Rastafari Theology

El rastafarismo es un movimiento político y religioso negro de principios del siglo XX que nació del movimiento activista de negros y mestizos en su lucha por la igualdad de derechos sociales. Se fundamenta en la resistencia negra a la opresión blanca y ve la emanci-pación social como único fin. No tienen una organización centralizada. Así practican diferentes creencias (como el voto de "nazareato") y la mayoría veneran a Ras Safari (Haile Selassie I), antiguo emperador de Etiopía de descendencia salomónica. El rastafarismo combina creencias milenarias de origen africano con influencias del cristianismo fundamentalis-ta norteamericano, en especial de la Iglesia Bautista, además de la tradición hindú. No se trata de una religión: no es una organización, no existe un "directorio", los rastafaris no autorizan un poder organizado, que consideran malo. El rastafarismo es una actitud y una forma de entender la vida.

EARLY MY-STORY The RastafarI movement grew out of the darkest depression that the descendants of African slaves in Jamaica have ever lived in-the stink and crumbling shacks of zinc and cardboard that the tattered remnants of humanity built on the rotting garbage of the dreadful Dungle on Kingston's waterfront. Out of this filth and slime arose a sentiment so pure, so without anger, so full of love, the Philosophy of the RastafarI faith. It was a flower in a pigsty, watered by the nourishment of the Prophet Marcus Garvey, swayed by the wind of local political change, and cherished by the Black man's long-withheld desire to hold his head upright.
Freedom of Spirit, Freedom from Slavery and Freedom of Africa, was its cry. HAIL! JAH RASTAFARI!

This book is discussing patterns of radical religious thought in popular forms of Black music. The consistent influence of the Five Percent Nation on Rap music as one of the most esoteric groups among the manifold Black Muslim movements has already gained scholarly attention. However, it shares more than a strong pattern of reversed racism with the Bobo Shanti Order, the most rigid branch of the Rastafarian faith, globally popularized by Dancehall-Reggae artists like Sizzla or Capleton. Authentic devotion or calculated marketing? Apart from providing a possible answer to this question, the historical shift of Bobo adherents from shunned extremists to firmly anchored personifications of authenticity in mainstream Rastafarian culture is being emphasized. A multi-layered comparative case study attempts to shed light on the re-contextualization of language as well as expressed dogmatic perceptions and symbolism, attitude towards other religious groups and aspects of ethnic discrimination. Further analysis includes the visibility of artists and their references to practical and moral issues directly derived from two obscure ideologies that managed to conquer airwaves and concert halls.

Signifying individuals as “Rastafari” or “Rasta” without further qualification lacks nuance and precision. The mental images conjured by Rastafari can be in sharp contradiction with the actual practices, beliefs, and behaviors of adherents. Some follow dietary restrictions, some keep knotted locks of hair, and some consume cannabis, while others refrain from these activities. Rastafari also possess differing opinions on repatriation and Haile Selassie’s divinity. The four-point typology articulated in this article (orthodox-isolated, orthodox-integrated, secular-spiritual, secular-cultural) responds to the need to establish a pertinent vocabulary through which the various phenomena associated with Rastafari expression
can be more accurately deciphered while allowing each Rasta authenticity. My results stem from analysis of relevant scholarship in addition to open participant observations, informal focused group interviews, and in-depth interviews I have conducted with Rastafari in Jamaica (2011) and Montréal (2008–2009). This article provides a theoretical
framework for further Rastafari studies.

Jah Bones è stato tra i fondatori di R.U.Z - Rastafari Universal Zion - un collettivo operante nel Regno Unito alla fine del secolo scorso. Elder di grande carisma e spessore culturale, ha contribuito alla formazione di numerosi Ras, tra i quali Ras Mweya, uno dei promotori del Centenary Commitee che, nel 1996, ha eretto il Tabernacolo di Shashamane.

Caribbean people often view philosophy as a discipline which does not offer much value to Caribbean life and thus, people should not waste their time perusing such studies. My research
is aimed at highlighting the fact that philosophy is an inseparable part of Caribbean life. The problem with accepting the value of philosophy and accepting that there is such a thing as Caribbean philosophy rests with the fact that certain systems of thought are not readily identified as philosophy. In addressing this problem of identifying Caribbean thoughts as philosophy, my research focuses on the similarities of Rastafari and classical as well as modern philosophical discourses. The reason for using Rastafari to make the claim for there being Caribbean philosophy is that Rastafari has more or less been accepted as a movement which originated in the region and has been recognised to hold philosophical significance.

The research first establishes definitions for the two major concepts which are focused on, that is, Rastafari and philosophy. After defining these concepts an examination of Rastafari’s core principles was undertaken, whereby the similarities between Rastafari and Western philosophical discourse was evidence enough to make the claim that even by the standards of Western philosophy, there is a Caribbean Philosophy.

The study thus concludes that Rastafari presents itself as a unique Caribbean philosophy where its existential, epistemological and moral arguments are founded in the traditional definition of self or, the “I and I” concept.

WADADA (letteralmente “Amore” in lingua amarica) nasce dalla collaborazione spontanea e dalla volontà espressiva di diversi individui, desiderosi di contribuire secondo le proprie personali inclinazioni (spirituali, musicali, artistiche, etc.) ad alimentare un libero flusso di idee, meditazioni, pensieri, rivolti in particolare alla Fede e Livity RastafarI ed alla ricca cultura da essa prodotta negli anni.

Essa si propone pertanto di fungere da semplice mezzo di espressione della creatività e degli interessi di singoli nell’ottica di un lavoro congiunto, con la speranza che esso possa rappresentare un genuino stimolo per l’altrui ispirazione, e che possa essere sempre migliorato dalla collaborazione collettiva di quanti volessero liberamente contribuire apportando nuovi contenuti ad esso.

While Reggae and class have been put in context by various authors, this chapter is aiming at identifying the role of Rastafari as the style's constitutional ideological foundation in this regard. Since the artistic presentation of the genre remains rooted in aesthetic styles and presentations shaped in Jamaica as its place of origin, this is not an attempt to provide an overview on the considerable influence the music and its inherent confrontational stance of protest and social change has managed to address matters of inequality around the globe. As a religiously charged empowerment strategy that evolved in the climate of imperialism and colonization, the Rastafarian concept aims at eradicating structural disadvantages between the dominating Western world and the global periphery and offers a spirituality-based social consciousness, characterized by its egalitarian character. Hence, referring to Hall's considerations of hegemony and domination, the chapter is touching on the strong social, cultural, and symbolic capital of Reggae in the sense of Bourdieu and furthermore elaborates on aspects of class and gender, as introduced by Skeggs. In the course of the discussion, various contradictory positions between the egalitarian approach attributed to the music and the more differentiated practices of Rastafarian thought will be pointed out.

Caribbean people often view philosophy as a discipline which does not offer much value to Caribbean life and thus, people should not waste their time perusing such studies. My research is aimed at highlighting the fact that philosophy is an inseparable part of Caribbean life. The problem with accepting the value of philosophy and accepting that there is such a thing as Caribbean philosophy rests with the fact that certain systems of thought are not readily identified as philosophy. In addressing this problem of identifying Caribbean thoughts as philosophy, my research focuses on the similarities of Rastafari and classical as well as modern philosophical discourses. The reason for using Rastafari to make the claim for there being Caribbean philosophy is that Rastafari has more or less been accepted as a movement which originated in the region and has been recognised to hold philosophical significance. The research first establishes definitions for the two major concepts which are focused on, that is, Rastafari and philosophy. After defining these concepts an examination of Rastafari’s core principles was undertaken, whereby the similarities between Rastafari and Western philosophical discourse was evidence enough to make the claim that even by the standards of Western philosophy, there is a Caribbean Philosophy. The study thus concludes that Rastafari presents itself as a unique Caribbean philosophy where its existential, epistemological and moral arguments are founded in the traditional definition of self or, the “I and I” concept.

WADADA (letteralmente “Amore” in lingua amarica) nasce dalla collaborazione spontanea e dalla volontà espressiva di diversi individui, desiderosi di contribuire secondo le proprie personali inclinazioni (spirituali, musicali, artistiche, etc.) ad alimentare un libero flusso di idee, meditazioni, pensieri, rivolti in particolare alla Fede e Livity RastafarI ed alla ricca cultura da essa prodotta negli anni.

Essa si propone pertanto di fungere da semplice mezzo di espressione della creatività e degli interessi di singoli nell’ottica di un lavoro congiunto, con la speranza che esso possa rappresentare un genuino stimolo per l’altrui ispirazione, e che possa essere sempre migliorato dalla collaborazione collettiva di quanti volessero liberamente contribuire apportando nuovi contenuti ad esso.

WADADA (letteralmente “Amore” in lingua amarica) nasce dalla collaborazione spontanea e dalla volontà espressiva di diversi individui, desiderosi di contribuire secondo le proprie personali inclinazioni (spirituali, musicali, artistiche, etc.) ad alimentare un libero flusso di idee, meditazioni, pensieri, rivolti in particolare alla Fede e Livity RastafarI ed alla ricca cultura da essa prodotta negli anni.

Essa si propone pertanto di fungere da semplice mezzo di espressione della creatività e degli interessi di singoli nell’ottica di un lavoro congiunto, con la speranza che esso possa rappresentare un genuino stimolo per l’altrui ispirazione, e che possa essere sempre migliorato dalla collaborazione collettiva di quanti volessero liberamente contribuire apportando nuovi contenuti ad esso.