Rastafarianism

Template:Rastafari

Rastafarianism, or as adherents prefer to call it, the Rastafari movemant, or simply Rasta, is a religious movement that reveres the former emperor of Ethiopia, Haile Selassie I – who as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and as the Lion of Judah, is seen as Jah incarnate by most "mansions" (sects) of Rastafari, though there are exceptions.[1] The name Rastafari comes from Ras Tafari, the pre-coronation name of Haile Selassie I, who Rastas say is the earthly aspect of God and part of the Holy Trinity. The movement emerged in Jamaica among working-class and peasant black people in the early 1930s, arising from an interpretation of Biblical prophecy, black social and political aspirations, and the teachings of their prophet, Jamaican black publicist and organiser Marcus Mosiah Garvey, whose political and cultural vision helped inspire a new world view.

The religion has spread throughout much of the world, largely through immigration and interest generated by reggae music—most notably, that of Bob Marley. By 2000, there were more than one million Rastafarians worldwide. About five to ten percent of Jamaicans identify themselves as Rastafarians.

Doctrines

The doctrines of Rastafari depart radically from the norms of the modern western mind, something encouraged deliberately by the Rastas themselves. Unlike most religious and Christian groups that tend to stress conformity towards the powers-that-be, Rastafari stresses nonconformity and peaceful rebelliousness towards what it terms Babylon, which is the modern society where we live. Rastafari grew up amongst very poor people, to whom society had nothing to offer except more suffering. Rastafarians see themselves as conforming to a vision of how Africans should live, reclaiming what they see as a culture stolen from them when they were brought on slave ships to Jamaica, birthplace of the movement. Their religion is difficult to categorise, because Rastafari is not a centralised organisation; and it is left to the individual Rastafarians to work out the truth for themselves, resulting in a wide variety of beliefs entering beneath the general umbrella of Rastafari.

Afrocentrism

Rastafari is a response to racist negation of black people as it was experienced in Jamaica, where in the 1930s, black people were at the bottom of the social order, while white people and their Christian religion were at the top. Marcus Garvey's encouragement of black people to take pride in themselves and their Africanness inspired the Rastas to embrace all things African. They believe they were brainwashed while in captivity to negate all things black and African. They turned the racists' image of them as primitive and straight out of the jungle into a defiant embracing of these concepts as a part of the African culture they see as having been stolen from them when they were taken from Africa on the slaveships. To be close to nature, and to the African jungle and its lions, in spirit if not in the flesh, is central to their idea of African culture. They believe that when they were in captivity, their African cultural awareness was stolen from them, and that they must do everything within their power to reclaim this culture. Living close to and as a part of nature is seen as African. This African approach to "naturality" is seen in the dreadlocks, the marijuana, the ital food, and in all aspects of Rasta life. They disdain the modern (non) approach to life for being unnatural and excessively objective and rejecting of subjectivity. The Rastas say that scientists try to discover how the world is by looking from the outside in, whereas the Rasta approach is to see life from the inside, looking out. The individual is given tremendous importance in Rastafari, unlike some European-originated philosophies, and every Rasta has to figure out the truth for himself or herself.

Another important Afrocentric identification is with the colours red, gold, and green, from the Ethiopian flag. They are a symbol of the Rastafarian religion, and of the loyalty Rastas feel towards Haile Selassie, Ethiopia, and Africa rather than for any other modern state where they happen to live. These colours are frequently seen on clothing and other decorations. Red stands for the blood of martyrs, green stands for the vegetation of Africa, while gold stands for the wealth and prosperity Africa has to offer. (Many Ethiopian scholars state that the colours originate from an old saying that the Virgin Mary's belt is the rainbow, and that the Red, Gold, and Green are an abbreviation of this.)

Many Rastafarians attempt to learn Amharic, that they consider to be the original language, because this is the language Haile Selassie I spoke, and in order to emphasise themselves as African people – though in practice, most Rastas continue to speak either English or their native languages. There are reggae songs written in Amharic.

Haile Selassie and the Bible

The one belief that unites all Rastafarians is that Ras (an Amharic title of nobility corresponding to Duke; also having the meaning "Head") Tafari Makonnen, who was crowned Haile Selassie I, Emperor of Ethiopia on November 2nd 1930, is the living God incarnate, called Jah, who is the black messiah who will lead the world's peoples of African origin into a promised land of full emancipation and divine justice. This is partly because his titles of King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah is, according to Ethiopian tradition, the 225th in an unbroken line of Ethiopian kings descended from the Biblical King David. These titles match those of the Messiah mentioned in Revelations. Psalm 87:4–6 is also interpreted as predicting the coronation of Haile Selassie.

In the 10th century BC, The Solomonic Dynasty of Ethiopia was founded by Menelik I, the son of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, who had visited Solomon in Israel. 1 Kings 10:13 claims "And king Solomon gave unto the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, beside that which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty. So she turned and went to her own country, she and her servants." On the basis of the Kebra Negast, Rastas interpret this as meaning she conceived his child, and from this, they concluded that the black people are the true children of Israel, or Jews. Falasha black Jews have lived in Ethiopia for centuries, disconnected from the rest of Judaism; their existence gave some credence and impetus to early Rastafarians, validating their belief that Ethiopia was Zion.

Some Rastafarians choose to classify their religion as Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity, Protestant Christianity, or Judaism. Of those, the ties to the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church are the most widespread, though discussed controversially by their clergy. Rastafarians believe that standard translations of the Bible incorporate changes created by the racist white power structure. They also revere the Ethiopian national epic, the Kebra Negast.

For Rastafarians, Selassie I remains their king as well as their God: an African Haile Selassie, with great pomp and dignity in front of the world's press and representatives of many of the world's powerful nations. From the beginning the Rastas decided to treat themselves in effect as Ethiopian citizens, loyal to its leader and devoted to its flag.

Most Rastafarians believe that Selassie is in some way a reincarnation of Jesus and that the Rastafarians are the true Israelites.

Rastas call Selassie Jah, Jah, or Jah Rastafari, and believe there is great power in these names. They call themselves Rastafari (pronounced Rasta-FAR-I) to express the personal relationship each Rasta has with Selassie I. Rastas like to use the ordinal with the name Haile Selassie I, with the dynastic Roman numeral one signifying "the First" deliberately pronounced as the letter I – again as a means of expressing a personal relationship with God. They also like to call him H.I.M. (pronounced him), for His Imperial Majesty.

When Haile Selassie I died in 1975, his death was not accepted by Rastafarians who could not accept that God could die. They said it was a lie.

Rastafari is a strongly syncretic Abrahamic religion that draws extensively from the Bible. They particularly like the New Testament Book of Revelations, as this (5:5) is where they find the prophecies about the divinity of Haile Selassie. Rastas believe that they, and the rest of the black race, are descendants of the ancient twelve tribes of Israel, cast into captivity outside Africa as a result of the slave trade.

Some believe that only half of the Bible has been written, and that the other half, stolen from them along with their culture, is written in a man's heart. This concept also embraced the idea that even the illiterate can be Rastas by reading God's Word in their hearts. Rastas also see the lost half of the bible, and the whole of their lost culture to be found in the Ark of the Covenant, a repository of African wisdom.

Rastafarians are criticised, particularly by Christian groups, for taking biblical quotes out of context, for picking and choosing what they want from the Bible, and for bringing elements into Rastafari that do not appear in the Bible. They are also criticised for using the English language (and particularly the King James version) of the Bible, as many have no interest in Hebrew or Greek scholarship. However, in recent years a greater interest in the Amharic Orthodox version, authorized by His Majesty in 1950's, has arisen among Rastas.

Repatriation and Race

The Rasta dream is that Haile Selassie will call the day of judgement, when the righteous shall return home to Mount Zion (which is identified with Africa,) to live forever in peace, love and harmony. In the meantime the Rastas call to be repatriated to Africa. Repatriation, and the desire to return to Africa after 400 years of slavery, is central to Rastafarian doctrine. The first Rastas, stuck on a tiny Caribbean island, dreamed of the possibilities of Africa.

Many early Rastafarians for a time believed in black supremacy. Widespread advocacy of this doctrine was shortlived, however; at least partly because of Selassie's explicit condemnation of racism in a speech before the United Nations. Most Rastafarians now espouse a belief that racial animosities must be set aside, with world peace and harmony being common themes. One of the three major modern sects, the Twelve Tribes of Israel, has specifically condemned all types of racism, and declared that the teachings of the Bible are the route to spiritual liberation for people of any racial or ethnic background.

Some early elements of Rastafarianism were closely related to indigenous religions of the Caribbean and Africa, and to the Maroons, though these elements were largely purged by the Nyahbinghi warriors – dreadlocked Rastas who fought the corrupting power of some leaders who sought to add these syncretic elements to the Rastafarian doctrines.

Middle-class people, white people, Asians, and Native Americans also comprise minorities within the religion.

Church and The Holy Trinity

To further confuse the issue of classifying Rastafarian practices, one type of religious gathering (grounation) is similar in many ways to Jewish services, and may have descended from African-American slaves who converted to Judaism — a number of Jews in the southern USA owned slaves — and escaped to Jamaica. Rastas believe that their own body is the true church or temple of God, and so see no need to make temples or churches out of physical buildings.

Rastas believe that Haile Selassie is both God the Father and God the Son of the holy Trinity, while it is themselves, and potentially all human beings, who embody the Holy Spirit. Thus, the human being is a church that contains the Holy Ghost. Rastas see Haile Selassie as the head, and themselves as the body, as another way of expressing this doctrine. Some see Melchizedek in addition to Jesus as having been former incarnations of Haile Selassie. The reason Rastas have the doctrine of the Holy Trinity is because Haile Selassie is Power of the Trinity in Ethiopic.

Physical Immortality

Rastas are physical immortalists who believe the chosen few will continue to live forever in their current bodies. This idea of everliving (rather than everlasting) life is very strong and important.

A good expression of this doctrine is in Lincoln Thompson's song Thanksgiving. After asking "what's destroying life?" he says, "tell I if you know." Paraphrasing the bible, he continues, "there are too many dead bodies lying around me...in a true reality, down in the grave there is no life. In silence there you'll be, with no-one to hear nor see, and no matter what you saw, when you are dead you cannot praise Jah." In Walk in Jah Light Thompson sings about "living under the 6 feet of sorrow" and asks "who's going to live to glorify the gift of Jah eternally?"

Homosexuality

Homosexuality is seen as sinful and decadent, though in this attitude Rastafarianism is far from unique among Christian sects, and some Rastafarians are indifferent to homosexuality or accept it. Some claim that extra attention may be paid to homophobia in Rastafarianism, however, because persecution of homosexuals is common in Jamaica among Rastas and non-Rastas alike, though no more so than in other Third world countries, or in other religions.

Reggae Music Expressing Rasta Doctrine

Early Rasta reggae musicians (besides Marley) whose music expresses Rastafarian doctrine well are Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer (in Blackheart Man), Prince Far I, Lincoln Thompson, Ijahman Levi (especially the first 4 albums), Misty-in-Roots (Live), The Congos (Heart of the Congos), and The Rastafarians.

Rasta doctrine as developed in the 80's was further expressed musically by a number of other prominent artists, such as Burning Spear, Steel Pulse, Third World, Black Uhuru, and Aswad.

Politics

Most Rastas in the early stages of the movement did not vote, out of principle. Ras Sam Brown formed the Suffering People's party for the elections of 1961, where he received fewer than 100 votes, but solely by standing for election, his influence has been much greater than this.

In a famous free Peace concert in 1976, first Peter Tosh lambasted the audience, including attending dignitaries, with political demands that included legalising cannabis. He did this while smoking a spliff, a criminal act in Jamaica. Later Bob Marley asked both then-Prime Minister Michael Manley, and opposition leader Edward Seaga onto the stage, and a famous picture was taken with all three of them holding their hands together above their heads in a symbolic gesture of peace during what had been a very violent pre-election campaign. This was also the campaign where Manley took his "healing rod" on the election trail to try and persuade the Rastas to vote for him.

Language

Main article: Rastafarian Vocabulary

Rastafarians believe that their original African languages were stolen from them when they were taken into captivity as part of the slave trade, and that English is an imposed colonial language. Their remedy for this situation has been the creation of a modified vocabulary and dialect, reflecting their desire to take forward language and to confront the society they call Babylon.

Isms

Rastafarians claim to reject "-isms". They see a wide range of isms and schisms in modern society, and want no part in them. They reject the word Rastafarianism, because they see themselves as having transcended isms and schisms. This has created some conflict between Rastas and some members of the academic community studying the Rastafarian phenomenon, who insist on calling this religious belief Rastafarianism, in spite of the disapproval this generates within the Rastafarian movement. One possible reason academics call it Rastafarianism is to fit the structure they have declared for the English language. The Rasta perspective does not include a need to talk about religion in an analytical and objective way.

Ceremonies

There are two types of Rastafarian religious ceremonies. A reasoning is a simple event where the Rastas gather; smoke "ganja" (or marijuana); and discuss ethical, social and religious issues. The person honored by being allowed to light the herb says a short prayer before doing so, and the pipe is always passed counterclockwise. A binghi or grounation is a holiday; the word binghi is believed to refer originally to an ancient, and now extinct, order of militant blacks in eastern Africa that vowed to end oppression. Binghis are marked by much dancing, singing, feasting and the smoking of ganja, and can last for several days.

Important dates where grounations may take place are:

• January 6 – Ethiopian Christmas
• February 6 – Bob Marley's birthday
• April 21 – The anniversary of Emperor Haile Selassie's visit to Jamaica. Also known as Grounation Day.
• July 23 – The birthday of Emperor Haile Selassie
• August 17 – The birthday of Marcus Garvey
• November 2 – The coronation of Emperor Haile Selassie

Symbols

Dreadlocks

Rastafari associate dreadlocks with a spiritual journey that one takes in the process of locking their hair (growing dreadlocks). It is taught that patience is the key to growing dreadlocks, a journey of the mind, soul and spirituality. Its spiritual pattern is aligned with the Rastafarian religion. People who do not understand the process sometimes mock the dreadlock style and make comments about the cleanliness of the locked hair. The way to form dreadlocks, with a black person's hair, is to not comb it. There is no twisting or braiding involved, and anything that makes the locking process easier or faster is regarded as akin to sacrilege among the Rasta faithful.

Many non Rastafari, however, of black African descent have adopted dreads as an expression of pride in their ethnic identity, or simply as a hairstyle, and take a less purist approach to developing and grooming them. The wearing of dreads also has spread among people of other ethnicities whose hair is not naturally suited to the style, who often go to extraordinary lengths to affect the look.

The word dread comes from Rasta terminology. For the Rastas the razor, the scissors and the comb are Babylonian or Roman inventions. So close is the association between dreadlocks and the Rastafarians that the two are sometimes used synonymously. In Rastafarian reggae music a follower of Rastafari may be referred to simply as a dreadlocks or Natty Dread, whilst those non-believers who cut their hair are be referred to as baldheads.

Ganja

For many Rastas, smoking marijuana (known as ganja, herb, or St. John's bread) is a spiritual act; they consider it a sacrament that facilitates consciousness and peacefulness, bringing them closer to God. Many believe that cannabis originated in Africa, and that it is a part of their African culture that they are reclaiming.

They are not surprised that it is illegal, seeing it as a powerful substance that opens people's minds to the truth – something the Babylon system, they reason, clearly does not want. They contrast their herb to liquor, which they feel makes people stupid, and is not a part of African culture. While there is a clear belief in the beneficial qualities of cannabis, it is not compulsory to use it, and there are Rastafarians who do not do so. Dreadlocked mystics, often ascetic, the sadhus have smoked cannabis in India for centuries. The migration of many thousands of Indian Hindus to the Caribbean in the 20th century brought this culture to Jamaica.

They believe that the smoking of cannabis enjoys Biblical sanction and is an aid to meditation and religious observance.
Among Biblical verses Rastafarians believe justify the use of herb:

• Genesis 1:11 "And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so."
• Genesis 3:18 "... thou shalt eat the herb of the field."
• Proverbs 15:17 "Better is a dinner of herb where love is, than a stalled ox and hatred therewith."
• Psalms 104:14 "He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man." Also see Spiritual use section of cannabis

However, then-Attorney General of the United States Janet Reno ruled that Rastafarians do not have the religious right to smoke ganja in violation of drug laws in the United States of America. The position is the same in the United Kingdom, where, in the Court of Appeal case of R. v. Taylor [2002] 1 Cr. App. R. 37, it was held that the UK's prohibition on cannabis use did not contravene the right to freedom of religion conferred under the European Convention of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.

Rastafari Today

By the end of the 20th century, women had become more important in the functioning of the Rastafarian movement. In the early years, menstruating women were often subordinated to their husbands and excluded from religious and social ceremonies. To a large degree, women feel more freedom to express themselves now, thus they enjoy much greater freedom of self-expression, and contribute greatly to the religion.

Rastafari is not a highly organized religion. Most Rastas do not identify with any sect or denomination, though there are three prominent Sects of Rastafari: the Nyahbinghi, the Bobo Ashanti and the Twelve Tribes of Israel. By claiming Jah as the returned Jesus, Rastafari is a new religious movement that has arisen from Christianity, much as Christianity arose from Judaism.

In 1996, the Rastafarian movement worldwide was given consultative status by the United Nations.

See also

History of Rastafarians, Rastafarian music, Reggae and List of Rastafarians.

External links

• Scholarly profile
• Shorter, more colloquial profile
• Well written and simple site explaining basic Rasta ideas.
• Website to listen to Rastafarian reggae lyrics
• Old academic article
• Jamaican Observer article about Rasta and politics
• Marcus Garvey's prophecy of Haile Selassie
• Garvey critical of Haile Selassie
• Selassie's attitude to the Rastas
• Jamaican Gleaner 2001 letter asking not to call the religion Rastafarianism