Rastafarian movement

The Rastafarian movement (or "rasta1") is a religious movement whose name comes from the Amharic Ras Tafari Ras, head (but here "leader, Lord"), and Tafari, "He who is afraid."Tafari is the birth name given to Haile Selassie I (Haile, "power" and Selassie "Trinity" in Amharic) Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. It is thus seen as a sacred figurebecause of his ancestry, which dates back to biblical kings David and Solomon, according to Ethiopian tradition, but also the meaning of his birth name, such as the one chosen by the priests of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church for the sacrament. The choice and meaning of names were indeed of paramount importance in African culture.
The Rastafarian movement is considered by some to a religion, for others a philosophy oran ideology or a syncretism for its borrowings from the Bible. Rastas, them, view it as alifestyle, a way of conceiving the world and all that is since its inception. Believers of this movement are Rastafarians, often called by the diminutive "Rastas".
The use of the word Rastafarianism, although correct is not accepted by Rastafarians [ref.desired] because they are against the classification of people and advocate the unificationof peoples.
For others, the Rastafari would derive its true origin of shivaïsme2. Shaivism is part of Hinduism. Shiva, primordial divinity in Hinduism, keep long hair in dreads. It is alwaysimmersed in meditation.

The Christian religion is very present in Jamaica (over 80% of the population), including the Anglican, Methodist, Baptist, Roman Catholic, Church of God, and since the 1970s, the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.
The gospel (gospel) is sung with fervor on Sunday throughout the island. The end of slavery(abolished on the island in 1833) and especially the independence of Jamaica (August 6, 1962) allow simultaneous cultural emancipation of the Jamaican people. Different movements "Ethiopian" emerge, where the Western interpretation of the Bible is sometimes questioned.
The traditions of African cults banned by the masters [ref. needed] survivors as Obeah(voodoo kind of local illegal and feared), the Kumina, and mixed with the Bible, or thePocomania Pukumina.

When the Jamaican Marcus Garvey emigrated to Harlem, where he became one of the first leaders of the black cause significant, it often refers to Ethiopia in his speeches. He writes in his principal work Philosophy & Opinions:"Let the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob exist for the race that believes in the God of Isaac and Jacob. We, blacks, believe in the God of Ethiopia, the everlasting God, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, the God of all ages.It is the God in whom we believe, and we worship through the lens of Ethiopia. "Marcus Garvey is for many the first black prophet of the Rastafarian movement. He announced the end of the suffering of black people and his return to the roots: Africa.In 1924, Reverend James Morris Webb gave a speech quoted in the conservative Daily Gleaner, "Look to Africa where a black king will be crowned, that will lead black people to its issuance"The colonial press denounced this doctrine then Ethiopianism "vulgar" she attributed to Garvey. But November 2, 1930, Ethiopia, Tafari Makonnen, Ras Tafari, was crowned with the sacred crown of the Negus Nagast (King of Kings) by the name of Haile Selassie I ("Power of the Trinity"). He is the head of one of the first officially Christian nation in history, Abyssinia. According to the sacred book Glory of Kings (Kebra Nagast), tracing the history of the ancient dynasty, Selassie is a direct descendant of King Solomon and Queen Makeda of Sheba.Prestigious representatives of Western countries attending the coronation of Selassie high profile, which is perceived by a community of farmers Ethiopianism Sligoville (Jamaica), the Pinnacle, led by Leonard Percival Howell (real founder of the Rastafarian movement), as the fulfillment of the prophecy attributed to Garvey.Indeed, the "King of Kings, Lord of lords" (1 Timothy 6:15) the Bible is very similar to traditional titles millennia of His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie I, "Emperor of Ethiopia, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah, Elect of God, Light of the Universe. " Drawing both in Marxism, Christianity, African culture and later Hinduism, Howell considers Selassie (or "Jah," Jehovah's) as the Messiah and therefore proposes an Afrocentric interpretation of the Bible.Cultivating hemp, which is considered a sacrament (smoked in the chalice) and spreading to the island, he was arrested for sedition in 1933 and he was interned in an asylum several times, while Pinnacle was destroyed many times by the police. Ethiopianism different movements of liberation, as the movement of Bobo Prince Emmanuel, parallel development in Jamaica. Yet they take gradually a generic name, Rastafari, and are intended, in part, to return to the black man the important role he played in civilization, starting with the Bible, where the ancestors of Jews would Selassie Naturally, like him, Black Moses, Jesus, etc..Gradually, and in the hope of Jesus and the Nazarites (Numbers 6-5), many Rastafarians do not cut their beards or hair, (link) a hairstyle often compared to the mane of the Lion of Judah sacred. The "locks" (nodes, loops) or "dread (dread) locks" will then form naturally in their curly hair.Wishing to maintain good health, they follow a special diet in principle they call "I-tal" (life) (1:29 ET Genesis 9:4), which consists of rice, fruits, roots, seeds and vegetables. This diet excludes all non-organic food.As for the name "Rasta", it originates from, divine, Selassie: Ras (head, is etymologically and his ceremonial title of Duke) Tafari (her name). Their colors are those of the imperial Ethiopia (red, gold and green colors of Africa struck the Lion of Judah).Therefore, the Rastafarians, misunderstood, profanity, smoking hemp (ganja, "the grass of wisdom" that would have led to the tomb of Solomon) become pariahs abused. In 1954, Pinnacle is shaved, and they moved to Kingston, Back-o-Wall. The name of the ghetto comes from its location: it is attached to the wall of a cemetery, and many Jamaicans are afraid to live there for fear of "duppy" (ghost).

Following the prophecy of the crowning of a king in Africa, the advent to power of the monarch Haile Selassie, as the biblical "King of kings and Lord of Lords, Conquering Lion of the tribe of Judah, Light of the World" appeared for the Rastafarians as the revelation of a messenger of Jah, which would lead to the release of their suffering. Thus, it is commonly said qu'Hailé Selassie, the image of Jesus, Jah incarnate, Man and God.This belief is very important in the Rasta philosophy, although often difficult to accept, even among people close to the movement. Thus the artist-producer Yabby You, although very mystical, he always refused this deity. Legend has it that it gets its nickname from the fact that Jesus Dread asked singers who work for him to mention Jesus Selassie rather than in their words ...Haile Selassie himself never admitted to his Rastafarian cult person, although he showed his gratitude by making Rastas donations of land in Ethiopia, then making a memorable trip to Jamaica in 1966. This land is called Shashamane: Haile Selassie provides that land in the 50 to all members of the Black Diaspora who wish to return to Africa through the Ethiopian World Federation (EWF) which he founded. It was an act to thank American and Caribbean blacks present at his coronation in Addis Ababa and tried to raise awareness of the plight of Ethiopia after the invasion of Italian troops in the country. This land would then become the symbol for some Rastafarians for repatriation to Africa.Thus, dignitaries met Rastafarians during his visit to Jamaica, responding to the desire for them to return to Africa, he made the following proposal: "Do not return to Africa until you have released all the oppressed Jamaicans in their country . "Finally, life and death of Haile Selassie have a strong symbolic dimension, especially in his death and the events that followed. For Rastas, Haile Selassie did not disappear (Jah Live Bob Marley). See his page for more details about the death of Selassie and the various graves.

Haile Selassie made an official visit to Jamaica in April 1966.Upon arrival, thousands of Rastafarians reserving it, to his surprise, an impressive home.The movement subsequently take on even greater significance, though Selassie, gracious with Rastafarians, does not claim itself to be the ever living god.This visit had a significant impact on the importance and popularity of the Rasta movement. Indeed, the authorities have not been able to secure the crowd during the official arrival of the aircraft on the ground of Jamaica. It was so important and excited to finally see the King of Kings, which had to seek a mediator for the channel. It will be played by Mortimer Planno, well known at the time for his teachings Rasta, Bob Marley that will affect many others. Thus, Mortimer Planno will now be present at every public appearance of Haile Selassie on this trip.It goes without saying that such a thing was never intended by the protocol, and consisted of an important manifestation of the presence of Rastas.On the other hand, the visit was for many Jamaicans the opportunity to confront the different beliefs conveyed by the movement, and worry his own idea. Thus, during this visit, Rita Marley, by observing the hand of Haile Selassie, is confident of having seen the stigmata of Christ. Bob Marley Rasta became that year 1966. Back in Ethiopia Haile Selassie I spoke to his confidants in these terms: "There is a big problem in Jamaica ..." For the king of Ethiopia has never recognized the cult rasta to his person. Which is interpreted by many Rastafarians (and the humor of their own) as a manifestation of all divine dignity. On the occasion of this trip Selassie sat around a table with thirty-two each representing a Rastafarian community. The discussion focuses on the theme of returning to Africa. Selassie offer them the opportunity to land an Ethiopian shashamany hitherto reserved for the Falashas (Ethiopian Jews). But only a few Rastas (mainly community Twelwes Tribes Of Israel) will return to the land of their ancestors.

Back-o-Wall was torn down July 12, 1966 violence. More and more musicians to rocksteady and reggae, hitherto generally close to American soul and churches convey the message of Rasta rebellion with their songs.The style of the three drums played Nyahbinghi ceremonies Rastas (Groundation) spreads (Bob Marley will learn a song, Selassie Is The Chapel). From 1970, a current passes through the majority rasta reggae. Bob Marley introduced the world to this culture that highlights the history of Africa, unknown, despite his extraordinary wealth. Rastas begin to gain respect in their country despite a crackdown using the prohibition of possession of cannabis, punishable by prison despite widespread throughout the population of the island.On the other hand, the music industry finally opens the message Rasta in the production of Conscious songs to the words open to the message of Rastafarians. So until then despised by producers and distributors of the island, the Rasta message begins, after a number of Rastafarians, some expelled from Back-o-Wall settled in the ghettos of Kingston, as Trenchtown and after the visit of Haile Selassie, to be felt among the population deprived of the island.Whereas before, the producers like Duke Reid, categorically refused, some, like Clement Seymour Dodd, Coxsone said, opening their production to compositions comprising a spiritual message and committed, contrary to prevailing love songs during the rocksteady era. His studio, Studio One starts to produce bands and artists with inspired words of Rasta message like The Gladiators, The Abyssinians, or Dennis Brown and many others.The fact that Coxsone was one of the few to allow the use of hemp in his studio is certainly no stranger to the presence in Studio One of these groups initiators of roots reggae.

If Rastas lose influence among young Jamaicans after the death of Marley in 1981, theyremain strong and make a massive return, unanimous in reggae since 1994 with GarnettSilk, Buju Banton, Tony Rebel, Mutabaruka , Sizzla, etc.. Many different trends rasta live in Jamaica and are sometimes contradictory. The Bobo Ashanti, Emmanuélite the Ites, in particular, as well as more traditional branches of Christianity.
The positions of individuals are Rastas claiming racism as the primary outcome of the struggle against slavery and colonialism, ethnocentrism or noiriste militant, Garveyismexcessive, sometimes tinged with racism, universalist philosophy to a deep where the search for his own identity, acceptance, tolerance and human nature joined Easternphilosophies and asceticism. [nonneutral]
The organization of the Twelve Tribes of Israel Rastafari attempt to federate, but withoutsuccess. In 1997 a party of obedience rasta even try to run for office.
Peaceful but proud, generally displaying a certain arrogance [nonneutral] Rastasdenounce pagan society (people with no sense of the spiritual aspect of life and nature in general), Babylon, and spread their culture in the world the world.
Rastafarian faith primarily to allow many poor Jamaicans to find dignity and meaning totheir lives difficult, remaining detached from the colonial identity rooted in their African roots. The universal basic idea is to "be yourself" and "knowing."
Culture and Rastafarian precepts tend to crystallize into a new organized religion, whichwould be the largest born in the twentieth century. For many Rastas [Who?], This trend is adrift.