AKIBA TIMOYA

Some hundreds of years ago, my African ancestors arrived from their homelands to the Americas enslaved. They came with a fierce determination to survive. In fact, they overcame the unimaginable for their freedom while suffering great sacrifices to leave something greater for future generations. With them they brought their many Spiritual and Cultural Traditions. These traditions have survived through time. Now, in 2009, I am so humbled by the journey, as I prepare to be initiated into the Yoruba tradition to make Ocha.

My name is Akiba Timoya,

I have many names.

Just as I have walked many paths.

Twenty-five years ago, while seeking a way to connect to indigenous Spiritual Traditions of Africa, I was introduced to the religious practices of the Yoruba people of Nigeria, West Africa. This practice called Yoruba has taught me, among many things, the importance and the deeper meaning of honoring and developing a relationship with my ancestors.

During these past twenty-five years, my need to understand my relationship to my ancestors and my need to know myself as a Spiritual being, has presented me with several life changing experiences and challenges.

I am an African Indian. Twenty years ago, I was lead to a Sundance Ceremony where I was called to dance. Through my experience as a Sundancer, I learned the absolute necessity of honoring and respecting our Mother Earth. This Ceremony taught me about the sacredness and oneness of all life.

Eleven years ago I walked, for one year, on a journey, The Interfaith Pilgrimage of the Middle Passage. I walked with others, in prayer, from Georgia to South Africa, retracing the slave trade of African peoples.

My sense of Spirit has been embedded in my thought process since childhood and has served at the foundation of my activism and political process. As an adult I have endeavored to bring the two together always.

As a community person, my initiations have always taken place within and with my communities. Thus my Ocha is no different. In this way I humbly ask for your support to make this happen.