understanding rastafari

What is Rastafari? • A young world religion, seen by some asjust a new religious or social movement,a cult or a sect with countercultureelements

• Followers and practitioners see Rastafarimore as a way of life or philosophy thanas a formal religion

What is Rastafari?

• Rastafari is an Afrocentric, monotheistic Abrahamic faith originating and evolvingin Jamaica from the 1930s onwards

• It is based on the Judeo – Christian belief in the god of Abraham, called Jah byRastas, and in the belief of the divine nature of Emperor Haile Selassie I ofEthiopia

• It places importance on Old Testament prophecies and in the contents of theBook of Revelations, with most practitioners following Jewish biblical laws andprohibitions

What is Rastafari?

• Rastafari is heavily influenced by African religious traditions, the politics ofAfricanism and the struggles against colonialism, oppression and the injusticesthat are a legacy of the slave trade and centuries of slavery

• Rastafari has emerged as well as a cultural phenomenon that resonates aroundthe world beyond its Jamaican and religious aspects

• It is estimated that there are around 1 million Rastafari practitioners around theworld, the majority in the Caribbean, but there may be many more who followsome of the spiritual or way of life aspects of the philosophy

Rastafari origins

• Originates in the 1930s among the disenfranchised poor of the slums of Kingston, Jamaica’s capital

• The nascent movement draws inspiration from preachers and thinkers with ‘back to Africa’ and Blackpride messages that resonate well with those who still live in great poverty and are oppressed andexploited by lighter skinned Jamaican and colonial elites a century after the abolition of slavery

• One such influential thinker whose teachings provided the ideological foundation for the Rastafariphilosophy and movement was Jamaica born Pan-Africanist Marcus Mosiah Garvey Jr, a prominentBlack activist in both the Caribbean and USA

• According to Rastafari lore, Marcus Garvey in his anti-colonial and pro-Africa speeches oftenmentioned to ‘Look to Africa for the crowning of a Black king’

• This was interpreted as prophecy by later Rastas, who consider Garvey as a second John the Baptist,though Garvey himself never identified as a Rasta or had much to do with the movement

Rastafari origins

• When in 1930 Ras Tafari Makonnen was crownedin Ethiopia as Emperor Haile Selassie I with thetitles ‘His Imperial Majesty the King of Kings ofEthiopia, Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah,Elect of God’, this was seen by many in Jamaicaas fulfilment of Marcus Garvey’s ‘prophecy’ and ofwhat was foretold in the Book of Revelations andother biblical passages

• The movement, further developed by preacherssuch as Leonard Percival Howell who promotedan Africanist inspired political spiritualism distinctfrom European Christianity and who saw HaileSelassie I as Jah incarnate and a messiah who willliberate all Black people and bring them back toEthiopia, seen as Zion and Paradise of Earth,slowly grew in numbers despite antagonism byJamaican elites and colonial authorities

• Crystallizing around the personality of LeonardHowell, the movement adopted the pre-coronation name of the Emperor, Ras Tafari(loosely meaning ‘the Prince who is respected)and started developing the philosophy, spiritualtenets and way of life that will characterizeRastafari, with many early practitioners followingHowell to his Pinnacle commune in Jamaica’scountryside

Rasta symbols

The Rastafari movement has adopted a number of symbols, most borrowed from Judeo-Christian andAfro-Ethiopian traditions, that thanks to reggae’s and Bob Marley’s popularity, are recognizable the worldover by the public at large, having been commercialized

Rasta colours are adopted from the Ethiopian flag and that of Marcus Garvey’s Africanist organization. Greenrepresents nature and the vegetation of Africa and Jamaica, as well as hope for the eradication of oppression. Goldrepresents the rich natural resources of Africa. Red represents the blood of the martyrs who died for the Rastafaricause and in the fight against black oppression. Black represents the colour of the skin of Africans, the original humansfrom whom we all descend

The Lion of Judah represents H.I.M. Emperor Haile Selassie I as well as being a symbol of strength, kingship, pride andAfrican sovereignty

The Star of David indicates the lineage of Haile Selassie, believed to be a direct descendant of David throughSolomon’s and the Queen of Sheba’s son Menelik, Ethiopia’s first historical Emperor

The inverted triangle, or Seal of Solomon hand sign, often seen in photos of the Emperor,supposedly represents the Trinity, but has many interpretations, some esoteric

Rasta talk

Rastas feel that they have been robbed of their native speech during the slave trade and consider Englishas an imposed colonial language. In reaction, they have created an organic dialect of Jamaican patoiscalled Iyaric, Dread-talk, Livalect or I-talk that reflects their world view and rejects English words withnegative connotations or sounds, replacing them with more positive and uplifting words, as well ascreating a lexicon particular to the philosophy that has seen some words adopted beyond the Rastacommunity, often due to reggae lyrics

Babylon is an important Rasta term that describes the negative aspects of Western society and its manifestations suchas colonialism, capitalism, materialism, greed and corruption, blaming it for the past Atlantic slave trade and its legacyof suffering and poverty. The term also applies to agents of oppression such as police and soldiers and explains thedisdain for –ism terminology

Zion on the other hand is an idealized version of the biblical Zion, referring physically to the Ethiopia or Africa thatRastas aspire to be repatriated to and considered to be Heaven on Earth, and metaphorically to a state of mindaccessible through Rastafari as a spiritual and cultural connection with African roots

Rasta talk

I and I (InI, I&I), a pronoun replacing ‘you’, ‘me’ and ‘we’ is an expression of the concept of oneness with Jah andamong people, as in ‘God is one and one is God’ meaning the divine is present in everyone, making the body atemple to be taken care of, and the knowledge of Jah inherent and waiting to be awoken

Everliving, as opposed to everlasting, represents the belief that true Rastas are immortal, both physically and spiritually,or through reincarnation, as they do not believe in the afterlife, but instead in Heaven on Earth

Irie, meaning ‘all right’. ‘great’ or ‘fine’, refers to anything that is good, peaceful vibrations and positive emotions orfeelings

Give ‘thanks and praises’ is the preferred way to say ‘thank you’

Downpression replaces ‘oppression’, because it keeps people down instead of lifting them up (op in patwa)

Overstanding or innerstanding is used instead of understanding, as under has a negative connotation

Bald head (Ball head) refers to a person who does not have dreadlocks

Polytricks is a Rasta term replacing ‘politics’, because so many politicians turn out to be more like tricksters

Marcus Garvey was born in 1887 in St Ann’sBay in Jamaica

In his youth he travelled and worked inCentral America

He became conscious of the racism, socialinjustice and injustice inflicted on Blackpeople by White society

After a time in the UK, he moved back toJamaica where he founded the UniversalNegro Improvement Association (UNIA), theorganization and work for which he is bestknown

Rastafari ‘prophet’- Marcus Mosiah Garvey Jr

He then moved to the USA where heorganized branches of the UNIA in the USAand many countries around the world

He started the inspirational but ultimatelyfailed Black Star Line, a shipping lineintended to bring Black people back toAfrica

Inspired and influential, he encounteredopposition to his ideas both from Blacksand Whites, and died in London in 1940

“We are going to emancipate ourselves from mental slavery because whilst others might free the body, none but ourselves can free the mind.”Marcus Garvey

A Pan-Africanist advocating Black pride and a Back to Africa policy,his ideas were controversial in that he saw no point in integrationand equality of Black people in White society, preferring insteadracial purity and the establishment of a Black nation in Africa

Promoting the concept of Black superiority based on the past historyof the African continent, with special emphasis on Ethiopia, hissuggestion to worship the everlasting God of Scripture through‘Ethiopian spectacles’ and his alleged prophecy to look out for thecrowning of an African king have provided the spiritual andideological foundation on which Rastafari is based

Though never a Rasta himself, he is considered the prophet of thereligion and is otherwise remembered and honoured as one of theearlier and most influential thinkers of his time among those whoworked for the social, economic and educational advancement of theBlack people, with the hope of making Africa a great nation taking itsrightful place in the world

Rastafari ‘prophet’- Marcus Mosiah Garvey Jr

Born in 1898 in Clarendon Parish in Jamaica, Howell travelled and worked abroad in his youth,including in Panama and New York, where he absorbed various philosophies and ideas onjustice, politics of the left and the Pan-Africanism and Ethiopism espoused by Marcus Garveyand other thinkers of the time

Being deported from the USA, he returned to Jamaica in 1932, where he started preachingthat the recently crowned Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia was the Christ returned, Godincarnate and the rightful King of the Black people, as foretold in biblical prophecy

His incendiary speeches on Black empowerment, against the church establishment andurging Black Jamaicans to owe allegiance to Emperor Haile Selassie I instead of George V willlead to his arrest on charges of sedition

This will initiate a cycle of imprisonments, internments in mental institutions, harassment andcriminal charges from the colonial and Jamaican authorities that will make Leonard Howellthe ‘most persecuted man in Jamaican history’

In 1935, Howell publishes ‘The Promised Key’, considered by many as the Rastafari manifesto,under the Hindu inspired pen name Gong Guru Maragh, which is why he is often referred toas ‘The Gong’The ‘First Rasta’

- Leonard Percival Howell

“His Majesty Ras Tafari is the head over all man for he is the Supreme God.”The Promised KeyG. G. Maragh(Leonard Percival Howell)

“Black People, Black People arise and shine for the light has come

and the glory ofthe King of Kings is now risen upon thee. Let not

the preachers of the white man’s doctrine persuade you to turn

your back against H. M. Ras Tafari the Lord God

of Israel.”

In 1940, having purchased 500 acres in Sligoville near Spanish Town, Howell foundsand leads The Pinnacle, a self sufficient Rastafari commune where several thousandRastas lived as farmers and craftsmen and where ganja was cultivated on a large scale,for medicinal, spiritual and commercial use, which will give reasons to the authoritiesto conduct several crackdowns and arrests of Leonard Howell

Massive raids are conducted in 1954 and finally in 1958, when the commune is burnedto the ground and its settlers dispersed

Following this, Leonard Howell will mostly disappear from public view until his deathin 1981

Considered by many as the ‘First Rasta’, his work and that of other early leaders gavedirection and inspiration to what will become the wider Rastafari movement

His family and admirers are now fighting to preserve his historical legacy, forgotten bymany, and to save what remains of The Pinnacle by making it a UNESCO listed Worldheritage Site and spiritual centre for Rastafari followers

The ‘First Rasta’- Leonard Percival Howell

Born in 1892 in the then Abyssinian Empire as Tafari Makonnen Woldemikael, amember of the Ethiopian feudal nobility claiming descent from King Solomon and theQueen of Sheba

The son of a provincial governor and chief advisor to Emperor Menelik II, TafariMakonnen, educated by private European tutors and showing great intelligence, willbe given positions of responsibility from an early age, including a provincialgovernorship from 1910 to 1916, and becoming known as Ras Tafari Makonnen

After helping overthrow the unpopular Muslim sympathising uncrowned EmperorIyasu V in 1916, he is appointed by the new Empress Zewditu as Regent and heirapparent, and later appointed as Negus (King) in 1928

During this period, Ras Tafari initiates modernizing reforms in Ethiopia, the onlysovereign and never colonized African country, managing to have it included in theLeague of Nations in 1923

On Empress Zewditu’s death in 1930, the Negus is crowned Emperor with full nameand titles being "By the Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah, His ImperialMajesty Haile Selassie I, King of Kings of Ethiopia, Elect of God"

Jah Incarnate- H.I.M Haile Selassie I

Haile Selassie’s lavish coronation on 2nd

November 1930 was attended by royals anddignitaries from around the world, includingGeorge V’s son, the Duke of Gloucester

H.I.M. becomes the first Black person tograce the cover of Time magazine

For many Black people around the world,seeing a Black African on an equal stagewith rulers and dignitaries from the Westand East, as the leader of a sovereign,ancient and proud nation with historical tiesto biblical dynasties, was a source ofimmense pride and of hope of better daysto come for people of African descent

This led many, especially among thoseinspired by Africanist thoughts from thelikes of Marcus Garvey, to see in theEmperor the returned messiah who wouldlead the African nation towards a betterfuture, even considering him as Godincarnate based on interpretation ofscripture, particularly from the Book ofRevelations, giving rise to the Rastafarimovement on this basis


“…that until the philosophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned;

that until there are no longer first class and second class citizens of any nation;

that until the colour of a man's skin is of no more significance than the colour of his eyes;

that until the basic human rights are equally guaranteed to all without regard to race;

that until that day, the dream of lasting peace and world citizenship and the rule of international morality will remain but a fleeting illusion, to be pursued but never attained.”

H.I.M. Haile Selassie IU.N. speech 1963

Haile Selassie I will confront a fascist invasion by Mussolini’s troops in 1935, forcinghim into exile and during which he made a famous speech at the League of Nationspleading for international help for his nation and foreseeing what was to come forother nations in the face of apathy for such annexations

It will take the onslaught of WWII for the Allies to help Haile Selassie I recover hiscountry in 1941

The Emperor pursued his reformist agenda at home, though encountering in theincoming years increasing dissension at home as well as problems with secessionistmovements in Eritrea

H.I.M. addressed the UN General Assembly in 1963, the only Head of State to haveaddressed both the League of Nations and the UN in such capacity, delivering animpassionate speech against colonialism and apartheid in Africa, rendered famous byBob Marley’s song WarJah Incarnate

- H.I.M Haile Selassie I

In 1966, the Emperor made a state visit toJamaica, a day known to Rastas as GrounationDay, where he was welcomed by thousands ofRastas mobbing the airport to get a glimpse oftheir living god

Contrary to the Jamaican government’sexpectations, in respect to the Rastas beliefs,he remained ambiguous about the nature ofhis divinity, though not making any claims ofbeing any more than a man

At home, the Emperor was deposed in aMarxist led coup in 1974, dying at age 83 in1975. This was met with disbelief by theRastas, who then found ways to reconcile theEmperor’s temporal and divine natures


Born Nesta Robert Marley in 1945 in Nine Miles, St Ann Parish in Jamaica, from anageing white Jamaican father and a black teenage mother

With a largely absent father, he grew up in relative poverty, first in the rural setting ofNine Miles, then from age 11 in the tough tenement yards of the Kingston ghetto ofTrench Town

His musical career starts in the early 1960s, joining talents with childhood friend NevilleLivingstone (Bunny Wailer) and Peter McIntosh (Peter Tosh) and finding local successas the Wailing Wailers

In 1966 he marries Rita Anderson, then moves for a few months to be with his motherwho had migrated to the USA, working in a factory to save money before returninghome to continue with his music together with The Wailers

Rastafari icon- Robert Nesta Marley

At around this time, having been influencedby Rasta musicians and inspired by EmperorHaile Selassie’s visit to Jamaica and by hiswife’s sudden conversion to Rastafari duringthe Emperor’s visit, Bob Marley embraced thespiritual and socio-political aspects ofRastafari

From then on, his musical style will be reggaeand his song writing will carry powerfulmessages about social injustices, oppressionand violence at home in Jamaica and aroundthe world, particularly in Africa where at thetime several countries were still underPortuguese colonial control or under whiteminority rule

His songs often referred as well to theRastafari faith, the belief in the divinity ofEmperor Haile Selassie I and the aspiration fora return to a united Africa for all people ofAfrican ancestry, what Rastas call Zion

Gaining international fame and acclaiminternationally in the 1970s, his influence grewat home, making some factionsuncomfortable with his anti-establishmentmessages and perceived support for one oftwo main political factions in Jamaica

In 1976, two days before a free concert aimedat easing political tensions in Jamaica,gunmen burst into the studio during arehearsal, wounding Bob Marley in the chestand arm, but not stopping him fromperforming at the concert


“Some people feel the rain, others just get wet.”Bob Marley

Diagnosed with cancer in 1977 but refusing conventional treatments in line withRastafari beliefs, Marley will continue recording and performing live to enormousinternational success, before succumbing to the disease in Miami in 1981, while on hisway back home from Europe

Considered as one of his generation’s most successful musicians and the firstinternational superstar to emerge from the ‘third world’, bridging rock and pop withworld music, Marley will accumulate rewards and honours and leave a legacy that isrelevant to this day and resonates around the world, especially among the lessfortunate and oppressed who identify with his universal messages of hope, resilienceand pride

Bob Marley’s music, charisma and talent have brought worldwide attention to Jamaica,reggae music and the Rastafari faith in a way that could have hardly been possible ifnot for him, prompting millions to adopt at least some aspects of Rastafari philosophy,beliefs and culture, as well as generating an industry around his image and what itrepresents


“Open your eyes, look within. Are you satisfied with the life you’re living?”Bob Marley

Buried with honours in Jamaica, revered by millions and consideredas a Rastafari poet, prophet and global icon, he leaves behind anumber of children many of whom have become talented musiciansin their own right, while his messages about positivity, peace andOne World, One Love will live for ever in the hearts of many


“Money can’t buy life”Bob Marley

Rasta world view, beliefs and practices

• Rastafari is a philosophy, a way of life, an understanding ofthe relationship between the individual and the divineessence of life, whether seen through the experience of aCreator god, be it Jah the god of the Bible and his earthlyrepresentative H.I.M. Emperor Haile Selassie I, or throughmore individual spiritual experiences, as the belief system isopen to personal interpretations

• Lacking a formal structure, dogma or book of rules,consistent with Rastas mistrust of organized systems,Rastafari has however a set of beliefs, practices and a worldview that are common among those who identify as Rastas,although allowing room for personal insight


• As an Afro-centric and biblical inspired faith, Rastas see Black Africans asthe true Israelites that have been displaced from Africa, particularlyEthiopia, considered as Zion or Heaven on Earth, or denied their Africanhistory and earlier supremacy, through the unjust and oppressiveinstitutions of slavery, colonialism and manipulated Christianity created bywhite society and its instruments of power, called Babylon by Rastas

• Through an Afro-centric reinterpretation of scripture such as the KingJames Bible, considered to have been tampered with in its translation todeny Africans their true nature and justify slavery, and a personalknowledge of Jah as a divinity present in each human being, Rastas havecreated a system of spirituality and a way of life to better interpret theircurrent experience in the world, to find a new and proud identity relatingto their history and away from the inferiority complex created by slaveryand colonialism and, and to strive for an eventual return to Africa / Zion /Ethiopia, be it physically through repatriation or mentally by embracingAfricanness and a natural way of life as idealized as being that of Africa

Rasta world view, beliefs

and practices

• These aspirations were somehow fulfilled with the coronation of Emperor Haile Selassie I, seen as fulfilmentof biblical prophecy and paving the way for the much expected return to Zion

• As an open belief system, not all Rastas believe in the literal divinity of Haile Selassie, or of him being thereturned Messiah, a point made clear by the Emperor himself, and later by his earthly death, with Rastasfinding other interpretations of the Emperor’s nature but generally agreeing on his special position as aperson, inspiring African leader and beacon of hope


• Rastafari preaches love,peacefulness, respect for nature,the importance of life andrespect for it, detachment frommaterial possessions and placesemphasis on spirituality,righteousness and positivity,reflected in the way Rastas speakand their choice of words andtheir phonetic connotations

• Rastas refer to their practices as’livity’, generally shunning theconsumption of meat -particularly pork, shellfish,processed food, the drinking ofalcohol, the taking of hard drugsand the smoking of cigarettes,based on Old Testamentscripture and ancient Israelitepractices, though those areindividual choices for those whowant to live according to theRasta way of life, which considershealth important as the body isseen as a temple for the MostHigh and should be treatedaccordingly


• Without a formal structure, Rastafari has no priesthood, favouring a direct relation between the worshipperand the divinity, though some elders having attained a good reputation in the community may beaccorded special respect and play influential roles

• There are no houses of worship or particular days set for worship in Rastafari, though assemblies known as‘reasoning’ or ‘grounding’ are often held in community centres or in someone’s home

• Reasoning sessions provide a time for chants, prayers and singing, and for communal or spiritual issues tobe discussed, while Ganja may be ritualistically smoked to produce heightened spiritual states amongparticipants

• Rastas celebrate a number of holidays, generally at dates related to H.I.M. Haile Selassie and Ethiopia

Rasta world view, beliefs and practices• Though most Rastas distrust institutions, many are however associated, often loosely, with one of the many ‘mansions’ or branches of Rastafari, the three main ones being the Nyabinghi, Bobo Ashanti and Twelve Tribes of Israel, which differ on their views about certain beliefs, practices and symbols

• Rastafari has no sacred text, drawing instead inspiration from various sources, chiefly the Bible as well as the Afrocentric Holy Piby, The Royal Parchment Scroll of Black Supremacy, the Kebra Negast, The Promised Key, writings of Marcus Garvey and speeches by Haile Selassie I

Ital, derived from the word vital,is a generally vegetarian orvegan diet followed by mostRastas, as part of their way oflife aiming at enhancing ‘livity’,the universal energy and lifeforce inherent in all livingbeings

The general principle of an Italdiet is that food should benatural and pure, from theearth, as fresh, unprocessed andraw as possible, free fromadditives, preservatives andother chemicals; and in mostcases dairy, oil, sugar and saltfree

Ital- The Rasta diet

The diet has also a spiritual dimension, originally inspired by Old Testament dietaryrecommendations, Hinduism and Buddhism, and is mostly vegetarian or vegan,though some eat fish and use kosher salt

Rastas respect all life, and eating meat from an animal, especially one bred forslaughter and having lived an unhappy life, is not desirable as it introducesnegative vibrations into the body and can affect consciousness


Ital food is usually cooked in earthen pots using wooden spoons, and ispreferably self grown or sourced nearby for freshness

In Jamaica and elsewhere, Ital food in new and creative ways is beingintroduced to non-Rastas as a spiritually meaningful, healthy, tasty andpositive alternative to established vegetarian and vegan cuisines


Although dreadlocks and other forms of matted hair have been worn by peopleof different cultures since antiquity, in today’s popular culture, the style isgenerally associated with Rastafari

Wearing hair in dreadlocks is not only one way for Rastas to differentiate fromnon-Rastas and distance themselves from the grooming norms of ‘Babylon’, buthas also a spiritual justification, and cultural and symbolic significance

Rastas in general follow the biblical command found in Leviticus 21:5 “They shallnot make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner oftheir beard nor make any cuttings in their flesh”

Dreadlocks- The Rasta look

Like the biblical story of Samson, Rastas believe that their hair is their strength,and that cutting it can weaken them

Dreadlocks also symbolize the mane of the lion, as in the Lion of Judah

Africanist Jamaicans started wearing hair locks to identify with their Africanheritage, as many tribes such as the Maasai wore their hair in this way, a fashionthat the Jamaican establishment deemed ‘dreadful’


By the late 1940s and early 1950s, in line withtheir religious beliefs, symbolism and as part oftheir natural living philosophy, as well as beinginspired by the locked hair style of the Mau-Mau rebels in Kenya, Rastas adopted thishairstyle as part of their connection to Jah andto their African heritage and pride

Often persecuted by the authorities for beingRastas, the cutting of dreadlocks, often inpublic, was one way to humiliate and punishfollowers of the movement

Now often worn by non-Rastas as fashion or asa statement of individuality or anti-conformism,the significance, history of oppression andsymbolic value of the hair style should beappreciated


Together with dreadlocks andreggae, the smoking of Ganja isoften what most people associatewith Rastas and Rastafari

Not all Rastas smoke it, and there isno compulsion to do so whenfollowing a Rastafari way of life

Many however do smoke it, and findjustification for this in scripture, aswell is in their African heritage andin the spiritual practice of smoking itby many cultures, in particularHinduism, with the smoking of theplant being introduced by Indianlabourers coming to Jamaica in the19th century

Ganja- The Holy Herb

Rastas refer to biblical passages such as Psalm 104:14 ‘He causeth the grass for the cattle, and herb for the services of man’ and Revelation 22:2 ‘the leaves of the tree of life (ganja) were for the healing of the nation’, as the reason why they smoke the Herb, which they believe grew on King Solomon’s grave

Usually not referred as marihuana, but instead as‘Holy Herb’, ‘Wisdom Weed’, ‘Ganja’, ‘Callie’ or‘Healing of the Nation’, the smoking of ingestingof the herb is thought to provide wisdom, openthe mind to the truth, allow Rastas to discovertheir inner spiritual self and get closer to Jah, aswell as having medicinal properties and multiplepractical purposes as a plant provided by Jah forhumankind, as stated in Genesis 1:29

The ritual smoking of Ganja for spiritualpurposes usually takes place during ‘reasoning’sessions, when a prayer is said before lighting a‘chalice’ that is then passed around theassembled members


Although banned since 1913 but notseverely outlawed, Rasta communities suchas Howell’s Pinnacle were harassed forgrowing and selling ganja, leading toarrests and incarceration after the laws weretightened in the early 1940s and promptingmany legal fights in Jamaica and elsewherefor the right of Rastas to smoke ganja aspart of their spiritual rituals

Since 2015, in line with increasingliberalization in many countries regardingmarihuana consumption, and so as not tobe left behind in the expected economicwindfalls from legal marihuana, Jamaica hasdecriminalized consumption, possessionand growing of small quantities of ganja, aswell as making it legal for Rastas to smokethe herb as part of their spiritual rituals, along awaited right


During spiritual meetings known as ‘groundations’, which aregatherings of Rastas to commemorate significant dates, such as thebirth of H.I.M. Haile Selassie I or his 1966 visit to Jamaica (GrounationDay), the beating of drums and singing of Rastafari themed ‘chants’ areperformed throughout

This type of music, mixing 19th century gospel music and Kumina (anAfro-Jamaican folk religion) inspired African drumming, is calledNyabinghi music, which is also used as the name for the gatherings andis the name of one of the major ‘mansions’ of Rastafari, deriving itsname from an 19th century Ugandan / Rwandan anti-colonialpossession cult led by a woman possessed by the spirit of deified early18th century Queen Nyabinghi

Reggae- The Sound of Rastafari

The rhythms of Kumina and Nyabinghi drumming were introduced into popular Jamaican music mainlythanks to Rastafari master drummer Count Ossie and his group, influencing new emerging styles from thelate 1950s to 1960s

Reggae as a musical genre emerged in the late 1960s from earlier genres such as mento, considered as Jamaican calypso, ska and rocksteady, with R&B, jazz, Kumina, African and Nyabinghi musical influences

Heavy on drums and bass, the rhythm started appearing in the UK and USA charts and influencing artistssuch as Johnny Nash, Paul Simon and most famously Eric Clapton who in 1974 topped the charts with hiscover version of Bob Marley and The Wailers’ song ‘I Shot the Sheriff’


Bob Marley and friends Bunny Wailer and PeterTosh had formed the group The Wailing Wailers in1963, finding some local success recording at firstska and rocksteady tunes, then embracing reggae

From 1966 and under the influence of his wife Ritaand other prominent Rastas, Marley embracedRastafari and began to grow dreadlocks andinfusing his music’s lyrics, especially his reggaesongs, with powerful messages relating toRastafari philosophy, pronouncements fromMarcus Garvey, Leonard Howell and Haile Selassie,social and racial justice themes and praise for thespiritual and health benefits of Ganja smoking

Becoming an international sensation from the mid1970s, Bob Marley not only introduced reggae tothe world, but also Rastafari, paving the way forthe music to be intimately associated with themovement and for many more musicians of thereggae genre to use the music to spread theRastafari message in Jamaica and around theworld


Rasta themed reggae is often known as roots reggae todifferentiate it from the less spiritually and socially engageddancehall music now more popular in Jamaica and theCaribbean

Inspiring musicians all over the world, whether they followwholly, partially or minimally the Rastafari way of life orspiritual belief, reggae has contributed like no other aspect toglobalize Rastafari, from an obscure Afrocentric Jamaican cultwith few followers into a global phenomenon, which even iffor many just a fashion has prompted people to take notice ofthe more positive messages of the philosophy, through agreat sounding music with lyrics that speak of oppression,poverty, injustice and the daily struggles of the downtroddenmasses


Rastafari as a global phenomenon

Born as an Africanist Jamaican cult centred around the newlycrowned Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie I, the messages andphilosophy of Rastafari spread first around the Caribbean, wherepeople shared similar experiences and outlooks as Jamaicans

With the popularity of Bob Marley and reggae, the Rastafarimessage reached the wider world, appealing to the worlddownpressed who related to the Jamaicans and Africans experiencesin their own struggles

As its popularity grew and the internet age made information widelyavailable, sympathisers, wanna-be Rastas and those into reggae andRasta style appeared in all corners of the globe, with many musiciansembracing reggae and sometimes the Rasta way of life, or aspects ofit

Without a strict dogma, organized structure or formal conversionritual, anyone can embrace the Rastafari way of life if following themain tenets that allow one to sincerely consider oneself a Rasta

Although as a spiritual belief based on the Old Testament there maybe some unsavoury aspects for those choosing to follow them, thecore messages of One Love, One World, Peace, Unity, Equality, livinga natural life and fighting for human rights and an end to oppressionare Rastafari’s valuable contribution to global culture that we can allrelate to, appreciate and give thanks for…

I-man give thanks to I and I for listening to this I-sentation, and hope it will give I and I a better overstanding of Rastafari livity.

One love…

“Throughout history, it has been the inaction of

those who could have acted; the indifference of

those who should have known better; the silence

of the voice of justice when it mattered most;

that has made it possible for

evil to triumph.”

H.I.M. Haile Selassie I

understanding rastafari

Spiritual