Philosophic sagacity and intercultural philosophy. Beyond Henry Odera Oruka

In this work, Pius Maija Mosima attempts to contribute to the future of African and intercultural philosophy by comparing the late Kenyan philosopher, Henry Odera Oruka’s philosophic sagacity and intercultural philosophy as conceived by Dutch intercultural philosopher Wim van Binsbergen. He attempts to answer three main questions: what is philosophic sagacity or sage philosophy and how does one distinguish it from the other forms of philosophy that are available in Africa? What is the best approach for contemporary African philosophy to take in a context marked by the high degree of global interconnectedness and interactions today? Sage philosophy refers to the body of thought produced by persons considered wise by their communities. Oruka categorizes these wise persons into two groups: folk sages and philosophic sages. Folk sages are well versed with the popular wisdoms, culture and beliefs of their people. Philosophic sages are those that seek rational foundation and critically evaluate commonly held cultural beliefs. They can transcend these communal beliefs by taking a critical and rational distance. The author identifies globalization as the one of the most important socio-political and cultural developments in our contemporary world. He proposes an intercultural philosophy that enables us to think beyond local to global sagacity.

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This book has been published as volume 62 of the African Studies Collection. It was reviewed in Polylog. Zeitschrift für interkulturelles Philosphieren, Nr. 37. Read the review by Gail Presbey.