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Rastafarians: Like A Lion In Zion

MrRING

MrRING

Android Futureman
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Rastafarian religion seems like an interesting phenomenon - is it considered a mainstream religious body, a spiritual movement, or a cult? Here is a great site on the subject:

http://www.rasta-man.co.uk/religion.htm

The Rastafarian religion originated in Africa. It is often associated with the poorer black population of Jamaica. It is not just a religion, but a way of life. Rastafarians speak out against; poverty, oppression and inequality.....not just religious ideas but global problems. Rastafarians will use the Holy Piby, the Kebra Nagast and the Bible (interpreted with a Rasta soul) for guidance.

The prime basic belief of the Rastafarians is that Haile Sellassie is the living God for the black race. Sellassie, whose previous name was Ras Tafari, was the black Emperor of Ethiopia. Rastafarians say scriptures prophesised him as the one with "the hair of whose head was like wool (the matted hair of I black man), whose feet were like unto burning brass (I black skin)".

Haile Sellassie was reported dead, Rastas do not believe it. They believe it was a trick of the media to try and bring their faith down. Rastafarians believe that Haile Sellassie I has trodded on to the perfect flesh, and sits on the highest point of Mount Zion where He and Empress Menen await the time of judgment.

The Lion of Judah represents Haile Sellassie, the Conqueror. It represents the King of Kings as a lion is the king of all beasts. Sellassie wore a Lion of Judah ring that was given to Bob Marley at the time of Sellassie's reported death.

Babylon is the Rastafarian term for the white political power structure that has been holding the black race down for centuries. In the past, Rasta see that blacks were held down physically by the shackles of slavery. In the present, Rasta feel that blacks are still held down through poverty, illiteracy, inequality, and trickery by the white man.

One of the more obvious symbols of the Rastafarians are colours. These are red, gold, and green. The colour red stands for the Church Triumphant which is the church of the Rastas. It also symbolises the blood that martyrs have shed in the history of the Rastas. The yellow represents the wealth of the homeland. Green represents the beauty and vegetation of Ethiopia, the promised land. Sometimes black is used to represent the colour of Africans, to whom 98% of the Jamaicans are descended

Ganja, is used for religious purposes for Rastafarians. The use of this herb is extensive among the Rastas not only for spiritual purposes as in their Nyabingi celebration, but also for medicinal purposes. The dreadlocks on a Rasta's head are symbolic of the Lion of Judah.

Here is a short list of some important dates;

23rd July - celebration of the birth of Tafari Makonnen (Haile Sellassie)
17th August - Birth of Marcus Garvey
27th August - The reported death of Haile Sellassie I........a celebration that he lives on within our spirits.
11 September - Ethiopian new year
2nd November - Anniversary of the crowning of Ras Tafari Makonnen - Emperor Haile Sellassie I Power of the Holy Trinity, Two Hundred and twenty-fifth Emperor of the Solomonic Dynasty, Elect of god, Lord of lords, Negus Negast kings of kings, Conquering lion of the tribe of Judah )
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And here is a current article talking about current adherants:

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20050204/lf_afp/afplifestyleethiopia_050204171153

And this site ties it to the teachings of Marcus Garvey:

http://www.rism.org/isg/dlp/ganja/analyses/Garvey&Rasta.html
 
Cool. There are a bunch of Rastafarians in our neighboorhood. I think they all come from Jamaica and are probably not even US citizens or if they are, they're brand new. I've only lived here since last July so I don't know anyone that well, but two of the Rasta guys I talk to mentioned that they don't smoke weed (Ganja) or drink alcohol or caffeine. I think they even mentioned some Reggae musician who was espousing this straight edge (for lack of a better word) philosophy. I wonder if this is some kind of new Rastafarian temperance movement. Could Rastafarianism be gearing up for a schism? (Ooo ~ that sentence rhymed!) I hadn't realized smoking Ganja was ceremonial. I assumed it was nothing more than a cultural passtime. EDIT: I just read that final link. "Burning Spear" was who those guys were talking about! So they must have been Garveyites. I love the FTMB.

This next bit is a little snide: My husband works at an expensive private University. His program is largely populated by alienated white stoner kids from wealthy families. Some of them listen to Reggae and dread their hair and shop at thrift stores even though they have $5000.00 a month allowances. Anyway, people call these kids "Trustafarians" but not to their faces. "Trust" as in trust fund ~ get it? I kinda feel sorry for them. :roll:
 
example said:
Cool. There are a bunch of Rastafarians in our neighboorhood. I think they all come from Jamaica and are probably not even US citizens or if they are, they're brand new. I've only lived here since last July so I don't know anyone that well, but two of the Rasta guys I talk to mentioned that they don't smoke weed (Ganja) or drink alcohol or caffeine. ...
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Those guys probably consider themselves 'I-tal'. I used to know a Rastafarian singer who followed a similiar line. Perhaps, some Rastafarians believe too much concentration on the sacred 'Erb gets in the way of their relationship with Jah Rastafar-I? Or, perhaps, it's a sort of 'mens sano in corpora sana' (a healthy mind in a healthy body) thing? That would seem like an I-tal atitude.

A similiar thing probably happened to the early Christians. No more magic mushrooms and 'erb tea, but they couldn't quite lose the associations with wine.

And, I wonder when Islam became so strongly anti-alcohol? A jug of wine appears to be mentioned in The Rubyat of Omar Khyam, though that may be down to the Victorian translation. It is supposed to be a Sufi poem, perhaps Alexius knows. Islamic art and music seems to reflect a certain familiarity with the non-medicinal uses of marijuana.
 
Edward Fitzgerald's translation of the Rubaiyat sets out to depict Omar Khayyam as a carousing humanist - in fact, he was a sufi polymath. references to wine, women and song are held to be metaphoric - the tavern, for example, is the 'house of drunks' - a sufi gathering place.

The recreational use of alchohol and other drugs has a very long history in Islamic culture, even though wine is considered at least inadvisable (if not forbidden - depends on your interpretation) and other intoxicants advised against by analogy. Usage could be rather creative - at least one Ottoman sultan smoked opium through a water pipe filled with rakı (much akin to Pernod)..... ;)
 
at least one Ottoman sultan smoked opium through a water pipe filled with rakı (much akin to Pernod).....
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I thik that deserves at least two ;) ;)

one :shock:

and at least three :blah: :blah: :blah:

followed by a final :splat:
 
OT, but this talk about temperance, esp. with regards to Islam has got me wondering. I've heard Christian fundamentalism equated to Islamic fundamentalism; both being described as part of some new trend or 'conservative backlash'. Maybe within a religious framework, temperance is more about denial and suffering than health and sanity. Wasn't hurting one's self a component in a lot of religions back in the old days? You know: make yourself suffer to prove your loyalty or remorse to God? Maybe (as a form of religious expression) temperance is a contemporary and much softer version of old school crowd-pleasers like self-flagellation. :?:
 
Jamaican honour for Marley home

The Jamaican home of reggae legend Bob Marley is to be declared a national monument, 25 years after his death. Musician Marley, who died of cancer in 1981, would have turned 61 this week. His home has become the Tuff Gong International music studio, but remains a major tourist attraction in the Jamaican capital Kingston. Officials said the tribute will recognise Marley's work in promoting his home country overseas. No official date has been set for the ceremony.

The singer was born in St Ann, Jamaica in 1945, but despite his global fame, government officials have repeatedly ignored calls to name the reggae star a national hero. Only seven Jamaicans have been bestowed the title national hero, including civil rights leader Marcus Garvey and former Prime Minister Alexander Bustamante.

Celebration concert

Marley, who was behind songs such as Get Up Stand Up and One Love, was given the Order of Merit, Jamaica's third-highest honour, a month before his death in Miami, aged 36. A peacemaker and champion of Africa throughout his life, Marley's 60th birthday saw thousands converge on the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa for a celebration concert last year.

Organised by the Bob Marley Foundation and the African Union, among others, it marked the first time his birthday had been celebrated outside his native Jamaica. Ethiopia is the spiritual home of Rastafarianism, a religion with which Marley was closely associated.


Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/e ... 692370.stm

Published: 2006/02/08 09:24:44 GMT
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Jamaica: Row over status of first Rasta village
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-news-fr ... e-26016900

News from Elsewhere...
...as found by BBC Monitoring

Donisha Prendergast says the supporters will "camp out and reason"

Bob Marley's granddaughter has become involved in a campaign to protect the site of Jamaica's first Rastafarian community, it appears.

Donisha Prendergast and other supporters are occupying a tabernacle - a Rastafarian place of worship - near the village established by Leonard P Howell in the 1930s, according to the Jamaica Gleaner.

The campaign wants the property - a hilltop called The Pinnacle west of the capital, Kingston - to belong to the Howell family and the community.

Continue reading the main story
“
Start Quote

No black person in Jamaica owned property, nothing compared to Pinnacle”

Monty Howell
Jamica Observer
Prendergast told the newspaper: "We are not going anywhere, one by one we are filing in, we are going to camp out and reason."

It appears that the Rastafarian community may have no title to the land, but they claim they are entitled to use it due to their historical and cultural connection to the site.

A quarter-acre plot on The Pinnacle has been declared a national monument, the Jamaica Observer says. But the campaign is calling for the whole area to be preserved.

The dispute over ownership on The Pinnacle has been the subject of long-running controversy, with Howell's descendants fighting court cases against local developers.

Boys pose in front of a mural of Leonard P Howell at The Pinnacle

Leonard P Howell established the Rastafari village in the 1930s but it was destroyed in 1953

Howell's son, Monty, says papers proving the family's ownership of the land were destroyed during the 1930s and 1940s because the island's then-colonial authorities thought it "presumptuous" for Howell to own it.

"No black person in Jamaica owned property, nothing compared to Pinnacle," he told the Jamaica Observer. "They tried everything to chase my father off that land."

The case is heading back to the courts in Jamaica this week.

Use #NewsfromElsewhere to stay up-to-date with our reports via Twitter.
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Rastafarianism Fastest Growing Religion Among British Army
The number of followers joining the armed forces has increased by more than any other faith group, says the British Ministry of Defence (MoD).
A Freedom of Information request has shown there are currently 210 Rastas in the armed forces – that’s up 40 per cent since 2016, when there were 150. Sources said the MoD had to broaden its recruiting horizons after thousands of sailors, soldiers and airmen were sacked as part of defence cuts.
...
Druids make up the smallest group among alternative religions within the forces, with 10 members of the faith in the UK military.
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James_H said:
Rastafarianism Fastest Growing Religion Among British Army
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Here'a Rasta Commando officer. In the image below though there's a Rasta RSM, he could hardly yell at a soldier to "get your hair cut you 'orrible little man!".

Capt Kidane Cousland was the first officer of Rastafarian faith in the commandos. He went on to set up the Defence Rastafari Network to help support other Rastafarians in the military.

"I don't remember a time not wanting to join the Army," says 30-year-old Capt Kidane Cousland, known as Danny to his comrades. "All the toys I had were little commando toys or Rambo bandanas. It just felt part of my internal narrative for as long as I can remember."

True to his childhood dreams, Danny grew up to become a commando himself. He joined the Army in 2008, completing his basic training in Harrogate before going on to be posted to 29 Commando Regiment and earning his "green lid" or beret. The green beret is only worn by Royal Marines or other personnel from the Army, Navy or RAF who have completed the gruelling commando course. Tests include a 30 mile (48km) cross-terrain endurance march and timed Tarzan assault course.

Danny says he didn't get on well at school. He "bounced" around different schools and remembers often sitting outside the headteacher's office.

"I had learning difficulties that weren't identified by my teachers, so I just became really disillusioned with it," he says. "I knew I was more intelligent than I was allowed to express, but I wasn't given that support, so I couldn't read until I was about 11 years old - I think that was a big challenge for me."

But there were other things that he was good at and which no-one ever recognised - which "all of a sudden aligned when I joined the Army," he says.

That's far from a universal experience for ethnic minority recruits into the UK military, though. In 2019 the independent ombudsman overseeing the armed services, said "racism was prevalent" in the forces. At the time, Nicola Williams urged the Ministry of Defence to do more to root it out, In 2020, the chief of the defence staff, General Sir Nick Carter, said more must be done to tackle racial discrimination in the forces.

Danny did a tour of Afghanistan in 2010 and despite not having the necessary qualifications, was later recommended for officer training at Sandhurst. There he was awarded the Sword of Honour in 2016, given to the best officer cadet on the course. He rose to the position of Adjutant in the 29 Commando Regiment, looking after more than 400 commandos.

When Danny joined the Army, he was told by the recruiting sergeant, without malice, "You can't join with that hair," so he cut his dreadlocks. Some Rastafarians take a vow which forbids the cutting of hair, regarding it as a spiritual symbol of strength. Since the creation of the Defence Rastafari Network, the dress regulations have been amended to allow Rastafarian soldiers to wear a full beard, dreadlocks and turban, which is required by some denominations.

Danny with members of the Defence Rastafari Network
IMAGE SOURCE,SOLOMON GOLDING

Recruitment into the Army from other religions, including members of the Rastafarian faith, has increased by more than 150% in recent years - from 500 in April 2017 to 1,280 in October 2021.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-61496548

29 COMMANDO REGIMENT ROYAL ARTILLERY
https://www.army.mod.uk/who-we-are/...tillery/29-commando-regiment-royal-artillery/
 
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Although no longer a member of the Armed Forces, I do seem to remember that there was a self declared Satanist in the Royal Navy a while back…….still might be for all I know. All are welcome….and that’s a good thing!
 
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