An Imposing Brilliance His Majesty Kupiendieli 2002

by NEB Nehez Meniooh

It is with heavy hearts that The Earth Center announces the Sun has set on the Great King of the Gulmu civilisation, his majesty Kupiendieli. May he journey to the world of the Dead carrying the grandeur and pride of the Gourmantche legacy, received and celebrated by the thirty Gulmu Kings who preceded him.

It is known in Kemet that the royalty and the wise do not die. They ensure that their legacy will keep them alive in the hearts of their descendants and the many people they influence.

As the thirty-first King of the Gulmu, his majesty was devoted to his people. The unity, development and promotion of the cultural and traditional wealth of the kingdom was his objective. For sixteen years, he sat on the prestigious throne of the Gulmu empire. In that time, he worked tirelessly for his people, his legacy and his culture.

The unity of the Gulmu, like every other traditional kingdom around the world, has been under attack since the attendees of the Berlin Conference cut up the territory and separated people into imaginary or national terms. Kupiendieli sacrificed his image as a traditional king, repeatedly traveling to meetings with political men and women, not in order to integrate into new political trends but to ensure the spirit of the Gulmu was represented, heard and protected in the rapidly changing times we live in.

For that reason, every proud Gourmantche, para-Gourmantche, or initiate or member of Kebtah, no matter where you find yourself on this planet, should mourn the death of this great sovereign.

In 2005, upon Neb Naba Lamoussa Morodenibig’s (founder of Kebtah) return home to Burkina Faso, one of his first stops was to greet his new King. He had not been able to travel home due to the United States’ hysterical immigration laws following 9/11. He finally had the chance to present himself, his accomplishments with Kebtah and some of his disciples and initiates to his King. His majesty listened closely and invited Prophet Neb Naba back for a deeper conversation the next day. He also sent his minister of culture to visit the group in the bush where they were staying during the 2005 Annual Pilgrimage. Many meetings would follow considering Neb Naba represented a shining son of the Gulmu people, the people that his majesty served, protected and represented.

After the Prophet’s transition in 2008, His Majesty expressed to the Prophet’s disciples that Kebtah would have the support of the kingdom, “Master Naba was a great loss for our entire kingdom and I am proud of you all for ensuring his work continues.”

The relationship has continued since then. The Earth Center continuously raises money for a project of his Majesty Kupiendieli. A traditional museum that will celebrate, preserve, collect and protect the wealth, grandeur and wisdom of Gourmantche culture. We will do what we can to ensure that his project is realised and his legacy joins those of his predecessors as yet another source of pride for, not only the Gulmu, but all proud individuals who wish to reconnect with their Ancestral heritage withstanding the onslaught of denatured, materialistic values.

Today, we are announcing to everyone his majesty’s journey home. And we are raising money to donate to his traditional funerary ceremonies and the ceremonies that will take place for the transition of the throne. As important as the arm of The Earth Center’s mission is in the diaspora in connecting individuals back to their source culture and Ancestral heritage, it is even more important that we continue to support, protect and ensure the strength of the legs of that mission. Legs which stand in the surviving traditions of the continent. Kupiendieli represents a sovereign which was doing just that. Upholding the traditional values while in a dynamic manner in such fast-paced times. Through his museum project and his very identity as a dignified traditional king, The Earth Center gives anyone who wishes a chance to invest in something that connects them back to a longer history than one can find in the modern agendas. An integrity that unites humans at values that keep us close to Earth, nature and our roots.

We thank you for your support, but at that same time, your support is an investment into yourself, and the pride of humanity. Long live the spirit of his majesty Kupiendieli, his dignity and wisdom imposes on us just as the reflection of the silver house.