Fu Kiau Bunseki

My name is Fu Kiau Bunseki, from Congo, Kinshasa. Truly I came from a society in which they believe one cannot glorify oneself, but I can say a little bit about my personal life. I was born the fourth male from my mother, part of a polygamic union of 20 children.

After a few years of school in the village, I moved to a new school and met my first white person-a missionary. After four years, we took a national exam for a Protestant school preparing students to be teachers. I was among the first twenty in our whole area selected to become a teacher. After that, in 1956-58 there was fighting in the Congo, so Belgians had to get out. I finished in 1958 and I taught school for two years. Then I moved to the capital city, Kinshasa, and took classes at the university while teaching.

I decided I had to do research myself. I left my teaching position, and decided to open a small school in 1963. I built a center and then an elder came one Sunday and said, "Fu Kiau, you cannot succeed unless you are initiated." I began new training and it led to my discovery of Kongo cosmology.

 
   

Fu Kiau Bunseki discusses this nkondi figure

 
 
   

The cosmogram is the cornerstone of Kongo religion. Fu Kiau Bunseki explains…

 
 
   

A foreign officer is represented by this power figure