Rastafarians. A Movement Tied with a Social and Psychological Conflict

Table of Contents

1. THE EMERGENS OF RASTAFARI

1.1. IMPORTANT SCRIPTURES AND BOOKS IN RASTAFARIAN THEOLOGY

1.2. KEY FIGURES IN RASTAFARIANS MOVEMENT

1.3. ORGANIZATION AND STRUCTURES

1.4. THE RISE OF MARCUS GARVEY

1.5. LEONARD P.HOWELL’S CONTRIBUTION

1.6. GARVEY IN HARLEM NEW YORK

1.6.1. GARVEY CREATES THE UNIA

1.6.2. GARVEY´S BLACKSTAR LINE

1.6.3. GARVEY AND BLACK NATIONALISM

1.6.4. GARVEY: MAN IS A PART OF CREATION

2. GARVEYISM AS AN IDEOLOGICAL MOVEMENT

2.1. GARVEY AND THE MOVEMENT

2.1.1. THE DOCTRINE OF SUCCESS

2.1.2. DYNAMICS OF THE NEW THOUGHT

2.1.3. VICTORIAN HISTORICAL SENSEBILITYAND LITERARY TASTE

2.1.3.1. VANITY FAIR

2.1.3.2. THE PLACE NEXT TO HELL

2.1.4. POETRY AND ORAL TRADITION

2.1.5. DIALOGUES AND RELIGIOUS INFLUENCES

2.2. AFRICAN FUNDAMENTALISM

2.3. CLASSICAL INFLUENCES AND THE IDEAL STATE

2.3.1. PLATO’S LAWS

2.3.2. THE IDEAL STATE AND THE UNIA

2.3.3. POLITICAL CORRUPTION

2.3.4. RACIAL EDUCATION

2.3.5. SHORT-LIVED SCHOOLS AND UNIVERSITIES

2.3.6. GARVEY´S COURSE IN AFRICAN PHILOSOPHY

3. IDENTIFICATION OF GARVEYISM WITH ZIONISM

3.1. ETHIOPIANISM

3.1.1. JEWISH PATRONAGE

3.1.2 GARVEY ADMIRED FASCISM, RACISM AND ANTI-SEMITISM

3.2. SELF IDENTIFICATION WITH HITLER

3.2.1. GARVEY´S ANTI-SEMITIC BELIEFS

3.2.2. GARVEY’S SCHOOL OF RACIAL PHILOSOPHY

3.3. GARVEY ATTACKS HAILE SELASSIE

3.3.1. MUSSOLINI HAILED BY GARVEY

3.3.2. HALLE SELASSIE PROVED A CRINGING COWARD

3.3.3. HAILE SELASSIE -BAD TASTE TO THE ABYSSINIAS

3.3.4. WHAT RIGHT HAS HE?

3.3.5. ITALY’S CONQUEST OF ABYSSINIA

3.3.6. ACK OF EDUCATION

3.3.7. THE INCONSISTENCY OF THE EMPEROR

3.3.8. HAILE SELLASIE IS PROUD OF SHEBA BUT NOT OF SOLOMON

3.3.9. ETHIOPIA SHALL STRETCH FORTH HER HANDS

3.3.10. THE EMPEROR REJECTED BLACK DELEGATION

3.3.11. EMPEROR GAVE POOR EDUCATION

3.3.13. GARVEY THE PROPHET AND IDEOLOGIST

4. MYSTICISM AND LIFE STYLE

4.1. RASTARIAN SPIRITUALITY

4.2. THE UTOPIAN CITY –BULL BAY

4.3. HINDUISM PAGAN ISM OR BACK TO AFRICA

4.4. DIFFERENT STYLE

4.5. PURITY THROUGH MEDITATION AND I TAL FOOD

4.5.1. THOU SHALL NOT KILL TO EAT

4.5.2. JAH HAS ALLOWED MAN TO EAT FLESH

4.5.3 SPIRITUALITY AND ITAL FOOD

4.5.4. STRICT RECEIPS FOR A SPIRITUAL I TAL

5. RASTAFARIAN THEOLOGY

5.1. THE BLACK JESUS – ISIS JAH

5.2. DOCTRINE

5.2.1. BIBLICAL RESPONSE

5.2.2. ROOTS REVOLUTION

5.3. HAILE SELASSIE - THE RETURNED MESSIAH

5.3.1. NOBODY COULD KILL THE MAN CHRIST!

5.3.2. JAH ! MAN OF GOD OF ISRAEL

5.3.3. RASTA AND TRADITIONAL CHRISTIAN THEORY

5.3.4. THE LAST PART OF THE BIBLE

5.4. SEARCHING FOR THE RIGHT THEOLOGY

5.4.1. THE BIBLE SEMINARY

5.4.2. THE ORIGINAL BIBLICAL FAITH

5.5. MANSIONS OF RASTAFARI MOVEMENT

5.5.1. BOBO SHANTI

5.5.2. NYAHBHINGI ORDER

5.5.3. THE GARVEYITE AFRICAN ORIENTATION

5.5.4. THE TWELVE TRIBES OF ISRAEL

5.6. THE BLACK ISRAELITES

5.7. DREADLOCKS THEOLOGY

6. RASTAFARIANS AND MYSTISISM

6.1. RASTA PRAYERS

6.2. STEPPING OUT OF BABYLON

6.2.1. RASTAFARIAN´S MIRACLE STORY

6.2.2. VISIONS OF LIFE

6.3. JAH REVANG

6.3.1. IN THE ARMAGEDDON TIME

6.3.2. RASTAFARI IS MYSTICAL

7. DIVINE GOVERNMENT AND FAITH

7.1. NYABINGHI AND PRAYER RITUALS

7.1.1. HOUSE OF THE ORDER OF NYABINGHI

7.1.2. NYAHBINGHI AND RASTAFARIANS

7.2. THE GROUNATION DAY

7.3. THE ECUMENIST CRISIS:

7.4. THE SHEARING OF LOCKS

7.5. ELDER SYSTEMS AND THEOCRACY POWER

7.5.1. HYMN: JUMP NYAHBINGHI

7.5.2. HYMN: KEY MAN WINS THE FIGHT

7.5.3. HYMN: I. N. R. I.

8. EARLY DAYS OF TRIBULATION

8.1. THE CASE OF BUSTAMANTE

8.2. BLACKMAN DECEIVED.

8.3. FORGOTTEN PEOPLE AND A LOST CULTURE

8.4. REPATRIATION IS A MUST

8.4.1. BACK-TO-AFRICA MISSION

8.4.2. REPATRIATION SHALL BE A REALITY

8.4.3. AFRICAN REDEMPTION

9. IN SEARCH OF DIVINITY

9.1. THE COPTIC DEITY

9.2. MOUNT ZION CHURCH

9.3. THE ZION COPTIC CHURCH

9.4. RASTAFARI’S HOLY TRINITY

9.5. ON THE COMING OF THE SON

9.6. CHURCH OF THE FOURSQUARE GOSPEL CONVENTION

9.7. FINAL DAYS OF TRIBULATION.

9.8. COPTIC FOR LIBERATION

10. RASTAFARIANS THE BIBLE AND MARIJUANA

10.1. THE USE OF MARIJUANA AS AN INCENSE

10.1.1. THE IRANIAN SCYTHIANS AND THE SEMITIC KANBOS

10.1.2. THE USE OF INCENSE IN OLD TESTAMENT

10.2. THE SYMBOLISM OF FIRE IN THE ANCIENT WORLD

10.3. MARIJUANA AS THE CHRISTIAN SACRAMENT

10.3.1. BEHOLD, I HAVE GIVEN YOU EVERY HERB

10.3.2. IN THE CLOUD OF SMOKING INCENSE

10.3.3. ENLARGEMENT OF CONSCIOUSNESS

10.3.4. EUCHARIST IS ASSOCIATED WITH THE SMOKE

10.3.5. SPIRIT AND MATTER ARE INSEPARABL

10.4. MARIJUANA IS THE WEED OF WISDOM

10.5. IT INCREASES SELF-CONFIDENCE

10.6. MARIJUANA IN INDIA

10.7. MARIJUANA USE IN IRAN, EGYPT, CHINA JAPAN

10.8. IN EUROPE AFRICA AND THE NEW WORLD

11. RASTAFARIAN, MARIJUANA AND THE LAW

11.1. THE GANJA MAN IN THE U.S.

11.2. LEGALIZE IT

11.3. GANJA MAN AND THE POLITICS

11.4. RASTA, MARIJUANA AND PRISON

11.5. ANTIGUA RASTAS CHALLANGE GANJA LAWS

11.6. MARIJUANA AND THE JAMAICAN LAW

11.7. GANJA - JAMAICAS ECONOMIC HOPE?

11.8. COGNITION AND LONG-TERM USE OF GANJA

12. IN SEARCH OF LIFE STYLE:

12.1. HAIR IN THEORY

12.2. HOWTO BE A DREAD NATURALLY

12.3. WAXE AND DREAD

12.4. THICK AND THIN LOCKS

12.5. DREAD AND THE COMMUNITY

12.6. BOBON-GONGO-DREAD

13. REASONING HISTORY

13.1. RASTAFARIAN LANGUAGE AND WORDS

13.2. WORDS AND POLITICS (POLY-TRICKS)

13.3. STRAW WORK IDENTIFIED ISRAEL

13.4. RASTA ELDERS ON DIFFERENT ORDERS

13.4.1. RASTA PIDOW

13.4.2. RASTA SAM BROWN

13.4.3. EMMANUEL CHARLES EDWARDS

13.4.4. RASTA JAH BONES

13.4.5. RASTA JAH BULL

14. THE WOMAN AND THE RASTA MOVEMENT

14.1. THE FEMALE TABOO AND RASTA WOMEN

14.2. BEING A WOMAN IN A COMMUNITY

14.2.1. WOMAN IN RASTA CULTURE

14.2.2. HOUSEWIFE AND MOTHER

14.2.3. IN REGARDS TO ABORTION

14.3. WOMEN BIBLICAL POSITION

14.4. WOMEN IN ORDAINED LEADERSHIP

14.5. THE NYAHBINGHI MAN AND WOMEN

15. RASTA AND THE EVOLUTION OF REGGAE

15.1. EARLY PRODUCERS

15.2. THA MARLEY UPRISING

15.3. THE ROOTS OF MARLEY’S GONG

15.4. INTERVIEW WITB MRS: BOOKER

15. 5. MARLY AND CATCH A FIRE

15.6. DREAD INNA BABYLON

15. 7. SO JA SEH

15.7. MESSANGER- MASTERANDDIPLOMAT

16. ON ETHIOPIA AND THE BABYLON SYSTEM

16.1. THE ETHIOPIAN WORLD FEDERATION INC.

16.2. HAILE SELASSIE’S ARRIVAL TO JAMAICA

16.3. ETHIOPIA´S GIFT -SHASHAMENE

16.4. ON BABYLON SYSTEM

16.5. BABYLON SYSTEM -ZIGGY MARLEY

Objectives and Topics

This work examines the emergence and expansion of Rastafarianism in the Caribbean, focusing on its role as a response to deep-seated social and psychological conflicts. The author explores how the movement, rooted in the search for identity among the African Diaspora, blends political activism with complex theological frameworks, notably through its interpretation of figures like Haile Selassie I and Marcus Garvey. The core research question addresses how Rastafarianism functions as a mechanism for cultural resilience and identity formation in the face of colonial legacy and persistent material poverty.

• The historical development of Rastafarianism and its ideological formative years.
• The theological synthesis of Ethiopianism, Christian scripture, and African identity.
• The sociopolitical impact of Marcus Garvey and his Pan-African ideology on the movement.
• The role of spiritual practices, meditation, and "ital" dietary laws in Rasta lifestyle.
• The evolution of reggae music as a vehicle for the movement’s philosophy and global reach.

Excerpt from the Book

Summary of Chapters

CHAPTER I: THE FORMATIVE YEARS: This chapter traces the origins of the movement, highlighting the socioeconomic conditions in Jamaica and the influence of Marcus Garvey’s "Back to Africa" philosophy.

CHAPTER II: THE DYNAMICS OF THE MOVEMENT: This section analyzes Garveyism as an ideological framework and explores the adaptation of "New Thought" and the doctrine of success within the Rastafarian context.

CHAPTER III: CONFLICTING IDEOLOGIES: The author discusses the ideological intersections and tensions between Garveyism, Zionism, and the political stance of the movement towards Haile Selassie.

CHAPTER IV: SPIRITUALITY MEDITATION AND DIET: This chapter focuses on the lifestyle aspects of Rastafari, specifically the practice of "ital" food and the role of meditation in achieving a state of "oneness".

CHAPTER V: CONFLICTING THEOLOGY: The author details the diverse interpretations of Jesus Christ, the divinity of Haile Selassie, and the various "mansions" of the Rastafari movement.

CHAPTER VI: THE PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTORTION: This chapter investigates the mystical elements of Rastafarian belief and its psychological implications in the face of perceived external oppression.

CHAPTER VII: THE PSYCHOLOGY OF THEOCRACY: The text examines the governance structures within Nyabinghi and other orders, emphasizing their rejection of secular political authority.

CHAPTER VIII: THE IMPACT OF SLAVERY: This section explores the historical trauma of slavery as a foundational driver for the movement's focus on repatriation to Africa.

CHAPTER IX: SELF MARGINALIZATION AND CONFUSION: The author reflects on the search for divinity, the Coptic influence, and the ongoing struggle for authentic identity.

CHAPTER X: EUCHARIST, DRUG AND CONFLICTS: This chapter addresses the ritual use of marijuana, analyzing its symbolic function as a sacrament within the movement.

CHAPTER XI: MARIJUANA AND THE LAW: The author provides a detailed look at the legal challenges faced by the Zion Coptic Church and the movement's struggle against drug legislation.

CHAPTER XII: DREADLOCKS: This chapter explores the cultural and symbolic significance of dreadlocks as a hallmark of Rastafarian identity and lifestyle.

CHAPTER XIII: WORDS, HISTORY AND POLITICS: The text explores how language and oral tradition are utilized to redefine history and resist colonial influence.

CHAPTER XIV: RASTA - WOMEN AND THE MOVEMENT: The author critically addresses the role of women in Rastafarian culture, discussing issues of inequality and the struggle for agency.

CHAPTER XV: THE EMERGENCE OF REGGAE: This chapter charts the evolution of reggae music as a revolutionary cultural force deeply tied to Rastafarian beliefs.

CHAPTER XVI: DREAD INNA BABYLON SYSTEM: The final chapter summarizes the movement's relationship with Ethiopia and the broader struggle against the "Babylon" system.

Keywords

Rastafari, Haile Selassie I, Marcus Garvey, Ethiopia, Zion, Babylon, Ganja, Marijuana, Reggae, Nyabinghi, Repatriation, African Diaspora, Identity, Theocracy, Ital food

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the core focus of this work?

The work explores the origins, theological evolution, and sociopolitical dimensions of Rastafarianism, specifically its emergence from the Caribbean experience of the African Diaspora.

What are the central themes of the book?

Key themes include the quest for African identity, the deification of Haile Selassie I, the influence of Marcus Garvey’s ideology, the use of marijuana as a sacrament, and the role of reggae music as a cultural catalyst.

What is the primary research question?

The book seeks to understand how Rastafarianism provides a spiritual and social framework for identity formation and resistance against the legacy of colonial oppression.

Which methodologies are employed by the author?

The author combines scholarly historical research with qualitative methods, including interviews with Rastafarian elders, activists, and musicians to reflect the authentic voices within the movement.

What does the main body of the work cover?

It spans the formative years of the movement, its diverse theological interpretations, the lifestyle and dietary practices of different orders, and the emergence of reggae as an international voice for the movement.

Which key terms define this work?

Essential terms include Rastafari, Zion, Babylon, Ganja, and "ital" lifestyle, which serve as foundational concepts for understanding Rasta philosophy.

How does the author characterize the movement's stance on marijuana?

The author frames marijuana ("ganja" or "herb") as a vital sacrament, a "weed of wisdom" used to deepen consciousness and facilitate communal connection with the divine, rather than as a recreational drug.

What perspective does the book provide on Haile Selassie I?

The book explores the varying Rastafarian interpretations of Haile Selassie I, ranging from his role as an Ethiopian Emperor and historical figure to his position as the "returned Messiah" and a living manifestation of God.