he had joined the Muslim Army in the Holy War in Syria. But he had completely dissociated himself from the public life in the closing phase of his life, As we have stated above, he acquired a piece of land in the outskirts of Damascus and passed his days in peace and isolation, After this nothing was heard about him but he was seen in public when he called Azan for the Caliph Umar (R.A.A.) on the request of the eminent companions of the Prophet (S.A.W.). It was the year 20 of Hijra when Bilal (R.A.A.) expired in Damascus. He was seventy when he died. He died of epidemic like plague. It is stated that he was of the same age as was Abu Bakr Siddiq (R.A.A.). On his deathbed he was very glad at the prospect of meeting his master, the Prophet (S.A.W.) and his companions who had already gone to the next world. When his wife cried out by his bedside and began to weep bitterly, he comforted her saying: "Do not cry. Why do you weep! l am looking forward to see my master, the Prophet (S.A.W.) and other companions after such a long reparation. If Allah wills I shall meet them all tomorrow." And he really expired the day after, "Innalillah-e-Wa Inna Ilai-he-Raje-oon." He was buried in Damascus, near Bab-as-Sagheer. His tomb is even today the favorite resort of crowds of visitors, People, high and low, come to offer prayers (Fateha) at his grave. Among the people Bilals credibility was e high that they would rather disbelieve their own eyes Than cast doubts on Bilals report of any Tradition of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.), because he paid the greatest regard to truth in all matters concerning the action or precepts of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W,), as well as in the affairs of others. When Abu Rouwaiha (R.A.A.) his brother-in-Islam, wanted to contract marriage with a lady of a respectable tribe, he requested Bilal to intercede on his behalf. Bilal went with him and told in clear terms to the guardians of the bride, "I am Bilal-bin-Ribah and this is my brother Abu Rouwaiha, who wants to establish matrimonial relation with you. So, I must point out that he is a very hot-tempered a man. It is up to you to give your daughter in marriage to him or refuse." Hearing this clear-cut testimony of Bilal the parents of the ady accepted the proposal of Abu Rouwaiha (R.A.A.), for they could not disregard Bilals recommendation. Seeing the various aspects of Bilals life we come to the clear conclusion that the most prominent feature of his life was his complete honesty and integrity. It was on this account that the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) had entrusted to Bilal the management of the Baitul Mal (State Treasury). He was also in charge of the house hold of the Prophet (S.A.W.). He remained close at hand even at the time of the Prophets departure for heavenly home and was included among the selected few who performed the funeral rites of the Prophet (S.A.W.). It was Bilal who sprinkled water from a skin-bag over the sepulchre of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.), and thus, gained the rare privilege of administering the last funeral rites. Bilal, because of his sincerity, was an extremist by nature. He loved intensely and hated intensely. He loved intensely Allah and His Prophet (S.A.W.) and was deeply devoted to Islam, but he was, at the same time, a staunch foe of the infidels and polytheists, and he never tried to hide his feelings and contempt for them. Bilal (R.A.A.) left no legacy in the form of material wealth or offsprings, but he left a spiritual memorial which is unique in the world, that is Azan. The call to prayer has been recited continuously in the world, for the last fourteen hundred years of Islam, and as the people hear the call it recalls to mind the memory of the First Muazzin of Islam, Bilal bin Ribah (Radia Allahu Anhu).

Black Islam in America

BLACK ORIENTALISM:
ITS GENESIS, AIMS AND SIGNIFICANCE FOR AMERICAN ISLAM

A Christian Palestinian, Said devoted Orientalism to exposing the manner in which the prejudices and power of Europe, and later the United States, created both a geographical entity called "the Orient" and a scholarly tradition of speaking and writing about it. This was not the Orient of Japan or China; this was the "Near East" and "Middle East." While Jews, Christians and others contributed to the cultures and history of this region, Islam and Muslims were the primary if not exclusive targets of Orientalism.
As the incubator and projection of Western fears, desires, repressions and prejudices, occidental discourse about the Orient normalized a whole series of self-serving and condescending stereotypes about Arab and Muslim "Orientals." These, in turn, justified the propriety and inevitability of Western domination and privilege. This self-serving, power-driven psychological predisposition, deeply rooted and often consciously indulged, constituted what Said meant by Orientalism.
Said noted that Orientalism was not a purely political affair, something that only Western governments and armies used against Oriental despots and their cowering subjects. Western intellectuals and academicians played a major role in the enterprise. Even when British, French or American scholars approached the Orient with no conscious political aims, they could neither transcend nor disengage themselves from the social, historical and institutional forces that shaped their mental schemas. The Western scholar, wrote Said, "c[a]me up against the Orient as a European or American first, as an individual second."2 As an individual, s/he might look across the Atlantic or Mediterranean to the Orient; but as a Westerner, s/he could only look down from a self-described superior civilization, a perspective destined to shape the Orient into a projection of the most deeply ingrained Western fears, prejudices and obsessions.
If White Westerners approached the Orient as Europeans and Americans, one would expect Blackamerican thinkers and scholars to approach it as Blackamericans.3 The meaning and implications of this would depend, of course, on where Blackamericans were in their own existential struggle and on what influence the Orient itself was perceived as exerting on their lives. Prior to the 1970s, what little role the Orient played in Blackamerican thought was almost exclusively positive. From the 1970s on, however, there was a palpable change in the image and status of the Arab/Muslim world among Blackamericans. The change coincided with the move of large numbers of Muslims from the Middle East and Asia to the United States, which produced a major shift in the priorities, sensibilities and image of Islam in the US country.
Whereas before the 1970s Islam in the United States had been dominated by a Black presence and thus a Black, American agenda, from the 1970s on, "real" Islam increasingly came to be perceived as the religion of Arabs and foreigners who were neither knowledgeable about nor genuinely interested in the realities of Blackamericans.With this development, Blackamericans who identified with Islam, especially Sunnis, came under increasing criticism as "cultural heretics": self-hating "wannabees" who had moved from the back of the bus to the back of the camel. This occurred in the context of the Blackamerican converts to Islam having defected either from the Black Church or some other Blackamerican movement. The result was that from the very beginning, certain elements within the Blackamerican community perceived Islam’s gains as their own loss. Ultimately, all of this would culminate in the rise of Black Orientalism.
Unlike Said’s "White" Orientalism, the aim of Black Orientalism has nothing to do with a desire to control or dominate the Orient. Like Said’s Orientalism, however, its target is emphatically Islam. Black Orientalism is essentially a reaction to the newly developed relationship among Islam, Blackamericans and the Muslim world. It has followed the shift from Black Religion to historical Islam as the basis of Islamic religious authority among Blackamerican Muslims. Its ultimate aim is to challenge, if not undermine, the esteem enjoyed by Islam in the Blackamerican community by projecting onto the Muslim world a set of images, perceptions, resentments and stereotypes that are far more the product of the Black experience in the United States than they are of any direct relationship with or knowledge of Islam and the Muslim world. By highlighting the purported historical race- prejudice of the Muslim world and, in some instances, the alleged responses to it, Black Orientalism seeks to impugn the propriety of the relationship between Islam and Blackamericans and ultimately to call into question Blackamerican Muslims’ status as "authentic," loyal Blackamericans.
In this essay, I trace the rise of Black Orientalism, its causes and nature, and its significance for American Islam. This will include a brief examination of the development of Islam among Blackamericans in order to place Black Orientalism in a meaningful historical context. It will be followed by a word about the shifts and dislocations in Blackamerican Islam that were engendered by the influx of Muslim immigrants to the United States following the changes in immigration quotas in 1965. I will then sharpen my definition of Black Orientalism, highlighting the distinction between it and valid criticisms of Arabs and/or Muslims. That will be followed by a brief, synecdochic response to one particular manifestation of Black Orientalism. I will conclude with a word about the significance of Black Orientalism for the present and future of Islam in the United States.


RELIGION, IDENTITY AND THE SPREAD OF ISLAM AMONG
BLACKAMERICANS
In tracing the history of Islam among Blackamericans, it is important to begin with the fact that the United States is unique among the great Western democracies in that a significant proportion of its Muslim population was born in this country. The spread of Islam among Blackamericans did not follow any of the patterns familiar to Islam in other parts of the world: it was not the result of immigration, conquest or the efforts of traveling Sufis. The rise of Islam among Blackamericans owes its impetus, rather, to a masterful feat of appropriation of the vehicle of Black Religion. The early Blackamerican "Islamizers,"Noble Drew Ali and The Honorable Elijah Muhammad, enlisted Islam not only as a strictly religious expression but as a basis for an alternative modality of American Blackness. Blackamericans at large came to see in this religion not only a path to spiritual salvation but a path to a more authentic Blackamerican self. Elijah Muhammad campaigned not only against
Christianity but against those "finger-poppin’, chittlin’-eatin’, yes sa bossin’ Negroes." Islam, in other words, as "the Black Man’s Religion," was as much about identity and what E.E. Curtis IV refers to as "cultural nationalism" as it was about religion in a restricted sense.4
This added dimension of being enlisted as the basis of an alternative modality of American Blackness is crucial to understanding the rise of Islam among Blackamericans. It is also critical, however, to a proper understanding of the rise of Black Orientalism. On the one hand, it was this dimension of Blackamerican Islam more than anything else that thrust it into competition with the Black Church and other Blackamerican movements. At the same time, it was precisely this dimension of
Blackamerican Islam that was and remains neither understood nor appreciated by the immigrant Muslims who came to monopolize the authority to define a properly constituted Islamic life in the United States.
In the face of this new, immigrant authority, purportedly grounded in the super-tradition of historical Islam, Blackamerican Muslims found themselves unable to address the realities of their lives in a manner that effectively served their needs or in terms that were likely to be recognized as Islamic. At the same time, this new ideological dependency left them unable to insulate the positive features of their Blackamerican culture from the hostile reflexes of an immigrant Islam that was still reacting to its nemesis: the modern West. All of this would leave Blackamerican Muslims open to the charge of being followers of a religion that countenanced, if it did not endorse, the devaluation, marginalization and subjugation of Blacks.


FROM BLACK RELIGION TO HISTORICAL ISLAM
The history of Islam among Blackamericans begins, for all intents and purposes, in the early twentieth century, with the marriage of Islam and Black Religion. Black Religion, however, should not be understood to constitute a distinct religion per se but rather a religious orientation. It has no theology or orthodoxy; it has no institutionalized ecclesiastical order and no public or private liturgy. It has no foundational documents, like the Bible or the Baghavad Ghita, and no founding figures like Buddha or
Zoroaster. The God of Black Religion is neither specifically Jesus, Yahweh or Allah. It is, rather, an abstract category into which any and all of these can be put. Black Religion can be described as the deism or natural religion of Blackamericans, a spontaneous folk-orientation grounded in the belief in a supernatural power yet uniquely focused on that power’s manifestation as interventions in the crucible of American race relations.
In short, Black Religion is a holy protest against White supremacy and its material effects. According to C. Eric Lincoln, its point of departure was American slavery, and had it not been for slavery, there would have been no Black Religion.5 The Black Church emerged out of the marriage between Black Religion and Protestantism and conferred a palpably religious dimension upon the Black struggle in the United States. Indeed, the Black Church remained the dominant host of Black Religion until the beginning of the twentieth century. In the closing decades of the nineteenth century and the opening years of the twentieth, however, Blackamericans began to migrate en masse from the South to Northern metropolises, where the relationship between the Black Church and Black Religion was ruptured and the latter was forced to look for new accommodations. Joseph R. Washington, Jr. described this alienation from the Black Church: Since the 1920s, black religion, the religion of the folk, has been dysfunctional.
From this period on the once subordinate and latent stream of white Protestant evangelicalism has been dominant and manifest, relegating the uniqueness of black religion to verbal expression from the pulpit in such a way that action was stifled.6 The early "Islamizers," Noble Drew Ali and The Honorable Elijah Muhammad, emerged in the context of this ruptured relationship between the Black Church and Black Religion, offering asylum to Black Religion in what they presented as Islam. By using Black Religion as a vehicle for appropriating Islam and making it meaningful and valuable to
Blackamericans, these early Islamizers were able to popularize the religion and render it the cultural property of Blackamericans as a whole. The establishment of a sense of ownership was critical to the rising rate of Blackamerican conversion. It was also an important factor in the Islamizers’ ability to influence Blackamerican culture at large. One sees signs of this in the newly developed disdain for pork or in the spread of Arabic names, in both their proper and bastardized forms (i.e., those of the a-ee-a pattern, such as Lakeesha, Tamika, Shameeka). In short, this historical feat of appropriation marked the true beginning of the history of Islam among Blackamericans and gave the religion roots in American soil. Indeed, without this historical achievement, it is doubtful that Islam would have come to enjoy its current success among Blackamericans.
If only by default, Black Religion remained the primary means by which Blackamerican proto- and Sunni Islam validated itself until 1965, when the administration of Lyndon Johnson repealed the national origins law that had restricted immigration almost exclusively to Northern and Western
Europeans. It was not the Qur’an or the Sunnah or books of law and exegesis that authenticated a view as Islamic, but the act of throwing off the yoke of White domination or the demand to conform to the dictates of the new persona of the dignified Black man. As long as this remained the case, Black
Orientalism existed only as a cry on the margins of Blackamerica. With the repeal of the national origins law, however, and the massive influx of Muslims from the Middle East and Asia, a new basis of religious authority was introduced into American Islam. The primary authenticators of Islam were no longer Black Religion and Black Americans but, rather, immigrants who spoke in the name of the historical ‘ulûm shar‘îyah, or Islamic religious sciences. In addition to its impact on Blackamerican Muslims, this shift in the basis of Islamic religious authority effected a fundamental change in the attitude of Blackamerican non-Muslims towards the Arab/Muslim world.
Prior to the shift from Black Religion to historical Islam, the Arab and Muslim worlds were invariably included as constituents of an idealized Third World, a regiment of Franz Fanon’s Wretched of the Earth, grinding out the universal ground-offensive against White supremacy and Western imperialism.7 After this shift, and the establishment of critical masses of immigrant Muslims in the United States, there was a growing number of Blackamerican scholars who denied the Arab and Muslim world this status and portrayed it instead as a precursor, partner or imitator of the West in its denigration and subjugation of Black people. Several works by Blackamerican writers from the early 1970s reflected this development: C.Williams, The Destruction of Black Civilization; S. Maglangbayan, Garvey, Lumumba, and Malcolm: Black National-Separatists; Y. Ben-Jochannan,
African Origins of Major Western Religions; and H. Madhubuti (Don L. Lee), Enemies:The Clash of Races.8 This was the beginning of Black Orientalism, a trend that has continued into the new millennium.

BLACK ORIENTALISM ANDWHAT IT IS NOT
Not every criticism of the stereotypes, prejudices and practices of Muslim Orientals is an expression of Black Orientalism. Valid criticism, however, is distinct from ideologically-driven denigration. The former is based on direct experience or knowledge of verifiable facts; the latter, on imagination, ideology and projection. When Blackamericans condemn the exploitative activities of (Muslim) Arab liquor-store magnates in the greater Detroit or Chicago areas, this is no more an exercise in anti-Muslim Black Orientalism than earlier critiques of Jewish slumlords were of anti-Semitism. If the old anti-miscegenation laws prove how deeply ingrained anti-Black racism was among American Whites, de facto anti-miscegenation sentiment among Muslim Orientals cannot be written off as a benign "cultural preference." In short, if the association among Islam, Blackamericans and the Muslim world should not cause wild and unwarranted projections, neither should it require turning a blind eye to real offenses experienced at first hand.
Nor must Blackamerican criticism of Muslim Orientals be limited to contemporary facts or experience. The pre-modern Islamic legacy remains the repository of the greatest authority for contemporary Muslims and it continues to inform the thought and sensibilities of Islam in the United States. When we turn to this legacy, we find that Muslim legal, historical, exegetical and belle-lettristic literature are replete with anti-Black sentiment. It is neither Black Orientalism nor a manifestation of anti-Muslim bias to criticize and analyze such works but, on the contrary, such criticism and analysis is necessary for the establishment of a standard that can be applied fairly and consistently across the board.
Consider the following example: in his famous Prolegomenon, Ibn Khaldûn (808/1406) says of Blacks in the southern portion of Africa that "they are not to be numbered among humans."9 The early Meccan jurist, Tâ’ûs, refused to attend weddings between a Black and White because, given his understanding of the Qur’ânic verse about the Satanic impulse to "change God’s creation" (taghyîr khalq Allâh — 4:119), he deemed them to be "unnatural."10 Numerous early Mâlikî jurists held, reportedly on the authority of Mâlik, that while under normal circumstances a valid marriage contract required that the woman be represented by a male relative (walî), this requirement could be relaxed in instances such as those where the woman hailed from lowly origins or was ugly or Black.11 This,
they argued, was because Blackness was an affliction that automatically reduced a woman’s social standing.12 Similarly, the twelfth/eighteenth century Mâlikî jurist, al-Dardîr, categorically affirms the unbelief (kufr) of any Muslim who claims that the Prophet Muhammad was Black.13
Nothing would excuse the casual dismissal of such statements from White Americans or Europeans, nor should their authors’ status as Muslim Orientals earn them such an exemption. Holding up such statements for comment and criticism is not Black Orientalism. It is, rather, responsible scholarship whose ultimate aim and effect should be to alert Muslims to the ways in which they have failed to live up to their own ideals.
Having said this much, however, it must be acknowledged that critical references to statements and actions by Muslim Orientals can approach Black Orientalism. This is the case when they proceed on the uncritical assumption that what might be systemically racist comments in the context of the United States are isolated instances with other meanings in the context of another society. Race and color, in other words, are assumed to be consistent determinants of human relations and possibilities in Muslim society. In short, Black Orientalism implies not only that Muslim society produced expressions of race- or color-prejudice, but that such prejudice defined these societies and in so doing circumscribed the lives and possibilities of Black people within them.
Among the strongest contentions giving currency to the assumption that Black life was circumscribed in Muslim society is the erroneous claim that Blacks in Islam were a slave class as they were in the United States. This not only adds credence to the notion that Black life was circumscribed, but confers upon all seemingly racially-biased statements and actions the appearance of being part of the ruling class’ effort to justify its domination over its subjugated wards. In point of fact, however, as every historian of Islam knows, most slaves in Muslim society were not Black but of Turkish origin, and there is no evidence that most Blacks were slaves.14 Even assuming that Blacks were a slave class in Muslim society, however, there is, as Ira Berlin notes in Many Thousands Gone, a major distinction between "societies with slaves" (e.g., African society) and "slave societies," like the United States, where color and slavery were coterminous. According to Berlin, In societies with slaves, no one presumed the master-slave relationship to be the social exemplar. In slave societies, by contrast, slavery stood at the center of economic production, and the master-slave relationship provided the model for all social relations: husband and wife, parent and child, employer and employee, teacher and student.
From the most intimate connections between men and women to the most public ones between ruler and ruled, all relationships mimicked those of slavery...."Nothing escaped, nothing and no one." Whereas slaveholders were just one portion of a propertied elite in societies with slaves, they were the ruling class in slave societies; nearly everyone—free and slave—aspired to enter the slaveholding class.15
The presumption that Blacks under Islam were a slave class in a slave society is a major premise of Black Orientalists and a primary means by which they impose a single interpretation upon every racially-tinged statement or action by an Arab or non-Black Muslim. If views such as Mâlik’s regarding Blackness as an affliction are to serve as proof that Arab Muslims were all Jim Crow segregationists, however, what is to be made of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s statements about dark-skinned women, or Frederick Douglass’ reference to the "ape-like appearance of some of the
genuine Negroes," or Alexander Crummel’s labeling of West Africans as "virile barbarians," or, for that matter, comedian Chris Rock’s declaration, "I hate niggers!"?16 Clearly, Muslims south of the Sahara, who overwhelmingly adopted the Mâlikî school’s interpretation of Islam, ignored the view attributed to Mâlik and required a male relative to validate a marriage. Why should the prejudicial view attributed to Mâlik and some Mâlikîs be accepted as the final, definitive word?
We might also ask whether the statement of Ibn Khaldûn quoted above is necessarily an antecedent to such "scientific" racialist theories as those of Jensen, Shockley and the authors of The Bell Curve.17 In making such a determination, how justified would we be in ignoring Ibn Khaldûn’s explicit statements to the effect that "race" is an imagined social construct, that the notion of Black intellectual inferiority is false, that the Old Testament story about Noah cursing his son Ham does not refer to Blackness but says only that Ham’s sons shall be cursed with enslavement, and that it is climate, not blood, that affects endowments such as intelligence or civilization?18 According to Ibn Khaldûn’s theory, the farther people are removed from the moderate climate of the Mediterranean, the less their intelligence and civilizing potential. Thus, he imputed the same savage-status to Africans farthest removed to the south and to White "Slavs" (Saqâlibah) who were farthest removed to the north.19 One must ask why the history of race relations in the United States should be the only prism through which his statements can be viewed.
It is true that the examples cited, as well as many others, demonstrate that Arab and other non-Black Muslims were afflicted with race- and color-prejudice.20 The insinuation, however, that such attitudes stemmed from the same psychology and implied the same all-encompassing social and political reality as that created by White Americans stems more from imagination than from fact. In the year 659/1260, some seven centuries before the United States’ civil rights movement, a Black man appeared in Cairo after the sacking of Baghdad by the Mongols and claimed to be a member of the ‘Abbâsid House. The Mamlûk Sultan, himself a former slave, ordered the Chief Justice to make an official inquiry into the claim.After his genealogy was confirmed, the Black man took the name al-Mustansir and was inaugurated amîr al-mu’minîn (Commander of the Faithful); i.e., Caliph, temporal successor to the Prophet Muhammad.21 To date, however, no Western nation has been headed by a Black man.
Clearly, facts such as these must be considered if the real significance of race and color prejudice in Arab/Muslim society is to be understood, but Black Orientalism deliberately ignores or suppresses them. This is done in order to invest race prejudice in the Muslim world with the same significance it has in the United States. The result is that cultural bias and the deliberate, race-based monopoly and abuse of power become so indistinguishable that a cultural idiosyncrasy such as Rapper Sir Mix-A-Lot’s contempt for the gaunt figures and flat buttocks idealized by Cosmopolitan magazine takes on the same significance as Jesse Helms’ and the Republican party’s opposition to affirmative action.22

NATIONALIST BLACK ORIENTALISM: MOLEFI ASANTE
There are at least three types of Black Orientalism: the Nationalist, the academic and the Religious. All three impugn the relationship between Blackamericans and historical Islam. Because of space limitations, only Nationalist Black Orientalism is discussed below.23
In 1980, Professor Molefi Kete Asante started a fire with the publication of his provocative work, Afrocentricity:The Theory of Social Change.24 The book became the manifesto of the "new" Afrocentric movement.25 It was followed in 1987 by The Afrocentric Idea and in 1990 by Kemet,
Afrocentricity and Knowledge.26 The purpose of these works was to lay out the aims, ideological underpinnings and practical methodology for an approach to historical, cultural and sociological studies that viewed the world, especially the African world, from the perspective of Africa and
Africans rather than from the dominant Eurocentric perspective that claimed to be objective and universal. Asante criticized other approaches, including those of Africans and African Americans, that he felt had been influenced by bias and by assumptions accepted uncritically by the
European and American academy. Chief among these was the negative assessment of the achievements of Africa and its contributions to world civilization. Afrocentrism was a clarion call to Africans and African Americans to free themselves from these negative stereotypes and return to their true African selves. It was also an appeal to non-Africans to consider the African rather than the reigning European perspective as an effective tool for re-humanizing the world.
As a professor at Temple University in Philadelphia, a city heavily populated by Blackamerican Muslims, Asante was well aware that Afrocentrism faced stiff competition. To neutralize its competitors, he argued that they were inconsistent with the dictates of Afrocentricity, which reflected the true African self. He wrote of Islam,
Adoption of Islam is as contradictory to the Diasporan Afrocentricity as Christianity has been. Christianity has been dealt with admirably by other writers, notably Karenga; but Islam within the African- American community ha [sic] yet to come under