“In Africa, there is a concept known as Ubuntu – the profound sense that we are human only through the humanity of others; that if we are to accomplish anything in this world it will in equal measure be due to the work and achievements of others.” — Nelson Mandela
A person is a person through other people who strikes an acceptance of one’s humanity through recognition of an “other” in his or her uniqueness and difference. This idealism suggests to us that humanity is not embedded in my person solely as an individual; my humanity is co-substantively offered upon the other and me. Humanity is a quality we owe to each other. We create each other and need to sustain this otherness creation. And if we belong to each other, we participate in our creations: we are because you are, and since you are, definitely I am. The “I am” is not a hard subject, but a powerful self-constitution dependent on this otherness creation of relation and distance.
Let us see the story behind that name UBUNTU, an anthropologist studying the habits and customs of an African tribe found himself surrounded by children most days. So he decided to play a little game with them. He managed to get some fruits from the nearest town and put it all in a decorated basket at the foot of a tree and made them stand 100 meters away. He announced that whoever reaches first would get all the fruits in the basket. When he said ready steady go.
Do you know what these small children did? They all caught each other’s hands and ran towards the tree together, divided the fruits among them, and ate the fruits, and enjoyed it. When did the Anthropologist ask them why you did so? They said ‘Ubuntu’
Which meant:
‘How can one be happy when all the others are sad?’
Ubuntu in their language means:
‘I am because we are!’
“Your humanity comes into its own in the community, in belonging.”
Happiness comes from combining what we love to do with something that is meaningful as a team. We believe that we are here to make the world a better place, and we think that happy and healthy people have a better chance to do that than anyone else. If we choose to share our journey with others and work towards our goals as part of a team, then we’ll find thousands of people who support us. That’s because we find value in the community. We find our humanity in belonging.
“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” ~ African Proverb
