Soca Warriors Online Discussion Forum
General => Entertainment & Culture Discussion => Topic started by: Touches on July 26, 2006, 09:56:30 AM
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Spidey lemme ask you and the other dreadlocks on this forum Tallman, big Magician included.
No offence jest curious....Spidey yuh was a clean cut youth in QRC.
Whats alyuh purpose for growing a dread?
Why would you knowingly and painstakingly cultivate a hairstyle that would cause you oppression and adversity in your daily life.
What is the point yuh trying to prove....is it to pull girls, a silent but visual form of rebellion, an excuse to smoke weed, is it your religious persuasion, a fashion statement what it is?
Also why when man go university they suddenly cultivate a dread...or when a man from trini reach up in foreign they does come back with a locks....is it to save money on haircut?
Notice too the number of dreads in TT today...age group 18-30 one setta pseudo rasta running around and then the "original" rastas over 40. Watch it good.....Very big gap amongst rastas in the 30-40 age group.
Also this newfound Love of Jah has just become popular over the last 5-8 years now amongst young people...Why?....why not before...is it due to the emergence of popular reggae artistes e.g. Buju, Capleton etc who all sang slackness lyrics and tun rasta...or the influence of Sizzla etc...and this culture has taken over our shores.
You see it is one thing rock a hairstyle but at the same time you must know the connotations and negative steroetypes which exist in the world today and what the hairstyle is associated with....as seen by the outside world. Even within TT many people with Ras are frowned upon in the workplace and even in clubs and parties.
My best partner is a Ras and in the same MBA program with me and he is victimised...and I am as well by association. You also see it in the job and workplace....but because we are looked down upon we use this as a form of inspiration. However it is tiring to always have to prove a point based on how you look or your hairstyle. Also he admitted to me that other job opportunities and avenues would have been afforded to him had he changed his hairstyle.
Yuh see I curious about this fight down thing...it is real and it exists, we all are victims in one way or another...but if you can control it and minimise its existence upon your life, why would you knowingly embrace it.
I await the responses!!!
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Spidey lemme ask you and the other dreadlocks on this forum Tallman, big Magician included.
No offence jest curious....Spidey yuh was a clean cut youth in QRC.
Whats alyuh purpose for growing a dread?
Why would you knowingly and painstakingly cultivate a hairstyle that would cause you oppression and adversity in your daily life.
What is the point yuh trying to prove....is it to pull girls, a silent but visual form of rebellion, an excuse to smoke weed, is it your religious persuasion, a fashion statement what it is?
Also why when man go university they suddenly cultivate a dread...or when a man from trini reach up in foreign they does come back with a locks....is it to save money on haircut?
Notice too the number of dreads in TT today...age group 18-30 one setta pseudo rasta running around and then the "original" rastas over 40. Watch it good.....Very big gap amongst rastas in the 30-40 age group.
Also this newfound Love of Jah has just become popular over the last 5-8 years now amongst young people...Why?....why not before...is it due to the emergence of popular reggae artistes e.g. Buju, Capleton etc who all sang slackness lyrics and tun rasta...or the influence of Sizzla etc...and this culture has taken over our shores.
You see it is one thing rock a hairstyle but at the same time you must know the connotations and negative steroetypes which exist in the world today and what the hairstyle is associated with....as seen by the outside world. Even within TT many people with Ras are frowned upon in the workplace and even in clubs and parties.
My best partner is a Ras and in the same MBA program with me and he is victimised...and I am as well by association. You also see it in the job and workplace.
Yuh see I curious about this fight down thing...it is real and it exists...but if you can control it and minimise its existence upon your life, why would you knowingly embrace it.
I await the responses!!!
Is all about de girls hoss. ;D
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I in undergrad and I have a ras.. mih brother doing a his masters and he have one... is just a choice...
I really believe it shows discipline....It takes real discipline for you to do this......yuh know how many times i feel to just cut it off.......but if yuh could manage this... yuh good.../
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what...this thing is real discipline. u have to keep it clean, keep it covered so dust and ting wouldnt get in it. i started my second one in 2003, (i cut the first one in 1999) the second year of my masters. so far i going strong, but is fight down from family in a very subtle manner. but this is a thread i longing to start for the longest, touches u beat me to it!
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Alright from the first response...Its discipline?
Now why you choose this method of practicing discipline?....you coulda not check girls, stop drink alchol, stop eat meat. Do yuh school work harder etc...
But ok cool...
Now I just asking questions to do two things....educate myself and be help others understand.
Now for the next question.
This setta burn down babylon, fire pon rome...burn in the fire. etc.
Before Capleton come out with he tunes and Anthony B and the rest of them what alyuh used to say?
Did your vocabulary, metaphors, and way of looking at the world emerge just a few years ago with the advent of these singers and their beliefs or alyuh just start to Bun out the chi chi, babylon etc.
Also I want to hear it from alyuh...What or who determines a real legit rasta from a fake one?
Thanks.
The eternal student Touches..
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Alright from the first response...Its discipline?
Now why you choose this method of practicing discipline?....you coulda not check girls, stop drink alchol, stop eat meat. Do yuh school work harder etc...
But ok cool...
Now I just asking questions to do two things....educate myself and be help others understand.
Now for the next question.
This setta burn down babylon, fire pon rome...burn in the fire. etc.
Before Capleton come out with he tunes and Anthony B and the rest of them what alyuh used to say?
Did your vocabulary, metaphors, and way of looking at the world emerge just a few years ago with the advent of these singers and their beliefs or alyuh just start to Bun out the chi chi, babylon etc.
Also I want to hear it from alyuh...What or who determines a real legit rasta from a fake one?
Thanks.
The eternal student Touches..
whether you grow dreds or not, ethnic people of african descent historically has faced oppression, in Trinidad the colonial influence lends many to believe you must be clean cut, anything leading or hinting to culture and roots to africa is regarded as failure and shameful. Anyone who ostrasizes a rastaman is wrong because this rastafarian religion entails the only link to african roots, it can be argued ethiopia is not where the caribbean diaspora of africans descend from but it can be said that when your roots are stripped by the very core from your existence as an african, you will familiarize yourself with something similar in nature.
With regards to none religious reasons for growing the RAS, well it is a style and a fashion statement, however many believe it to be jamaican, which they are terribly wrong wrong about. Salassie did not only go to Jamaica, he also came to Trinidad, it was more widely accepted throughout Jamaica than in Trinidad, also Salassie had a larger population to indoctrinate with the message than in Trinidad, hence more Yardmen went to the message, less in Trinidad. It only caught on afterwards but there was always a rastafarian presence, this of course caused conflict with the Christian population who were also of african descent. The conflict arose as it arose in Jamaica but many in Trinidad stuck to their christian belief.
Getting back to touches point, youths have a misconception of the dredd, like many others, it is a religious hairstyle, that should be worn by individuals who are commited to jah rastafarid. When you wear the dredd you must accept the cannotations and redicule that will come along with it, because I know true rastas and have family who are dredd and follow the edict, you cannot misrepresent the dredd in it's true form and cadre. What is needed is further education to the youths as to what the hairstyle represents and why it shouldn't be used as a fashion statement or a badjohn status symbol, which the hairstyle itself is the totally opposite of what many believe it to be.
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very good topic fellas
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Spidey lemme ask you and the other dreadlocks on this forum Tallman, big Magician included.
No offence jest curious....Spidey yuh was a clean cut youth in QRC.
Whats alyuh purpose for growing a dread?
Why would you knowingly and painstakingly cultivate a hairstyle that would cause you oppression and adversity in your daily life.
What is the point yuh trying to prove....is it to pull girls, a silent but visual form of rebellion, an excuse to smoke weed, is it your religious persuasion, a fashion statement what it is?
Also why when man go university they suddenly cultivate a dread...or when a man from trini reach up in foreign they does come back with a locks....is it to save money on haircut?
Notice too the number of dreads in TT today...age group 18-30 one setta pseudo rasta running around and then the "original" rastas over 40. Watch it good.....Very big gap amongst rastas in the 30-40 age group.
Also this newfound Love of Jah has just become popular over the last 5-8 years now amongst young people...Why?....why not before...is it due to the emergence of popular reggae artistes e.g. Buju, Capleton etc who all sang slackness lyrics and tun rasta...or the influence of Sizzla etc...and this culture has taken over our shores.
You see it is one thing rock a hairstyle but at the same time you must know the connotations and negative steroetypes which exist in the world today and what the hairstyle is associated with....as seen by the outside world. Even within TT many people with Ras are frowned upon in the workplace and even in clubs and parties.
My best partner is a Ras and in the same MBA program with me and he is victimised...and I am as well by association. You also see it in the job and workplace....but because we are looked down upon we use this as a form of inspiration. However it is tiring to always have to prove a point based on how you look or your hairstyle. Also he admitted to me that other job opportunities and avenues would have been afforded to him had he changed his hairstyle.
Yuh see I curious about this fight down thing...it is real and it exists, we all are victims in one way or another...but if you can control it and minimise its existence upon your life, why would you knowingly embrace it.
I await the responses!!!
Hmm...I feel this thread might be moved out of the football forum because the responses here will require men to be on a higher level of consciousness.
First off, I will say that most men have different reasons.
I believe that the reason it is cultivated in university is because tha;s the first time men get out from under their parents control and can grow their dreads, cause as we accept, it is frowned upon.
My reason for growing dreads was nothing profound and actually falls under your category " savign money on a haircut'' cause men up there couldn't cut my 'douglá' hair properly and to me it was either a baldhead or a ras. So it was a combination of that and the desire to not have the same damn hairstyle for my whole life, i like variety.
However, the process of growing dreads does teach u u discipline and it definitely helped me to be more focused, in my opinion and helped with my patience. It is not why i did it, but it was a benefit of growing it. I not a rastaman...i doh bun weed, i eat meat, i shave (for work)...but at the same time i doh mark or touch the locks, no hairdresser thing either.Nobody touches my hair besides me (unless a girl put her hand there during the act and i too much in the moment to realise :devil: )
The thing is, after i finish my first degree...i say yeah, i done with school, time for the real world, i take all the chain up talk from everybodyu about the discrimination thing...and I fly the dread after 4 years. But then, i was a baldhead for 8 mths and I just didn't feel the same. My ras is part of me now, i feel like a different person without it. Is a real deep thing, for me at least and i cant let the negative perceptions of anybody else affect my choices. The thing is, I can back it up though...even if people have a negative first impression of me, i better than that and i can generally find a way to prove it.
I didn't fight against 6 years of racism in a foreign country to come back home and bow to it in my place of birth, so in that now I keep my dreads just to prove that I can make it regardless of perception or discrimination.
Regarding the vocab...i don't think that is a rasta thing. Most youth use the ''fire bun'' and ''babylon'' epitephs regardless of if they have dreads or not. Babylon has long been a symbol for the institution designed to oppress, made popular by these singers true...but not beholden only to dreads and ras. I think if we had stats, even if 90% of people with dreads speak like that...the 40% of non-dreads who speak that way would still outnumber the number of dreads. This would mean that havign dreads is not a requirement to speak that way, although speaking that way is more prevalent among those with dreads. I hope I didn't lose u there.
Determining fake and real rastas is a subjective decision. I doh play to be a rasta, i always say i have dreads...not a ras. Some people consider me a ras, some consider me pretty boy...it depends on what day they see me, cause i doh shave often..only when it get out of hand.
In my personal opinion, rastaman doh touch the hair on his skin, doh eat meat and honestly believe in jah.
I doh perpetrate to worship Haile Selassie I cause the man was a dictator who had a hundred virgins as wives and lived in palaces with golden bathrooms while his people starved. But he is a symbol because he stood up to Mussolini and fought for the rights of the entire african continent, so we respect that.
I on my second dread...4 years not out.Rasta or no, i love my dreads and I prepared to fight for my rights against all propaganda perpetrated against the oppressed, which the rastaman is because of perception from the past.
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I never had a dred, though I always wanted to grow one. But as ah youth man, I know my mother woulda kill me becuz she wasn goin for dat. I also knew dat walkin up in CIC with ah dred wasn flyin, not in my time.
Dat said, in a somewhat related way, when I came to de US, I pierced my nose. I joined the army and was stationed in Germany. But the military had some really strict policies about dress/jewelry, personal appearance etc, even to the point of influencing the way you dressed off duty.
So my commander called me into his office and demanded that I removed my nose ring. I was off duty and heading downtown. I told him that I would, when he was willing to tell the catholic to remove his cross or the Jew that he couldn’t wear his star. So he challenged me on that and I told him my nose ring was symbolic of my religion, Rastafari. (I was no Rasta, but I was just being defiant). So he said that he’d never heard of the religion and I told him that his ignorance should not be my demise. So he asked me to spell it and he wrote it down, supposedly to research it and come at me later. But he never did and I continued to wear my nose ring, when not in uniform of course.
Years later, while in College, I did a summer internship with caterpillar in Peoria, Illinois. I still wearing my nose ring. One morning, my supervisor came to my office and said that HIS supervisor had a problem with my nose ring and wanted me to remove it. He made it clear that he did not care either way, but his boss did. So my immediate response was, I’ll take it off.
But then I started to think... at the time, I had a close friend at school who had the raggediest dred you would ever see, janks everywhere in every direction. De youth was real dark too eh, an American youth. And I always used to wonder if anybody go employ he for de way he looked. So immediately my mind ran on him. I remebered a white youth in de office next to mine who had a long hippy-style ponytail, which I reasoned was the white equivalent of dreds. Nobody had a problem with he. Nobody asked he, as far as I knew, to cut he hair. And he was no intern, he was employed by Caterpillar. I thought too that back on the East Coast, NY, I’d seen policemen, firemen, doctors, lawyers, who all had dreds. That wasn’t as evident in de Midwest. I decided dat I eh taking out no damn nose ring. I felt like dat man needed to judge me by my performance. So I went back to my supervisor and told him that I would sooner quit the internship than remove my nose ring. I told him that my job performance should be what they measure me by, not my apprearance, and I really did that with my raggedy dred pardner in mind. I figured that if I folded, if everytime somebody had a problem with another person’s appearance, then them backwards ways of thinking would always prevail and keep people like my boy “in line”. Dais bull-shit.
Last time I saw my boy, he was going for his phd, more because he eh get no wuk than becuz he wants ah phd. He still have dem raggedy dreds.
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The irony about this is those that profess to be rastafarians (ah not talking bout the haridresser dread dem) are following a man who was an Orthodox Christian. His belief was in the incarnation of our Lord Christ, and his virgin birth. Orthodoxy is the Eastern part of Christianity that has preserved most of its customs and holds on to its apostolic tradition despite the changes of mankind. Selassie came to the West, and sent the Orthodox Church to teach men about Christianity that existed in Africa from time immemorial, but men still didn't listen. Doh vex, but who are men following: Sizzla, Buju? Dem fellas cyar be we leaders. At least not mine. If men want to be conscious and talk bout we African ancestry and Black consciousness, why men don't research African Christianity. You will realize that the most ancient forms of African Christianity still exists today. His Majesty tried to expose the diaspora by sending the Ethiopian Church, but men still doh want to listen. Now slay me for my words.
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Spidey lemme ask you and the other dreadlocks on this forum Tallman, big Magician included.
No offence jest curious....Spidey yuh was a clean cut youth in QRC.
Whats alyuh purpose for growing a dread?
Why would you knowingly and painstakingly cultivate a hairstyle that would cause you oppression and adversity in your daily life.
What is the point yuh trying to prove....is it to pull girls, a silent but visual form of rebellion, an excuse to smoke weed, is it your religious persuasion, a fashion statement what it is?
Also why when man go university they suddenly cultivate a dread...or when a man from trini reach up in foreign they does come back with a locks....is it to save money on haircut?
Notice too the number of dreads in TT today...age group 18-30 one setta pseudo rasta running around and then the "original" rastas over 40. Watch it good.....Very big gap amongst rastas in the 30-40 age group.
Also this newfound Love of Jah has just become popular over the last 5-8 years now amongst young people...Why?....why not before...is it due to the emergence of popular reggae artistes e.g. Buju, Capleton etc who all sang slackness lyrics and tun rasta...or the influence of Sizzla etc...and this culture has taken over our shores.
You see it is one thing rock a hairstyle but at the same time you must know the connotations and negative steroetypes which exist in the world today and what the hairstyle is associated with....as seen by the outside world. Even within TT many people with Ras are frowned upon in the workplace and even in clubs and parties.
My best partner is a Ras and in the same MBA program with me and he is victimised...and I am as well by association. You also see it in the job and workplace....but because we are looked down upon we use this as a form of inspiration. However it is tiring to always have to prove a point based on how you look or your hairstyle. Also he admitted to me that other job opportunities and avenues would have been afforded to him had he changed his hairstyle.
Yuh see I curious about this fight down thing...it is real and it exists, we all are victims in one way or another...but if you can control it and minimise its existence upon your life, why would you knowingly embrace it.
I await the responses!!!
Touches it's a long time i have not read something with some substance on this forum,Breds this is great my hope is that it will open some peoples eyes.(well said)
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Spidey lemme ask you and the other dreadlocks on this forum Tallman, big Magician included.
No offence jest curious....Spidey yuh was a clean cut youth in QRC.
Whats alyuh purpose for growing a dread?
Why would you knowingly and painstakingly cultivate a hairstyle that would cause you oppression and adversity in your daily life.
What is the point yuh trying to prove....is it to pull girls, a silent but visual form of rebellion, an excuse to smoke weed, is it your religious persuasion, a fashion statement what it is?
Also why when man go university they suddenly cultivate a dread...or when a man from trini reach up in foreign they does come back with a locks....is it to save money on haircut?
Notice too the number of dreads in TT today...age group 18-30 one setta pseudo rasta running around and then the "original" rastas over 40. Watch it good.....Very big gap amongst rastas in the 30-40 age group.
Also this newfound Love of Jah has just become popular over the last 5-8 years now amongst young people...Why?....why not before...is it due to the emergence of popular reggae artistes e.g. Buju, Capleton etc who all sang slackness lyrics and tun rasta...or the influence of Sizzla etc...and this culture has taken over our shores.
You see it is one thing rock a hairstyle but at the same time you must know the connotations and negative steroetypes which exist in the world today and what the hairstyle is associated with....as seen by the outside world. Even within TT many people with Ras are frowned upon in the workplace and even in clubs and parties.
My best partner is a Ras and in the same MBA program with me and he is victimised...and I am as well by association. You also see it in the job and workplace....but because we are looked down upon we use this as a form of inspiration. However it is tiring to always have to prove a point based on how you look or your hairstyle. Also he admitted to me that other job opportunities and avenues would have been afforded to him had he changed his hairstyle.
Yuh see I curious about this fight down thing...it is real and it exists, we all are victims in one way or another...but if you can control it and minimise its existence upon your life, why would you knowingly embrace it.
I await the responses!!!
Good post. I could write forever on it, but my summarized take on it is this:
Everyone is to a certain degree impressionable to fashions of different sorts. Many are also impressionable to rebellion against mainstream conformity. Dread locks have become increasingly fashionable in T&T in the last 10 years, and it's a very compelling fashion because not only is it considered physically attractive on some levels, but there is a stigma of rebellion against conformity that goes along with dreadlocks.
A compelling fashion, especially one that becomes so closely tied to the natural human form (hairstyles, tatoos, piercings), can easily take on a deeper meaning because people are prone to form sentimental connections with such.
So the answer to your post comes down to the battles we choose. There are talented musicians here in NYC who sit on the corner playing their guitars for pennies.....talented actors/actresses who audition for parts day after day for years without "success".....talented chemists who decide to be "underpaid" teachers.....philosophers who decide to be activists....each one of them has chosen his/her uphill battle as opposed to other more potentially succesful or easier options in life......and such often comes with ridicule..
With dreadlocks the same principle applies. If someone who was initially impressionable to the fashion develops a deeper appreciation for what he/she believes the fashion stands for, he/she has chosen his/her battle in life accordingly, and he/she is probably comfortable with it.....and I don't see anything wrong with that
This of course is a generalization, and it will naturally vary somewhat from person to person.
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Buh wait nah is only one setta ah baldhead giving dey opinion on dreadlocks wey de rastaman an dem, all yuh come out nah man
......calling Tallman calling Tallman come een Tllman ;D
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Buh wait nah is only one setta ah baldhead giving dey opinion on dreadlocks wey de rastaman an dem, all yuh come out nah man
......calling Tallman calling Tallman come een Tllman ;D
like you never give an opinion on something related to professional football.......are you a professional footballer ?
but yuh right, it would be helpful to get a dread's perspective on the issue......big mag....Tallman......
as Berris would say ....show meh de light
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Buh wait nah is only one setta ah baldhead giving dey opinion on dreadlocks wey de rastaman an dem, all yuh come out nah man
......calling Tallman calling Tallman come een Tllman ;D
like you never give an opinion on something related to professional football.......are you a professional footballer ?
but yuh right, it would be helpful to get a dread's perspective on the issue......big mag....Tallman......
as Berris would say ....show meh de light
Nah Kicker daiz not ah good analogy all ah we have ah choice to grow dreads but not all ah we have choice to play pro football ;D
Tallman come out doh hide we want tuh hear it from de horse's mouth ;D
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rastafari is a journey i think. is a journey of self discovery of introspection, of reasoning both with oneself and with others, dread or no dread. a baldhead man could feel rasta in his heart but at the same time he cant know 100% what it is to be rasta because he dont feel the persecution daily. i remember when machel tie up he head bobo style a rasta write a letter in the papers asking him to please not wear that.
any true rasta i feel will have to search for knowledge, if ur rasta education is just the music of the last 8-10 years then something wrong. remember them fellas does switch up tunes according to the fad. man singing conscious tune and next day talkin bout pump up her poom poom. but then again, even bob marley himself admitted he had to sing love song sometimes just to vary the mood.
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" we must treat the rasta like they are human, regardless of how dey keep dey hair"--Explainer
I was ah lil boy in primary school when dat calypso come out,,,that is only line I remember cause back den all rastaman had bad rep as teef,, men who doh bade etc etc.
Of course it didnt help that there were a minor cult called the 'earth people' walking all over trinidad wearing crocus bag as clothing.....anybody remember dem??...if yuh say no, yuh lie,, me eh dat ole ;)
Point is,, the more north you go its simply a hairstyle. Anyone that holds a negative view of it in 2006 has definitely been heavily influenced by the previous generations stigmatization....yuh see how old people does influence yuh thought even when yuh come big man
Personally I find it less 'offensive' than dem greasy 1980's jheri curls
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difference between ah fake and real.....de fake does buy he dreads by de pack and dislike mauby......de real drinkin mauby, getting up in early in de morning and go dong by the sea and shake he locks, de real does cultivate he locks from de binning not dis $10.00 ah pack dread ah does see running around de place....... look me eh know nah, but we all l know ah serious rasta when we see one.
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Since allyuh calling meh out ah go oblige.
Rastas in T&T as well as most of the Caribbean tend to follow the path established by their Jamaican brethren. With that said, there is no one doctrine of Rastafari. You typically have some core beliefs (cultural, spiritual etc.) but then at the end of the day each one lives his life as he sees fit. That is why you have different mansions of Rastafari (John 14:2 "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you."). You have Orthodox, Twelve Tribes, Nyabinghi, Bobo Shanti etc.
Although locks are the single most identifiable physical attribute of a Rasta, locks do not make a Rastaman. It is what is in your heart. As a matter of fact, the original Rastamen (Leonard Howell, Joseph Hibbert, Archibald Dunkley, Robert Hinds) did not have locks. This was back in the 1930s. Instead of locks, they grew beards and were known as Beardsmen. The locks thing was started in the late 1950s by a group of Rastas known as the Youth Black Faith. This was thought to be in the Old Testament tradition of men (e.g. King Solomon) who undertook a Nazarite vow.
Locks are not de exclusive domain of Rastafarians because it has existed since ancient times. Some Rastas point to the Bible as their inspiration:
Numbers 6:5
All the days of the vow of his separation there shall no razor come upon his head: until the days be fulfilled, in the which he separateth himself unto the LORD, he shall be holy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.
Leviticus 21:5
They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh.
I doh perpetrate to worship Haile Selassie I cause the man was a dictator who had a hundred virgins as wives...
Where did you get this from?
The irony about this is those that profess to be rastafarians (ah not talking bout the haridresser dread dem) are following a man who was an Orthodox Christian.
Why is this ironic? Rastafarianism has its roots in Christianity.
Selassie came to the West, and sent the Orthodox Church to teach men about Christianity that existed in Africa from time immemorial, but men still didn't listen. If men want to be conscious and talk bout we African ancestry and Black consciousness, why men don't research African Christianity. You will realize that the most ancient forms of African Christianity still exists today. His Majesty tried to expose the diaspora by sending the Ethiopian Church, but men still doh want to listen.
Many Rastafarians have been baptised in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Is not dat dey eh want tuh listen, is jes dat in de earlies there was plenty conflict between de church and de Rastas, dey wanted man tuh cut dey locks and ting. Eventually dat issue was sorted out. There are a few churches in T&T, the headquarters is in Arouca.
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Tallman yuh answering, but ah just want to clarify that Orthodoxy is a part of Christianity and has been in existence LONG before the concept of Rastafarianism was created (34 AD). Yes, there was confusion and there will always be, cause Orthodoxy will not waver in its belief to accommodate any one group. Is either you believe or you don't. That is why men does go in the Church and then relaize that it is not what they thought it was. They have the freedom to not be a part of the Church if it does not represent what they see as the truth.
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Of course it didnt help that there were a minor cult called the 'earth people' walking all over trinidad wearing crocus bag as clothing.....anybody remember dem??...if yuh say no, yuh lie,, me eh dat ole ;)
Dem Earth people had locks but dem wasn't on Rasta business. Dis is ah good book on dem: Pathology and Identity: The Work of Mother Earth in Trinidad (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0521384273/104-9570595-8577565?v=glance&n=283155)
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Question for Tallman(de resident rastafari scholar ;D )
Is Rastafarianism based more in Christainity or in Judiasm?
Reason for the question, as a teenager growing up in T&T in the mid to late 70's I was influenced by and interested in rastarfarianism largely due to Bob Marley and his music and all the biblical references. However the Biblical references were all (as far as I can remember) Old testiment references...not the New testiment.
I remember vividly reading those very same scriptures you quoted above. Scriptures pertaining to diet, hairstyle(far lack of a better word) and Blackness(African ness) were all part of my and my friends daily readings.
Since moving to the US, I been able to increase my knowledge of history and faith etc and have since moved away from Rastafari "beliefs" (if there is such a thing) but I do credit my early dealings with rastafari for my everlasting pride in my people and my roots.
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Is Rastafarianism based more in Christainity or in Judiasm?
It is based more on Christianity than Judaism. It also has roots in Revivalism.
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Just a random point i feel like adding.
Rio ferdinand got dreds now.
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Just a random point i feel like adding.
Rio ferdinand got dreds now.
;D ::)
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I waiting for a Jakan perspective on this as well from a man who does seek the truth 8)
Why I jumbieing alyuh rasta...legit or pseudo is cause if yuh ever sit down with one of the youths and hit them a heights they does cyar answer yuh in a logical, substantial kinda way...it is as if they making up thing, talking a setta jokeyness or some kinda thought gathered from their peers or what they listen to from these artistes on the radio.
I remember in my UWi days listening to two Ras one a bobo the other a 12 tribes battling it outtrying to outdo each other...and Joey the nutsman was the mediator....Joey used to be perched on the library railing.
SO one talking bout he doe consume nuttin from a vine, the next one saying yuh pants hadda be over yuh navel, then the talk reach back bout how yuh cyar have yuh women round yuh for a certain number of days before and after they monthlies, then the next one saying yuh cyar work for nobody but yuhself and yuh musn't enter or be part of the babylon system...which is why most bobo does be nutsman, vendor or entertainer.
So yuh know I does provoke people...
I start up meh lawyer tactic on him...I say bobo...so Capleton and Sizzla is part of yuh crew ent?
He say yes and no...not crew but part of the brotherhood...so yes.
SO I ask.... so you is bobo like dem...he say yes!
SO then if they not on babylon and not part of the system,and not working for nobody, how it is they recording tune...using babylon technology, under a babylon record label, being distributed by technology bablyon create and own...to reach the heathens like myself...and in return for them to earn some dollars?
He watch meh ahow eh...and maybe he was not the best specimen of bobo I coulda talk to for answers but I jam him with some heights again.
I say so yuh mean to say...to be legit, just like what yuh say before, man have to beat drum and strum guitar and sing tune in he head and doe record it and in essence remain backward in this 21st century?...so essentially yuh trying to remain stagnant not uplift yuhself, and it is all due to this Imaginary babylon that yuh create.
Well he do the usual and cuss meh lil bit and say I doe understand, but all I wanted was a perspective and insight nah.
I does also be amazed at foreigners who come down here and embrace this rasta culture......them does act more black than we.
Now I doe want to offend nobody with my questions and observations but I curious.
But I would like to share some thoughts here......since this movement religion kinda, how should I say it....disjointed, i.e not well documented and understood by the followers, with so many variations, rules, styles, forms of worship etc...and nobody could give yuh a definite means of practice, worship etc.
How can you justify, stand or give credit to something that you cannot understand.........i.e.....how would somebody on the outside looking in judge or be able to understand you if you and yuh breds cyar even understand alyuhself.
Maybe this is the reason why Rastas are frowned upon....because they are misunderstood and there is nobody who can set the curious straight.
But for all who have answered thus far I like the insight. Keep it coming.
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Next observation...(disclaimer, this is personal but if you take a walk, take the time and observe in TT you will notice a trend)
The new generation of Ras doe come from the poor, uneducated, the ghetto or the Afro Trinidadians amongst us...
Not the ones who struggling and have it hard.....them is the ones who conforming and taking trim cause dey cyar let the few opportunities pass by and they hve nuttin to fall back orn.
Nah....
The new generation of Ras educated....them is students with degrees, went prestige high school, they have big wuk now, they flexing out in office and most of them red, indian, chinee or white. Coming from decent respectable uppermiddle class or upper class households, they family and last name holding plenty clout and respect in society....so where there is no need to prove a point or engage in any kinda struggle why do it
.......is it because they arse too happy and they need something to do?
WHY ????
But its good we have more Ras in the office and in the higher echelons of society providing role models and breaking the stereotypes that exist.
But still.... I sure alyuh does still get cut eye from people mother and father....I sure girl chirren get, me ent want yuh bringing no ras home here for me yuh know etc. Old school still have that in dem. In fact I sure some nice girls coulda overlook some of the rastamen cause they ent like the hairy finish....then again some girls running down Ras like fuss time....to each his own.
Conversely the women....
Also girls now gettin into this Ras thing big time....they starting orf with the lil corkscrew, then the twist and the fishtail plait, then they hitting yuh a headtie in party, and a long skirt with a push toe.....yes the women involved plenty now.
But the indian, white and chinee etc girls not into that...one or two exceptions yes...but mainly the red girls and those of Afro decent. Is it because going beauty parlour and straightenin gettin too expensive and breaking up the hair, they getting more rootsy and in tune to the natural styles or is it because the women are not following Hollywood and Cosmopolitan magazine and going with a less Western form of hairstyle.
Questions people...help meh answer nah!
p.s. Touches has his theory but awaits responses.
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I, for myself, love dreadlocks, but it is a topic which could last for days once it gets started...just so many different opinions or reasons for liking/having them...I am so sad that I had to cut mine off (they weren't so great, anyway), but now I have SHORT hair & look like a man!!! They need to grow FAST :D
During the World Cup, while T&T was in Kaiserslautern, I have NEVER seen so many Dreadlocks at once...it was wonderful!!!
I have a link with quite a bit of information about dreadlocks. Lots of it, I already knew (but not everything), but it's too much to type...very interresting.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dreadlock
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This setta burn down babylon, fire pon rome...burn in the fire. etc.
Dese tings not new. Marley and Tosh use tuh call down brimstone, thunder and lightning on de pope. Babylon is ah term dat was used from de early days of Rasta tuh refer tuh colonialism and de police.
Black Stalin was bunning de fire before Capleton and Sizzla ;D.
I waiting for a Jakan perspective on this as well from a man who does seek the truth 8)
Why I jumbieing alyuh rasta...legit or pseudo is cause if yuh ever sit down with one of the youths and hit them a heights they does cyar answer yuh in a logical, substantial kinda way...it is as if they making up thing, talking a setta jokeyness or some kinda thought gathered from their peers or what they listen to from these artistes on the radio.
Dat eh really unique because if yuh sit down and talk tuh people who follow all kinda religions and movements, yuh would realize dat ah setta dem doh really know much about what dey following. Dey does also get vex when yuh ask dem questions and dey cyar answer.
SO one talking bout he doe consume nuttin from a vine...
This is in accordance with the Nazarite vow that is outlined in Numbers Chapter 6:
1And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When either man or woman shall separate themselves to vow a vow of a Nazarite, to separate themselves unto the LORD:
3He shall separate himself from wine and strong drink, and shall drink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of strong drink, neither shall he drink any liquor of grapes, nor eat moist grapes, or dried.
4All the days of his separation shall he eat nothing that is made of the vine tree, from the kernels even to the husk.
5All the days of the vow of his separation there shall no razor come upon his head: until the days be fulfilled, in the which he separateth himself unto the LORD, he shall be holy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.
6All the days that he separateth himself unto the LORD he shall come at no dead body.
7He shall not make himself unclean for his father, or for his mother, for his brother, or for his sister, when they die: because the consecration of his God is upon his head.
8All the days of his separation he is holy unto the LORD.
9And if any man die very suddenly by him, and he hath defiled the head of his consecration; then he shall shave his head in the day of his cleansing, on the seventh day shall he shave it.
I start up meh lawyer tactic on him...I say bobo...so Capleton and Sizzla is part of yuh crew ent?
As far as I understand, de brethren at de Bobo headquarters in Bull Bay, Jamaica never really used tuh take on Capleton and Sizzla.
But I would like to share some thoughts here......since this movement religion kinda, how should I say it....disjointed, i.e not well documented and understood by the followers, with so many variations, rules, styles, forms of worship etc...and nobody could give yuh a definite means of practice, worship etc.
How can you justify, stand or give credit to something that you cannot understand.........i.e.....how would somebody on the outside looking in judge or be able to understand you if you and yuh breds cyar even understand alyuhself.
Maybe this is the reason why Rastas are frowned upon....because they are misunderstood and there is nobody who can set the curious straight.
I wouldn't say disjointed. It is more of a way of life/movement than a religion. At de end of de day is man who involved in dis ting, so yuh go always have bacchanal. Just like yuh have ah million and one variations of Christianity and Protestantism, Judaism etc., yuh have these different mansions of Rastafari all because ah certain man mightn't like ah particular viewpoint, so he decide tuh do he own ting.
Here are a few books that I recommend. It have plenty more, but dis good fuh now.
Rastafari: For the Healing of the Nation (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1890358002/sr=1-3/qid=1154005421/ref=pd_bbs_3/104-9570595-8577565?ie=UTF8&s=books)
From Babylon to Rastafari: Origin and History of the Rastafarian Movement (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0948390476/ref=pd_bxgy_img_b/104-9570595-8577565?ie=UTF8)
Rastafari and Other African-Caribbean Worldviews (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0813524121/sr=1-11/qid=1154005421/ref=sr_1_11/104-9570595-8577565?ie=UTF8&s=books)
Rastafari: Roots and Ideology (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0815602960/sr=1-7/qid=1154005421/ref=sr_1_7/104-9570595-8577565?ie=UTF8&s=books)
The First Rasta: Leonard Howell and the Rise of Rastafarianism (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1556525583/sr=8-2/qid=1154005315/ref=sr_1_2/104-9570595-8577565?ie=UTF8)
Chanting Down Babylon: The Rastafari Reader (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1566395844/sr=1-2/qid=1154005421/ref=pd_bbs_2/104-9570595-8577565?ie=UTF8&s=books)
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5All the days of the vow of his separation there shall no razor come upon his head: until the days be fulfilled, in the which he separateth himself unto the LORD, he shall be holy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.
I don't mean to offend anyone, but the few rastasfarians I know, or should I say who sport the hairstyle are in no way shape or form HOLY. One guy I know went from Catholic, to MUSLIMEEN pro coup to Rastafarian post coup.
So what gives?
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5All the days of the vow of his separation there shall no razor come upon his head: until the days be fulfilled, in the which he separateth himself unto the LORD, he shall be holy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.
I don't mean to offend anyone, but the few rastasfarians I know, or should I say who sport the hairstyle are in no way shape or form HOLY. One guy I know went from Catholic, to MUSLIMEEN pro coup to Rastafarian post coup.
So what gives?
Sounds like de man jes searching for himself.
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Nah Tallman I think in the latter it was more a case of OH shit boy police could shoot meh or lock meh up let me grow some dreads yes! Like I said he is in no way shape or form Holy
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5All the days of the vow of his separation there shall no razor come upon his head: until the days be fulfilled, in the which he separateth himself unto the LORD, he shall be holy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.
I don't mean to offend anyone, but the few rastasfarians I know, or should I say who sport the hairstyle are in no way shape or form HOLY. One guy I know went from Catholic, to MUSLIMEEN pro coup to Rastafarian post coup.
So what gives?
Sounds like de man jes searching for himself.
Yeah. BUt how long yuh go search. I have ah real brethren (Ah go withhold the name, but ah sure real Pres, Naps, and Benedicts men know him, cause he was a big baller). De man did come from an upper middle class family that is respected in society. He went searching, abandon he Catholic upbringing and turn Ras, to the dismay of he family. Yeah he went on a search, which eventually led him to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. What he thought he was going to find in there was not what he eventually adopted (He was looking for somethig Rasta). Today, the man is a devout Orthodox CHRISTIAN. Is like he went full circle. How long ah man go search, cause real men just knotting up they head and not doing nothing after that. This "search" thing is often used as an excuse to do nothing. Remember, God does punish men for not using they talents. Rasta is not a spiritual thing, is an earthly thing, cause the focus is on what yuh eat, how yuh look. Is ironic that men who say they forsake vanity does segregate by the way they look. Is like is a form of reverse segregation. This ain't no dis, cause I respect every man as an individual. But too many fellas using this Rasta thing as an excuse to exist in a vacuum of nothingness and that is ah sin. Men must use they talents. If yuh good at Math, so be it. If yuh good at business, so be it. If yuh is an walking footballl archive (that is for Tallman ;D), so be it, but maximize yuh God given talent.
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Tenorsaw..
I know we must not judge people, but you ever feel a man ent fulfill he potential because he under Rasta vibes? That same point yuh just bring up about man living in a vacuum.
They have a two youths who were in UWI with me...both went St marys. I ent go call no name but one was doing engineering the other did a Econ/Maths combo.
One man reach final year Engineering ready to graduate....turn bobo, drop out and peddling nuts on the highway.
next man was a boss in maths....he was always lil outa of it..and he used to burn he lil post before coming to class. but the man used to sit in the back of the class and jest doe be on the lecturer. When is home work or exam...pure A. I remember I ketchin meh nenenen with some kinda formula and he say Joseph...do so, move this number here and punch dat on yuh calculator. The man was jest good.
This fella turn Ras in he second year...stop going class...used to meditate on Rock and in d bush all parts of the campus. When yuh get the shout man have a first class in Econ/maths...Whey!!! now that crack all dem girls who studying hard and ting mental....they only bawling But How??
But yuh know with all the man talent and brains...he dodgin traffic on the highway, taking rain and sun hustling nuts, in the name of Selassie.....but maybe he happy doing that.
It come like how we here does watch Hardest and say waste of talent....he coulda be so much more....but the man happy with what he doing.
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"judge not lest ye be judged"
we cant watch a man and say he not using his talents...cause then we are judging him, and who are we to judge. it have plenty people who 'use they talents' and now they not happy with what they doing, they fed up of the rat race, the daily grind, why u feel ppl who seemingly succesful does commit suicide and engange in other anti-scoail, destructive behavior.
i ent go lie, sometimes i and all does feel to go away from the city for a while just to clear my head, commune with nature, but i have to be realisitic...i could go but when i come back i mightnt have no place to live :)
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5All the days of the vow of his separation there shall no razor come upon his head: until the days be fulfilled, in the which he separateth himself unto the LORD, he shall be holy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.
I don't mean to offend anyone, but the few rastasfarians I know, or should I say who sport the hairstyle are in no way shape or form HOLY. One guy I know went from Catholic, to MUSLIMEEN pro coup to Rastafarian post coup.
So what gives?
Sounds like de man jes searching for himself.
Yeah. BUt how long yuh go search. I have ah real brethren (Ah go withhold the name, but ah sure real Pres, Naps, and Benedicts men know him, cause he was a big baller). De man did come from an upper middle class family that is respected in society. He went searching, abandon he Catholic upbringing and turn Ras, to the dismay of he family. Yeah he went on a search, which eventually led him to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. What he thought he was going to find in there was not what he eventually adopted (He was looking for somethig Rasta). Today, the man is a devout Orthodox CHRISTIAN. Is like he went full circle. How long ah man go search, cause real men just knotting up they head and not doing nothing after that. This "search" thing is often used as an excuse to do nothing. Remember, God does punish men for not using they talents. Rasta is not a spiritual thing, is an earthly thing, cause the focus is on what yuh eat, how yuh look. Is ironic that men who say they forsake vanity does segregate by the way they look. Is like is a form of reverse segregation. This ain't no dis, cause I respect every man as an individual. But too many fellas using this Rasta thing as an excuse to exist in a vacuum of nothingness and that is ah sin. Men must use they talents. If yuh good at Math, so be it. If yuh good at business, so be it. If yuh is an walking footballl archive (that is for Tallman ;D), so be it, but maximize yuh God given talent.
Whoever could balance both (searching AND maximizing their God-given talent), that is real impressive.
But a lot of people does have to do the introspection/searching first before fully utilizing their God-given talents. They don't initially pursue it because they believe or they were led to believe that it eh practical or realistic or whatever, so for them it remains a dream they would like to do "someday".
Somebody I know went a big med school and leave it to start painting. She invest her time in it and she finally feeling fulfilled. I suppose sometimes yuh have to being doing what you DONT want to do in order to push yourself fuh what you really should be doing. The inner voice inside gets stifled sometimes.
Tenorsaw I hear you on de "how long a man go search" question...if yuh searching, do it with dedication and priority...cause time is going.
But on with the Rastafari and dreadlocks discussion, I learning things I didn't know before.
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Tenorsaw..
I know we must not judge people, but you ever feel a man ent fulfill he potential because he under Rasta vibes? That same point yuh just bring up about man living in a vacuum.
They have a two youths who were in UWI with me...both went St marys. I ent go call no name but one was doing engineering the other did a Econ/Maths combo.
One man reach final year Engineering ready to graduate....turn bobo, drop out and peddling nuts on the highway.
next man was a boss in maths....he was always lil outa of it..and he used to burn he lil post before coming to class. but the man used to sit in the back of the class and jest doe be on the lecturer. When is home work or exam...pure A. I remember I ketchin meh nenenen with some kinda formula and he say Joseph...do so, move this number here and punch dat on yuh calculator. The man was jest good.
This fella turn Ras in he second year...stop going class...used to meditate on Rock and in d bush all parts of the campus. When yuh get the shout man have a first class in Econ/maths...Whey!!! now that crack all dem girls who studying hard and ting mental....they only bawling But How??
But yuh know with all the man talent and brains...he dodgin traffic on the highway, taking rain and sun hustling nuts, in the name of Selassie.....but maybe he happy doing that.
It come like how we here does watch Hardest and say waste of talent....he coulda be so much more....but the man happy with what he doing.
Ent touches. Man have they God-given talent and burying it. Man like to refer to scripture to defend they argument, so ah go follow suit. Dem men they vexing God. Remember the virgins them. Some ah them ain't add oil to they lamp and it run out before the groom arrived. If yuh doh use your talent and make it grow, yuh will lose it. Man could say bout he forsake vanity. I will say he waste he damn talent. God say so.
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Ah like dis discussion.
Just to give ah idea, I did O’s in 81 and A’s in 83, CIC. In dem days, it didn’t have no dread in CIC. I remember Ian Clauzel, Mucurapo Compre, when he hit de scene, I might be wrong, but he was de first dread dat I was aware of, in school. All de other youth men in Carenage who had dreads dropped out of junior sec. All! And to me, dem fellas was only following de older fellas on de block, who had dreads, and only, all ah dem, worked either 10-days or on some construction site. It had de others who was sellin weed. But de point is, to talk to one ah dem, much like Touches said earlier, and yuh coulda tie dem up easy easy because dey had no idea bout Rastafari and what it supposedly was all about. But dey sure would try to feed yuh some BS in ah heartbeat when yuh first ask dem.
You couldn walk into no bank in Trini in dem days and see no dread. Dread wasn sellin in nobody store unless dey had dey own lil fruit stand. But it had 1 or 2 at UWI. I remember men gettin real fight down playing organized ball for any big team. I remember Clauzel gettin drop because he didn’t want to cut he hair, after having gone to Central America and star for de youth team. Is nuff fight down, and I used to wonder why ah man go choose dat, although I eh go lie, I wanted to knot-up too eh, but dat is becuz nuff young girls was fallin for dat sh!t.
I doh know if anybody on here ever play ball in Pt. Cumana, down Carenage, by de primary school, in Pablo (Paul Clarke) league. Pablo used to make yuh comb yuh hair before ah game and tuck in yuh shirt. He even used to line yuh up and inspect yuh fingernails. If yuh nails dirty, yuh eh playin. If yuh had de kinda hair dat does roll up real quick, halfway thru de game, yuh was sure to get ah whistle for having nutty hair and even sent to de side to comb yuh hair and sit for bout 10 mins, especially when yuh playin against Pablo team. Anybody on here remember dat? I eh lyin. Ask any man who play ball down Pt. Cumana in dem days. No rasta couldn play in Pablo league.
Ah know dat eh enlightening bout de Rastafari topic, but sh!t, I just bored at work and decide to put in my piece.
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Ah like dis discussion.
Just to give ah idea, I did O’s in 81 and A’s in 83, CIC. In dem days, it didn’t have no dread in CIC. I remember Ian Clauzel, Mucurapo Compre, when he hit de scene, I might be wrong, but he was de first dread dat I was aware of, in school. All de other youth men in Carenage who had dreads dropped out of junior sec. All! And to me, dem fellas was only following de older fellas on de block, who had dreads, and only, all ah dem, worked either 10-days or on some construction site. It had de others who was sellin weed. But de point is, to talk to one ah dem, much like Touches said earlier, and yuh coulda tie dem up easy easy because dey had no idea bout Rastafari and what it supposedly was all about. But dey sure would try to feed yuh some BS in ah heartbeat when yuh first ask dem.
You couldn walk into no bank in Trini in dem days and see no dread. Dread wasn sellin in nobody store unless dey had dey own lil fruit stand. But it had 1 or 2 at UWI. I remember men gettin real fight down playing organized ball for any big team. I remember Clauzel gettin drop because he didn’t want to cut he hair, after having gone to Central America and star for de youth team. Is nuff fight down, and I used to wonder why ah man go choose dat, although I eh go lie, I wanted to knot-up too eh, but dat is becuz nuff young girls was fallin for dat sh!t.
I doh know if anybody on here ever play ball in Pt. Cumana, down Carenage, by de primary school, in Pablo (Paul Clarke) league. Pablo used to make yuh comb yuh hair before ah game and tuck in yuh shirt. He even used to line yuh up and inspect yuh fingernails. If yuh nails dirty, yuh eh playin. If yuh had de kinda hair dat does roll up real quick, halfway thru de game, yuh was sure to get ah whistle for having nutty hair and even sent to de side to comb yuh hair and sit for bout 10 mins, especially when yuh playin against Pablo team. Anybody on here remember dat? I eh lyin. Ask any man who play ball down Pt. Cumana in dem days. No rasta couldn play in Pablo league.
Ah know dat eh enlightening bout de Rastafari topic, but sh!t, I just bored at work and decide to put in my piece.
I eh go fight down the Ras dem, but ah go say that man must know what they stand for and the connotations of what they represent and be willing to deal with the repercussions of the path they choose. It's not fair to stereotype man by how they look, cause there are a lot of educated men that are roots Ras. It have man in parliament back home (Fitzgerald Hinds) with locks. I ain't know what he stand for, but the point is that yuh cyar judge ah man by the cover. At the same time, the world is a place where image seems to prevail over substance, so men must be prepared to be ridiculed and stereotyped if this is the way they want to go. At the same time, man want to say they is Nazarite and they in the world, engaging in worldly things. Nazarite was men like Sampson, Solomon, Christ, John the Baptist. Dem men was Nazarite. If you want to separate youself, then do it fully. Notice too, all dem men except Christ fall short of the glory.
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Ah like dis discussion.
I doh know if anybody on here ever play ball in Pt. Cumana, down Carenage, by de primary school, in Pablo (Paul Clarke) league. Pablo used to make yuh comb yuh hair before ah game and tuck in yuh shirt. He even used to line yuh up and inspect yuh fingernails. If yuh nails dirty, yuh eh playin. If yuh had de kinda hair dat does roll up real quick, halfway thru de game, yuh was sure to get ah whistle for having nutty hair and even sent to de side to comb yuh hair and sit for bout 10 mins, especially when yuh playin against Pablo team. Anybody on here remember dat? I eh lyin. Ask any man who play ball down Pt. Cumana in dem days. No rasta couldn play in Pablo league.
Pablo league boy!!!!! hahahahahaaha those were the days. It had a muslim family used to live across the road from the field. They put up a big wrought iron thing with spikes in it to buss ball if it coming over their fence! lol After game (I used to play with Superstar Rangers) it was sea bath then home.
I go wait a five before responding to the general discussion on Rastafari bisiness, and having a dread.
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SO hear d latest twist to the Rastafari compilations...
Yours truly hop in a "PH" taxi and the driver is a Bobo.
Soldier have he head tie up...he growth of beard on he face..he lil wooden beads necklace. He Selassie pin orn badge on he shirt.
But what make meh start him with a talk is he have a big Ethopia flag on the ceiling of the car, a ethopia and a lion of judah thing hanging from he windscreen and a big lion of judah scarf on he dashboard. And by the tachometer and thing he have he pix of Selassie all over.
So I say breds...yuh like Ethopia...whas dah scene about?
So he start up that is the motherland and dis and dat.
I say ohho...but where Home is for you now...ent is Trinidad yuh living and working, ent yuh born here?....why yuh ent put up a Trinidad flag on yuh dashboard and ceiling and why yuh ent have Doctor Eric Williams instead...
Ras say I ketch him yes....how he never think bout that...and I talking sense.
So I say, yuh feel yuh going Ethopia anytime soon?....what it have for you across dey?
Man hit meh a talk bout heights and journey and the escape from the babylon system.
Now I ent want to form a opinion of the man as thats he thing....but yuh must ask them some probing questions to see what heights dey orn, just to see.
Now alyuh go say I victimising the Ras and dem...but I just curious thats all and being open.
P.s....last time I hop in the "ph" a few days later a trini flag was sharing space on the rearview mirror.
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Look like yuh convert ah man to being a patriot??
Yuh know I remember reading this years ago (ah had to google it)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/1639646.stm
but its short and interesting...the different perspectives
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Dutty good link there...
I have meh own thoughts but we go see how this thing develops.
If I say the men who move from the West were tricked...if yuh have no idea of the story and yuh impartial and yuh reading this jest so. You would think people going mad out there.
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So I say breds...yuh like Ethopia...whas dah scene about?
Ethiopia is very significant to Rastafari mainly because of its relation to His Majesty. It also symbolizes the resilience of Africans because it is the only African country that has never been colonized. In a historical aspect, Rastafari looked toward Africa and Ethiopia in particular in order to rediscover their heritage. Remember, in the late 20s and early 30s which was the dawn of Rastafari, black man was still being heavily persecuted and of course in the Caribbean colonialism was alive and well. They felt marginalized and out of place in Jamaica. To illustrate those feelings, there is a Rastafarian saying: "Jamaica is an island, but it is not I land"; also back in the day when Marcus Garvey was asked "Are you an African or a Jamaican?", he answered "I will not give up a continent for an island!". Ethiopia is seen by many to be associated with the Garden of Eden:
Genesis 2:10-13
10And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads.
11The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold;
12And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone.
13And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia.
Other than that, there are many references to Ethiopia in the Bible (http://www.rastaites.com/HIM/bibleref.html). It is also associated with lost Ark of the Covenant.
When yuh hear Rastaman talking bout repartriation, sometimes it is physical, but many times it is spiritual, cultural, psychological etc.
BTW, Shashemane was not exclusively made available to Rastafarians. It was made available to all Africans in the diaspora who supported Ethiopia during the second Italo–Abyssinian War and its aftermath. It have plenty Trinis over there too. One ah dem is Rickie Nelson (Strike Squad member) brother.
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jahyouth, where ur thoughts man??? u still sitting and watching?
anyway, here is what i think about the fella touches encountered. he is that sort of rasta who probably takes things at face value i.e. he know the basic tenets of Rastafari , probably got a few more nuggets from the bible or from a next bredren and gone with that. perhaps he didn't investigate for himself, as a matter of fact if touches was able to stump the man with a few simple questions then i think he definitely did not do his homework so to speak. as with any thing one has to do some searching before accepting something wholeheartedly. for example, i too would like to go to Africa one day but to do what? how will i live, how will i provide for my family? i am not a farmer by trade but i can learn. i used to take spanish lessons with a lady in mon repo; her husband was a rasta, and he had a lil plot outside the house. sometimes when i come by the house he outside tilling the soil, sometimes he inside playing the bass guitar and sining rasta tune (out of key i might add) the lady come home and no food cook- is that the Rastafarianism i want to subscribe too??
i once had a class with an ethiopian professor who was named after emperor selassie and he said while the emperor did build schools, roads etc. people were still starving etc. the professor didn't sound too fond of the emperor. there is an interview where Bob Marley himself acknowledged the famine that existed in Ethiopia- and that was in 1973 or so, i remember growing up in the 80s and seeing vivid images of starving ethiopians. would a God allow his own people to starve??
ok, lemme stop now. keep the thoughts coming.
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Question for the dreadlocks who have answered....
Whats d price for alyuh to cut alyuh hair?
SO if alyuh get a big wuk...in yuh field and yuh employer say Welcome aboard but yuh hadda cut that hair.
Alyuh go tell them man F^&k away or yuh running to the barber?
;D
Why I asking this question is two fold.....
One to see alyuh take on it,
Secondly to see how much the "Jah Vibes" look is worth.
Let me also save you with the rebuttal of matthew 16:26.
The eternal student,
Touches
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Whats d price for alyuh to cut alyuh hair?
It doh have ah price fuh dat, keep yuh money ;D. If I have tuh put razor tuh my locks, it would have to be of my own volition. Yuh cyar pay me tuh do dat.
SO if alyuh get a big wuk...in yuh field and yuh employer say Welcome aboard but yuh hadda cut that hair.
Alyuh go tell them man F^&k away or yuh running to the barber?
I go jes tell him "nah, is awright, ah go pass".
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there is no price for me to cut my hair. period.
also, i am in academia, perhaps one of the few fields save self employment where i could go for a wuk with a big natty on my head and be very confident of getting the job b/c in this field a chairperson is looking for what a peson could bring to a particular dept, what classes they could teach, how much articles they publish etc., dem ent care how somebody looking, if they brown, green, purple whatever :D
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there is no price for me to cut my hair. period.
also, i am in academia, perhaps one of the few fields save self employment where i could go for a wuk with a big natty on my head and be very confident of getting the job b/c in this field a chairperson is looking for what a peson could bring to a particular dept, what classes they could teach, how much articles they publish etc., dem ent care how somebody looking, if they brown, green, purple whatever :D
Jus outta curiosity...would that apply anywhere in academia?
Or do you think if you went lookin for ah wukk at an Ivy league school it might be a different scene
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hmm. breds i really don't know. i suppose the ivy league would have their old boys network but who knows...stranger things have happened.
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hmm. breds i really don't know. i suppose the ivy league would have their old boys network but who knows...stranger things have happened.
This is just from my limited experience as a grad student, observing things at my own school as well as visiting other campuses and meeting people there and maybe I'm treading on thin ice by generalising but I think diversity is fashionable in academia these days, esp at prestigious institutions. It seems as if there are some people who have an agenda to appear open-minded/enlightened and having locks might actually be a small advantage in some situations.
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SO Fari...this piece of lyrics yuh hit we in the first page of the thread
rastafari is a journey i think. is a journey of self discovery of introspection, of reasoning both with oneself and with others, dread or no dread. a baldhead man could feel rasta in his heart but at the same time he cant know 100% what it is to be rasta because he dont feel the persecution daily. i remember when machel tie up he head bobo style a rasta write a letter in the papers asking him to please not wear that.
So why a man cyar shave he head...take the big wuk...pin he bage on he chest, bun he spliff and bawl Jah Rastafari.......ent he is still a rasta?
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"Buffalo soldier...bald head rasta...fighting for survival..............."
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BTW, Shashemane was not exclusively made available to Rastafarians. It was made available to all Africans in the diaspora who supported Ethiopia during the second Italo–Abyssinian War and its aftermath. It have plenty Trinis over there too. One ah dem is Rickie Nelson (Strike Squad member) brother.
Interesting point. Something I discovered last year about the supporters of Ethiopia during the Italian war. There were volunteers who wanted to go to Africa and help Ethiopia defend its soverignty from many parts of the world including The USA, the Caribbean but also from other countries one might not expect such as Mexico and Colombia. As a matter of fact there were heated protests against the Italians in the aforementioned countries.
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jahyouth, where ur thoughts man??? u still sitting and watching?
anyway, here is what i think about the fella touches encountered. he is that sort of rasta who probably takes things at face value i.e. he know the basic tenets of Rastafari , probably got a few more nuggets from the bible or from a next bredren and gone with that. perhaps he didn't investigate for himself, as a matter of fact if touches was able to stump the man with a few simple questions then i think he definitely did not do his homework so to speak. as with any thing one has to do some searching before accepting something wholeheartedly. for example, i too would like to go to Africa one day but to do what? how will i live, how will i provide for my family? i am not a farmer by trade but i can learn. i used to take spanish lessons with a lady in mon repo; her husband was a rasta, and he had a lil plot outside the house. sometimes when i come by the house he outside tilling the soil, sometimes he inside playing the bass guitar and sining rasta tune (out of key i might add) the lady come home and no food cook- is that the Rastafarianism i want to subscribe too??
i once had a class with an ethiopian professor who was named after emperor selassie and he said while the emperor did build schools, roads etc. people were still starving etc. the professor didn't sound too fond of the emperor. there is an interview where Bob Marley himself acknowledged the famine that existed in Ethiopia- and that was in 1973 or so, i remember growing up in the 80s and seeing vivid images of starving ethiopians. would a God allow his own people to starve??
ok, lemme stop now. keep the thoughts coming.
There are many things one can do in Africa to provide for one's family. I'll be travelling to W. Africa in December. When I return I'll let you know what you can do. Stay tuned. ;)
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SO Fari...this piece of lyrics yuh hit we in the first page of the thread
rastafari is a journey i think. is a journey of self discovery of introspection, of reasoning both with oneself and with others, dread or no dread. a baldhead man could feel rasta in his heart but at the same time he cant know 100% what it is to be rasta because he dont feel the persecution daily. i remember when machel tie up he head bobo style a rasta write a letter in the papers asking him to please not wear that.
So why a man cyar shave he head...take the big wuk...pin he bage on he chest, bun he spliff and bawl Jah Rastafari.......ent he is still a rasta?
Absolutely. Plenty people does do it.
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so wait nah..is from dem Rasta dat Bush and he Neo-cons get dis 'bun down Babylon(Iraq)' thing eh?. ;D
ah was really really bored so dats why ah end up reading this thread lol
even though it was enlightening why am i still leaning towards the stereotypical decription that some people use it as an excuse to be plain lazy?..by that i mean smoking weed, no job, selling incense on de street corner and no direction as to where to head next in life...but then again i just learnt they get called 'pseudo Rasta' and sometimes 'searchers' by real Believers.
also i didnt know it had different types of Rastafari movements.
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Rastafari (and this is coming from a real baldhead) is an African cultural form of resistance that LOOSELY articulates its own perspective of viewing the world. It has SEVERAL informed spritual, religious and political viewpoints, that along with the fact that there is no central church or temple, or bishop or canon to organise a dictating philosophy ensure that Rastas worldwide must develop THEIR OWN IDEAS about faith and their relationship to the society they live in. This is the primary reason why rastas in different countries, and even different parts of town all have varying ideas about faith, HIM Selassie I, and how those ideas should play out in their lives.
To hear some elders like the rastafarian scholar, Horace campbell, tell it, Rastas need to take an initiative in technical and scientific matters. in other words, they should become doctors, scientists, engineers and the like. Shashamane and all of Africa needs that level of scholarship in order to regain its footing on the world stage. Marcus Garvey himself asked the question: where is the black man's nation, his doctors, lawyers, engineers and statesmen?
So for many of the Youths who are dropping out of school, I think much of this is a result of their own confusion rather than the principles of the faith. And even more significantly, it may be a result of the pressures associated with succeeding an achieving at a high level. i woud even suggest that many of these youths who fall by the wayside may have fallen because the degrees that they were pursuing may not have been their idea in the first place. many have gone to school to satisfy the whims and desires of their parent sponsors or to meet certain family expectations. So dropping out of school and becoming a natty may have been the highest form of rebellion on their part.
I and I is a rastaman at heart but my idea of rasta means that one must be well read (not only on Africa), well educated or one should use their particular talent, artistic or otherwise to develop a business capable of sustaining themselves and their family, and even better, a business capable of hiring and training the youths. Many of the books that psuedo-rastas quote from (but never read) are written by men like Cheikh Anta Diop, John henrik Clarke, Chancellor Williams etc... These men were all highly educated and could go anywhere in the world and be acepted for their intelligence.
Google Cheikh Anta Diop and read his biography. he was an EXTREMELY BRILLIANT MAN. His legend at the Sorbonne in France is unsurpassed and his contributions to the field of radiocarbon dating and how he fused over 15 different disciplines (philosophy, chemistry,anthropolgy, linguistics...etc) to prove the African origin or egyptian and world civilization is mind boggling. And he had to accomplish and successfully defend his ideas in an extremely hostile environment where the need to discredit Africa as the source of anything good was signficant.
On the other hand, i would like to believe that if i decide to drop out of school and sell nuts, it would be for me, a part of a larger business strategy. Maybe today I am pushing the cart through the rain and sun, then tomorrow, maybe I own two more carts, in 5 years, I should be the largest nuts vendor in all of TnT, in ten years, the caribbean.
You see, our ideology should not only be based on calling for revolution but for laying a vision and foundation for after the revolution has come and gone. So dropping outta babylon is fine and dandy but what is the alternative vision. it cyah be just bunning de chalice and bulling empresses.
But I have been watching and reading this thread throughout and i want to say that these problems that many of you all have pointed out, does not belong to rastas alone. I am not basher of faiths but most of the followers of organised religions (christianity, islam and Judaism) are some of the most ignorant people that you can generally meet and talk to about faith. Most of us I am certain have arrived at our conclusions about our faith, not through reason and scholarship, not through instropection and paryerful meditation but through the fact that we were born into a family that professed it. What happens then is that we tend to understand religion from an EMOTIONAL perspective and remain ignorant to the VAST ( I said VAST and NUMEROUS CHANGES) that have taken place amongst the ecclesiastical branch.. ie the men who study and make changes to what you believe.
I am certain that many here know nothing about the Council of Nicea (and that the minutes to that meeting are available at most major universities). Most know nothing about The Jesus Seminar (and the wide body of Christian scholars who have been begging for revisions in biblical texts either because of GROSS misintepretations, omissions and submissions to key texts) Most do not know that many of these changes have already been made (READ the preface to the RSV Bible and here them mention a few of the inaccuracies)... Most here do not know that the Catholic church have since revised its concept of Satan and the End of Time(two MAJOR developments that most of the laity do not even know about)... And the list goes on...
Rastas, as Tallman said, aren't the only ones who are misguided, lazy or ignorant.
I know meh post long so I will talk about the saddhus of India (dreadlocked holy men), the use of marijuana (and know nuff natty, myself included, who have never smoked or plan on smoking weed) the Mau mau and the concept of Nyabinghi later on. Plus, it might be wise to look at the concept of ritualism(the ridiculous idea that to praise God properly, one must kneel, pray and wear your clothes a certain way) and the outward manifestations of praise and woship and see if it is more important than the consciousness that should accompany it.
PS: Its funny how nuff man here quick to belittle the rastaman's concept of HIM divinity (from either the literal or metaphysical perspective) but love Moses who according to Bible was an impulsive murderer, David who lusted after another man's wife, Noah, who slept with his daughters, and Abraham who attempted to kill his son, presumably under the command of God as a display of loyalty... some kinda God eh?
Bless
Truthseeker
" There are many truths and many falsehoods"
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Truthseeker,
Yuh know how long I call yuh out to put in yuh two cents in this thread...
Now from yuh opening paragraph if it is....... and tallman has alluded to this.... that there is no organised doctrine and men have to develop their own ideas.....
If each idea passed from one person to another is corrupted....then it will get watered down confused and it will essentially lack substance.
Do you agree or disagree?
Hence we have a setta of pseudo, wannabe mock d dreads running around bawling I and I...Bless Fadder...and these confused individuals are the same ones who are to be the "followers or recruiters" of the Rastafarian faith....so if anything goes...then yuh just leading yuhself into a state of confusion.
To me is a setta jokey men who take chain up...from they partners...who in turn chaining up more people .....who all feel they is victims...that the world against them and they cyar advance theyself because they does look a certain way and the system against them.
The result is yuh have a large group of unproductive long haired people feeling sorry for theyself.
Just the other day they have a local reggae artiste called Prophet Benjamin who said certain things in a concert. The headline act in the concert one of the Morgan Heritage family disagreed with him and said it was not so....(I will try to find the article) ANyways it come like the Trinidadian who now start in this rasta ting telling people one thing and the Jakan who in this thing longer than he saying another...confusing the poor setta youths in the concert who looking at both of them as role models..
See how brainwashing and corruption and chupidness does start...and the young impressionable minds just taking in the nonsense.
Now after reading your post...shouldnt your ideas be for all races, religious persuasions and gender...in fact all of us here on the earth. That we should use our talents given to us and better this place.
Also maybe I have interpreted your post the wrong way...but the gist that I have gathered is that if yuh want to have a dread...make sure yuh bright...yuh know yuh shit...and yuh could back it up and have a sense of history and be able to defend yuhself when pressure take yuh.
But truthseeker...if yuh ent have all of the above...why grow one and put yuhself in a hole?
You yourself admitted in your post them men and thieir contributions were brilliant so really it didnt matter what length of hair or shade of complexion they were.(also Fari admitted that in his field he can be accepted due to what he brings to the table, academia)
Rastas are not looked at as equal opportunists in society...plain talk bad manners...... they are frowned upon.
No man is an island and you cannot exist in todays world living in a vacuum, you have to interact with people out of your social group, business wise, if you travel abroad etc.
Also and this is from the inciteful responses given.....to an outsider or one who is asking questions.....Alyuh doe have much in the convincing department to gather acceptance.
I think rasta in TT is fad..
Same way it was fad to be a muslimeen member a few years ago.
Its now Rastaman time.
Now the last point of yuh post...with the HIM divinity....ent Rastas does still use the bible and quote from it verbatim and follow certain passages.
Why use some and not all? Why it is yuh pickin and choosin.
ALyuh doe get vex with me...I jest curious but if yuh name rasta...use my questions as an opportunity to reaffirm yuh faith in what you belive in.
If my questions castin doubt, then yuh should check yuhself and see if this thing really is your path and yuh see if yuh make the wrong decision. Then yuh will know if yuh is a real or a pseudo.
Sincerely,
Touches,
The eternal student.
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ent Touches?...hmmm lol
To me is a setta jokey men who take chain up...from they partners...who in turn chaining up more people .....who all feel they is victims...that the world against them and they cyar advance theyself because they does look a certain way and the system against them.
The result is yuh have a large group of unproductive long haired people feeling sorry for theyself.
so are we wrong to say or assume that is the typical Rasta or person with a dreadlocks from which the majority of us get our basic understanding from?
I never knew before joining SW.net that Rastafari was part Christian or follow parts of the Bible etc.
I always thought that the 'real' Rastas were 'natural' people who were protectors of Mother Nature and that sort ah thing, living off de land etc.
I also thought people who were bald headed and who said they were Rastafarian was nothing more than pro-African or pan-African (same thing or not?).
concerning the Muslimeen thing..it doesnt seem like the Rasta hierachy is trying to influence people to join the faith to make up numbers etc like the Muslimeen.
anyway we always learning something new :)
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Now from yuh opening paragraph if it is....... and tallman has alluded to this.... that there is no organised doctrine and men have to develop their own ideas.....
If each idea passed from one person to another is corrupted....then it will get watered down confused and it will essentially lack substance.
Do you agree or disagree?
I disagree because if you affiliate yuhself wit one of de mansions, you will get structured teaching.
Hence we have a setta of pseudo, wannabe mock d dreads running around bawling I and I...Bless Fadder...and these confused individuals are the same ones who are to be the "followers or recruiters" of the Rastafarian faith....so if anything goes...then yuh just leading yuhself into a state of confusion.
I eh know about no recruiters. Is not like is Jehovah Witness or Church of de Latter Day Saints.
To me is a setta jokey men who take chain up...from they partners...who in turn chaining up more people .....who all feel they is victims...that the world against them and they cyar advance theyself because they does look a certain way and the system against them.
De victim mentality have nutten tuh do wit Rastafari, dat is ah personal problem. As Peter Tosh says: "I'm a progressive man and I love progressive people."
The result is yuh have a large group of unproductive long haired people feeling sorry for theyself.
Whether is locks, baldhead, jheri-curl, fade, flat-top etc. a group like this always exists.
Just the other day they have a local reggae artiste called Prophet Benjamin who said certain things in a concert. The headline act in the concert one of the Morgan Heritage family disagreed with him and said it was not so....(I will try to find the article) ANyways it come like the Trinidadian who now start in this rasta ting telling people one thing and the Jakan who in this thing longer than he saying another...confusing the poor setta youths in the concert who looking at both of them as role models..
See how brainwashing and corruption and chupidness does start...and the young impressionable minds just taking in the nonsense.
Morgan Heritage are Twelve Tribes members and Prophet Benjamin is ah Bobo Dread, so it is not strange for them to have different opinions on an issue. I am going to take a guess and say the issue probably had to do with growing locks. When Morgan Heritage came out wit de chune "Don't Haffi Dread", plenty dread didn't agree wit it, but say wha, dat is de Twelve Tribes view. De leader of de Twelve Tribes of Israel, Vernon Carrington aka Prophet Gad, doh even have locks.
Prophet Gad:
(http://www.webzinemaker.com/rastalogie/photo/pho1_15293.jpg)(http://myspace-241.vo.llnwd.net/00109/14/21/109841241_m.jpg)
Rastas are not looked at as equal opportunists in society...plain talk bad manners...... they are frowned upon.
This depends on locale. Maybe in T&T Rastafari is frowned upon, but yuh go somewhere else and den is not yuh locks, but de colour of yuh skin.
No man is an island and you cannot exist in todays world living in a vacuum, you have to interact with people out of your social group, business wise, if you travel abroad etc.
Yes, dis is true. Is jes dat some people try tuh minimize dey interaction wit certain elements of todays world
Also and this is from the inciteful responses given.....to an outsider or one who is asking questions.....Alyuh doe have much in the convincing department to gather acceptance.
A lot of times there are no simple Yes, No or one-line responses. In many instances, reading is required to gain historical and contextual insights.
I think rasta in TT is fad..
Same way it was fad to be a muslimeen member a few years ago.
Its now Rastaman time.
If by fad, yuh mean ah rise in people sporting locks, den maybe so, since you seeing it on ah day tuh day basis. But Rasta in T&T long time. De Ethiopian Orthodox Church was established in T&T since de 50s. Selassie came tuh T&T in 1966. Bobo Shanti in T&T since 1977. Twelve Tribes in T&T since 1978.
Rastamania - Sparrow 1978, (Kaiso Gone Dread, Jah Law) - Black Stalin 1979, Bald Head Rasta - Lord Nelson 1980, Ras Mas - Explainer 1981, Rasta Chick - Explainer 1983.
ALyuh doe get vex with me...I jest curious but if yuh name rasta...use my questions as an opportunity to reaffirm yuh faith in what you belive in.
If my questions castin doubt, then yuh should check yuhself and see if this thing really is your path and yuh see if yuh make the wrong decision. Then yuh will know if yuh is a real or a pseudo.
Yuh questions doh cast no doubt because I done check mehself long time. Me eh know everyting and ah doh pretend to. Ah jes like you, I am an eternal student. We jes reasoning.
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Ditto to everything Tallman jus say. Touches, the reality is amongst many of the youths today, the Natty movement is a fad thing, a sense maybe of rebelling or trying to belong. Whatever the reason, it is very hard to judge because nuff of them will come to a fuller understanding in due time, and then again, nuff men go fall off and move on to the next fad.
It kinda remind me of the mid 80's when every youth was wearing African medallions and Malcolm X hats. For nuff of us at the time, it may have originally started off as a cultural fashion statement but for many others like myself, it really was a spark to lead us deeper into the realms of scholarship and understanding and provide the groundworks for a true knowledge of self. So I have no doubts that many of the youths who you mention will surely turn out this way.
Like I said before, Rasta is not the only section of society that deals with this. This is a problem for Christianity, Judaism and Islam. Everywhere is confusion.
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This is a wonderfull topic. I read every single response and was able to learn so many things about rastafari and the reality of it that exists today.
I agree with Touches to say that it is a fad and that the lack of structure is as a result of the low percentage of rastas who can call themselves educated.
I know that Tallman said that if one wants to get structure, one can go to one of the mansions and get teaching. But my question is, why does someone have to come on this forum to find out that?
I believe that less than 0.01% (doh kill meh for meh figures) of 'rastas' know the reason for they locks and what it really represents. I think most people see it as an identification for their "blackness" or as a form of "Resistance" and i believe it should be more than just that.
It is true that there is the exception that exists (for example, de man who touches mentioned who was ah borse in maths), but the general perception of rastas in the country and by extension the world is not good.
I, like touches, have asked many a rastafari for an explanation into what they believe and the reason for their locks and have always find myself more confused at the end.
I respect people and their belief, but until the structure of this "religion" is made as accessible as the Bible or Qur'an or bhagavad gita then it will continue to be a fad for the youths.
The only prominent Rasta (i not talking about man who just have dread) i could think of in this country is Fitzgerald Hinds and even he seems to be a ploy by manning and dem to get more votes.
We need more educated Rastas (like Tallman......lol) to come out and show that rastafari is more than just wearing Selassie I badge and walking with stick and wearing long dress.
ah love it!!
Ps: Touches, thanx for the heads up on the topic, imagine i woulda miss all this intellectual fulfillment
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Good job dey Touches. I always feel like the youths in Tnt need a strong reasoning session as well. The Guyanese scholar, Walter Rodney used to do it all over the Caribbean and I feel like we could start his Groundings and reasoning session again.
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I agree with Touches to say that it is a fad and that the lack of structure is as a result of the low percentage of rastas who can call themselves educated.
I know that Tallman said that if one wants to get structure, one can go to one of the mansions and get teaching. But my question is, why does someone have to come on this forum to find out that?
The lack of a universal singular Rastafari doctrine has no correlation with the education level of the Elders and followers, but it has more to do with the absence of an authoritative voice as well as the desire to promote communal reasoning.
Yuh doh have tuh come tuh dis forum. It have endless books yuh could read (http://www.onedropbooks.com/newpages/Rasta.html), a lot of dem yuh coulda get by Uprising (Brother Resistance store in de drag mall, until it bun down), on Amazon etc. Yuh could visit de Bobo camp in Tunapuna. Yuh could visit websites such as:
Rastafari Speaks (http://www.rastafarispeaks.com/rastafari/)
The Nyabinghi Order (http://nyahbinghi.org)
Rasta Speaks (http://www.rastaspeaks.com/Rasta/home.html)
The Earth's Most Strangest Man: The Rastafarian (http://www.rism.org/planno/toc.html)
De Caribbean Rastafari Organization has been hosting conferences for a number of years. De information is out there.
I believe that less than 0.01% (doh kill meh for meh figures) of 'rastas' know the reason for they locks and what it really represents. I think most people see it as an identification for their "blackness" or as a form of "Resistance" and i believe it should be more than just that.
Ah see where yuh coming from, but Rasta doh have ah monopoly on dreadlocks. As ah matter of fact, de first setta people wit locks in T&T was probably dem Saddhus.
It is true that there is the exception that exists (for example, de man who touches mentioned who was ah borse in maths), but the general perception of rastas in the country and by extension the world is not good.
In some places more than others. For example, I was able to go to the British Virgin Islands recently, but if I had attempted to go prior to 2003, I would have not been allowed into the country due to their Rasta Law (http://www.islandsun.com/2003-September/05092003/local1-v11i15.html). Fortunately the laws been revoked.
I respect people and their belief, but until the structure of this "religion" is made as accessible as the Bible or Qur'an or bhagavad gita then it will continue to be a fad for the youths.
The Bible is fundamental to Rastafari, so in dat respect it is accessible. Not everyting will fall in yuh lap.
Since there has been the repeated mention of laziness and education, this is what the Emperor had to say on those topics:
Self Help
The people themselves must come to realize their own difficulties in the development of their community and try to solve them by collective participation following an order of priority and taking their potentiality into account.
It is well known to you all that recognizing one's problems and striving hard to challenge them is a mark of an attempt at self-sufficiency. Self help in the benefits to be acquired through education, will save the individual from asking someone's assistance.
Education
A strong nation and a free nation can only base itself upon education.
In order to make life worthwhile it is also necessary to acquire other things that can only come about after the acquisition of learning. Learning and technical training must be nurtured by faith in God, reverence for the human soul, and respect for the reasoning mind.
There is no safer anchorage for our learning, our lives and our actions than that provided by divine teachings coupled with the best in human understanding. The leaders developed here should be guided by the fundamental values and the moral power which have for centuries constituted the essence of our religious teachings.
These are crucial times when nations rise against nations, tensions increase and disaster is possible at any moment. Distances are shrinking. Peace and life itself are threatened by misunderstanding and conflict. Now is the time when man's relationship to God must be the foundation for all his efforts toward enlightenment, and learning the basis for understanding cooperation and peace.
The existence of a skilled and trained manpower is an absolute necessity for the progress and development of any country. Therefore, it is the sacred duty and responsibility of students and parents to see to it that the mistakes of the past are not repeated and that time which should be devoted to the pursuit of learning is not wasted by students heedlessly, following the instigation of a few misguided troublemakers who have yet to understand the value and the true meaning of education.
The salvation of our country Ethiopia, we have repeatedly stated to you, lies primarily in education. As Ethiopia is one, all Ethiopians are also one and education is the only way to maintain the condition.
In all countries of the modern world, special competence is required to deal with the advancement of agriculture, industry, commerce and the civil service. That competence, can be secured only through the facilities provided in modern universities.
We believe that the universities today stand as the most promising hope for constructive solutions to the problems that beset the modern world, problems which prevent the peaceful cooperation of nations and which threaten the world and humanity with death and disaster.
From universities must come men, ideas, knowledge, experience, technical skills and the deep human understanding vital to fruitful relations among nations. Without these, world order for which we have so long strived, cannot be established.
A well informed public opinion is essential to the growth of political and social awareness. Only he who is informed can comment intelligently on his nation's development and only by such comments can errors be corrected and progress stimulated.
We must draw on what is valuable and meaningful in our history and tradition, merging this with the best in modern learning.
We expect from you, to whom we have given the opportunity of education in your chosen field great and productive service to our country.
If women develop in education, they can overcome the natural weakness and serve their country as men do.
It is our wish to assure the spread of education among all African People as much as among our own subjects.
A father should bequeath not only wealth but also provide proper education. Education has value when it is established in individuals of good character with respect to God. We wish that your destiny shall be embraced in an education firmly based in good character before men and respect before God.
Any who may wish to profit himself alone from the knowledge given him, rather than serve others through the knowledge he has gained from learning, is betraying knowledge and rendering it worthless.
A man's happiness is to make his brother happy, and to serve his country. Thus it is possible to justify for knowledge its high and deserved place. For knowledge is power. If it is not applied to its proper purpose, to create, let there be no doubt, it will destroy.
If we have made so many sacrifices for the education of our youth, it is because we are convinced that only through intellectual progress and education can Ethiopia come into its own and make it's just contribution to the history of the Middle East.
We believe that from truth alone is born liberty and only an educated people can consider itself as really free and master of its fate. It is only with an educated people that representative and democratic organs of government can exercise their influence for national progress.
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Rasta Musings...part 5
Tallman,
as you are the only one providing answers lewwe reason some more........I curious nah.
Yuh ever see the lil hand sign that all these wanna be rasta flashing now...If I remember correctly from my viewing of numerous kickup...ninja does do something so when they praying.
Its the two index finger and thumb touching........What that supposed to represent? You does do that when yuh see yuh fellow Ras and dem. On one of capleton album covers it have him posing so.
Do you knock yuh chest with a fist and say Bless Fadder?
Next thing........
The Local artisites now watching plenty TV and does have a lil jokey man on stage with them when they performing.
The man who start this trend is none other than the US Rap mogul P.Diddy.....
He used to have this this fella, he personal grooming assistant Farnsworth Bently next to him in he video spinning umbrella and dancing round in he bow tie suspenders and wing tips.
Now farnsworth used to pull a 30,000US a day to lick Piddy Bamsee and dress him in he shirt and tie.....so he use antics to flip paper.
But if yuh ever look at Synergy and get a chance to see the nice low budget poor quality video that dey does be churning out...You will see within the last few months the reggae artistes in JA does have a lil man with a Ethiopia flag waving it wild wild and running up and down.
Needless to say we artistes not to be undone have they own lil Flag waver boy too....But them does have Umbrella and cane and thing prancing jokey jokey .
Maybe this lil sidekick is akin to the "crew" that does accompany rap artistes on stage but I just find is a setta unnecessary nonsense.
Also why it is the new found Ras and dem like to dress "Military" ....all d new ones like a setta army fatigues with lil badge and stripes with a tims on they foot. What war they fighting.
Also the ones who does put highlights and dye they dreads...and put all kinda lil shell and earing and thing in it. and have it in fishtail twist and thing whats yuh comment bout them......would you accept a dye dread with a bando and a woogie as one of yuh bredrins....or would you watch him ahow?
OK carry orn....
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Yuh ever see the lil hand sign that all these wanna be rasta flashing now...If I remember correctly from my viewing of numerous kickup...ninja does do something so when they praying.
Its the two index finger and thumb touching........What that supposed to represent? You does do that when yuh see yuh fellow Ras and dem. On one of capleton album covers it have him posing so.
Dat sign represents the Star of David aka the Seal of Solomon. H.I.M (who belongs to the Royal House of David and is part of the Solomonic Dynasty) used to make that sign with his hands as shown below:
(http://www.templaricavalieri.it/images/haile_selassie_01.gif) (http://www.rezoivoire.net/africain/images/haile180.jpg)
Do you knock yuh chest with a fist and say Bless Fadder?
I doh say "bless fadder", I may say things like: "Yes I", "Greetings", "Yes King", "Empress", "Ithren", "Sisthren", "Hail", "Dread" etc.
The Local artisites now watching plenty TV and does have a lil jokey man on stage with them when they performing.
The man who start this trend is none other than the US Rap mogul P.Diddy.....
He used to have this this fella, he personal grooming assistant Farnsworth Bently next to him in he video spinning umbrella and dancing round in he bow tie suspenders and wing tips.
Now farnsworth used to pull a 30,000US a day to lick Piddy Bamsee and dress him in he shirt and tie.....so he use antics to flip paper.
But if yuh ever look at Synergy and get a chance to see the nice low budget poor quality video that dey does be churning out...You will see within the last few months the reggae artistes in JA does have a lil man with a Ethiopia flag waving it wild wild and running up and down.
Needless to say we artistes not to be undone have they own lil Flag waver boy too....But them does have Umbrella and cane and thing prancing jokey jokey .
Maybe this lil sidekick is akin to the "crew" that does accompany rap artistes on stage but I just find is a setta unnecessary nonsense.
De first time ah notice dat was when ah was watching ah performance of Damian Marley. Me eh know what dat one is about. It could be just as you said, ah man tuh hype up de crowd. Maybe somebody else know.
Also why it is the new found Ras and dem like to dress "Military" ....all d new ones like a setta army fatigues with lil badge and stripes with a tims on they foot. What war they fighting.
De military wear has been around a long time. It probably jes making ah comeback. Among other things it represents solidarity with H.I.M who was personally on de battlefield against de Italians in de 30s and projecting a revolutionary stance (similar to how the Black Panthers had their black military-style outfits).
Also the ones who does put highlights and dye they dreads...and put all kinda lil shell and earing and thing in it. and have it in fishtail twist and thing whats yuh comment bout them......would you accept a dye dread with a bando and a woogie as one of yuh bredrins....or would you watch him ahow?
De shell is ah cowrie shell, which has a variety of uses. In ancient times it was used as money, it's used in rituals by some tribes like de Yoruba and in it's simplest form it's used as jewelry.
De dyeing of de hair and all dat kinda simmy dimmy is not fuh me, but tuh each his own.
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Thanks for the responses Tallest.
I notice you maintain a very impartial and unbiased view in each of your answers.....yuh could dodge good.
In fact yuh dodging better than them same Bobo nutsmen on the highway :rotfl:
But thanks for the clairifcation....I am sure this conversation has enlightened a few on the board and cleared up some misconceptions.
I would still like some more perspectives doe...I know it have plenty ras on this site who jest peeping at this thread and fraid to throw een they two cents.
I woulda also like the perspective of someone from JA or a Euro based Ras...someone not in TT who has no connection to the scene here and who doing they own thing. Done to make comparisons nah...where they learn they ting from etc.
Arghmmmm..........yeah next question.
The walking stick or Cane that they like to rock...thats style or that have religious conotations too?
What alyuh does use to keep alyuh locks clean and fresh?.....the talk bout going to the river/spring and grating some rachete/bois canoe...... come now we living in the 21st century plus is plenty Urban Rasta we have these days. This vision yuh does see on tv of man jumping up out of water and shaking he dreads doe really happen in these times
Alyuh does go in the shower and use Clairol herbal essences like d rest of we or has some Ras devised a Natural shampoo.....if it ent come out yet...look I jest give alyuh a marketing idea.
Now I never notice this when yuh was liming around none of we, Big magician neither alyuh hair never smell...but I have some partners who Ras does VAMP....and it VAMPIN hard. Even if and when they say it clean it still have a kinda odour........and yuh not even close to them. Yuh is a good few feet away downwind and yuh getting a whiff.
When yuh ras break do you sew it back?..........I have seen men and girls....with real Ras try and twist back the hair and I have seen them take a needle and thread and "repair" a lock.
Lastly does twisting yuh hair and growing a ras give you a receding hairline or male pattern baldness.....Check Bungi as an example.
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Nice thread......I couldn't read each response word for word, but I was really impressed with Tallman's & T-seekers imparting of knowledge about the "rasta" faith.
From a non- rasta, Christian-born, but not really practicing perspective, all I can comment on is the human & social aspect (which is what I think is Touches' perspective in most of his posts)....this is my take in sum:
Religions, faiths, beliefs are all based on ideologies. Often times in life & everyday practice, there is a huge gap between ideology & realism .That's human nature. The modern day fad of rastafarianism is not an indictment on the rasta faith, nor is it an indictment on the youth who follow the fad. You may not notice it but Christianity is currently and has probably been the biggest fad for centuries, so big that almost no one dare question it.........The "fad" of rasta is just a social phenomenon like everything else that you notice:
There are countless people wearing Che Guevara T-shirts who have no real respect for left-ism, socialism & communism. (I own a Che shirt, and I for the most part endorse capitalism. I work for a corporation)
some of the most common verbal exclamations are "Jesus Christ !!!", "For Christ's sake", "God Forbid", "Lord have Mercy"........You don't need to be a devout knowledgeable Christian to utter such, so why do you need to be a devout knowledgeable rasta to say "I and I", "bless" etc...
At the end of the day, people make personal choices with their lives. The more they feel the need to justify a personal choice, is the more likely they are to find an explanation/justification that is grounded in ideology....and in the end some will be more consistent than others depending on the strength of their faith, belief & knowledge.
So just as the bombing of the WTC or the P.O.S. coup attempt in 1990 should not an indictment on islam, personal choices such as dropping out of school to sell nuts, growing a dread etc....should not be an indictment on rasta regardless of the fact that the reason for such may be grounded in some interpretation/misinterpretation of the rastafarian ideology.....
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Kicker...
Doe let meh start on them Che Guevarra juzzey and the youths.....
Setta damn hype...me ent know you had one too....Is to pull girls ent?
Why we never rock a Tubal Uriah Buzz Butler jersey instead.
Actually Tallman have one and wear it proud somewhere...I was meaning to give him some pips for that.
You are correct in that I am looking at the social aspect of it....I am a casual observer and I just showing the trends that I now seeing.
Now the difference between the "Christianity" Fad as you call it the "Rasta" fad....and lemme be very careful here as its religion we talking.
Is that most of our religions we grew up in them...it was placed upon us via our parents. We didnt have much of a choice and most people are of a religious persuasion because they parents have them so.
I am not doubting that there are Rasta children understanding the practices, ideology etc.existing in the world today...but they are few. In most instance Rasta is a choice....and a newfound one at that by most of the youths these days.
If yuh read the threads and responses...is when man leave they mother house they does decide to go and search for theyself. To rebel, to explore, to experiment etc.
Now nuttin wrong with that...but the situation is difficult because the info and knowledge is difficult to access. Everybody have they own version and things disjointed....(even though Tallman says otherwise point is you cannot readily get info.)
How many of the youths in TT have access to internet...how much of them actually like to or can read...and finally how many of these Rasta books are available readily for them to gather knowledge....FEW.
Look how this little thread has educated the 400 and so people who peep at it ......but of the responses only Tallman, Truthseeker and TI have put some research and facts behind it. The rest is opinion...mine included.
I feel I could start up meh own form of enlightenment too...I go see how much people I could chain up....I go devise a look for meh followers...and I go make sure they make plenty donations...I go be a Modern day Jim Jones.....Kicker yuh dey...I go give yuh a big post in the order!
;D
Tallest...question again....Lewee talk bout the herb.
What are the passages from the bible thats says it was found on King Solomons grave?
What is the purpose of the herb...is it akin to communion in Christians?
Any special method of smoking, preparation, equipment etc...any special ceremony or ritual done if yuh using this thing properly.
Not inferring that you smoke...but you might have knowledge of the subject.
The eternal student.
Touches
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There are countless people wearing Che Guevara T-shirts who have no real respect for left-ism, socialism & communism. (I own a Che shirt, and I for the most part endorse capitalism. I work for a corporation)
lolololol, kicker, i wearing one right now!! lol.
some of the most common verbal exclamations are "Jesus Christ !!!", "For Christ's sake", "God Forbid", "Lord have Mercy"........You don't need to be a devout knowledgeable Christian to utter such, so why do you need to be a devout knowledgeable rasta to say "I and I", "bless" etc...
excellent piont!!
ah love it!!
ps: tallman, thanx for the literature!! ah love dat too!!
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The walking stick or Cane that they like to rock...thats style or that have religious conotations too?
Just like locks, ah sure it have some ah dem who does jes coast it as ah style. Depending on de height and shape, it could be a prayer staff.
What alyuh does use to keep alyuh locks clean and fresh?.....the talk bout going to the river/spring and grating some rachete/bois canoe...... come now we living in the 21st century plus is plenty Urban Rasta we have these days. This vision yuh does see on tv of man jumping up out of water and shaking he dreads doe really happen in these times
Depending on whey yuh living, some man does still use ratchet. I remember some years ago ah grate up some and travel wit it. Man shaking dey natty in de river and sea does still go on albeit less dan years ago. It would be more man who living in de country or in de hills.
Alyuh does go in the shower and use Clairol herbal essences like d rest of we or has some Ras devised a Natural shampoo.....if it ent come out yet...look I jest give alyuh a marketing idea.
I doh use Clairol and dem ting. I does use heavily plant-based (aloe vera, tea tree oil etc.) types of shampoo. It have natural shampoo in abundance.
Now I never notice this when yuh was liming around none of we, Big magician neither alyuh hair never smell...but I have some partners who Ras does VAMP....and it VAMPIN hard. Even if and when they say it clean it still have a kinda odour........and yuh not even close to them. Yuh is a good few feet away downwind and yuh getting a whiff.
Is ah matter of hygiene. Maybe dey jes need tuh learn tuh wash dey hair properly.
When yuh ras break do you sew it back?..........I have seen men and girls....with real Ras try and twist back the hair and I have seen them take a needle and thread and "repair" a lock.
I not on dat, I does jes keep de ones dat break orf.
Lastly does twisting yuh hair and growing a ras give you a receding hairline or male pattern baldness.....Check Bungi as an example.
Growing ah Ras naturally does not contribute to male pattern baldness. If yuh genetically proned tuh losing yuh hair, it eh matter what yuh have on yuh head, it go happen tuh some degree. However, I have read dat de constant twisting of yuh hair, braiding, hair weaves etc. can play a part in hair loss.
What are the passages from the bible thats says it was found on King Solomons grave?
As far as I know there are no passages indicating this. I know of the saying, but have no idea where it originated. Some term it "Rasta legend".
What is the purpose of the herb...is it akin to communion in Christians?
The herb has medicinal, nutritional and spiritual uses. In one instance it can be seen as similar to communion, but the similarity ends there because of its wide variety of uses.
Any special method of smoking, preparation, equipment etc...any special ceremony or ritual done if yuh using this thing properly.
Usually a prayer is said before de lighting of de chalice and it is passed from left to right. Before each person partakes of de chalice, dey say a grace.
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Dreadlocks are just cool, they look pretty, it makes u look different.
But u need to learn how to ignore all those haters, that accociate it to dirt, rastafari, peanutbutter, stank, veganism.
AND chicks love it
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Alright from the first response...Its discipline?
Now why you choose this method of practicing discipline?....you coulda not check girls, stop drink alchol, stop eat meat. Do yuh school work harder etc...
But ok cool...
Now I just asking questions to do two things....educate myself and be help others understand.
Now for the next question.
This setta burn down babylon, fire pon rome...burn in the fire. etc.
Before Capleton come out with he tunes and Anthony B and the rest of them what alyuh used to say?
Did your vocabulary, metaphors, and way of looking at the world emerge just a few years ago with the advent of these singers and their beliefs or alyuh just start to Bun out the chi chi, babylon etc.
Also I want to hear it from alyuh...What or who determines a real legit rasta from a fake one?
Thanks.
The eternal student Touches..
whether you grow dreds or not, ethnic people of african descent historically has faced oppression, in Trinidad the colonial influence lends many to believe you must be clean cut, anything leading or hinting to culture and roots to africa is regarded as failure and shameful. Anyone who ostrasizes a rastaman is wrong because this rastafarian religion entails the only link to african roots, it can be argued ethiopia is not where the caribbean diaspora of africans descend from but it can be said that when your roots are stripped by the very core from your existence as an african, you will familiarize yourself with something similar in nature.
With regards to none religious reasons for growing the RAS, well it is a style and a fashion statement, however many believe it to be jamaican, which they are terribly wrong wrong about. Salassie did not only go to Jamaica, he also came to Trinidad, it was more widely accepted throughout Jamaica than in Trinidad, also Salassie had a larger population to indoctrinate with the message than in Trinidad, hence more Yardmen went to the message, less in Trinidad. It only caught on afterwards but there was always a rastafarian presence, this of course caused conflict with the Christian population who were also of african descent. The conflict arose as it arose in Jamaica but many in Trinidad stuck to their christian belief.
Getting back to touches point, youths have a misconception of the dredd, like many others, it is a religious hairstyle, that should be worn by individuals who are commited to jah rastafarid. When you wear the dredd you must accept the cannotations and redicule that will come along with it, because I know true rastas and have family who are dredd and follow the edict, you cannot misrepresent the dredd in it's true form and cadre. What is needed is further education to the youths as to what the hairstyle represents and why it shouldn't be used as a fashion statement or a badjohn status symbol, which the hairstyle itself is the totally opposite of what many believe it to be.
Interesting points
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i havent read what preceeded i just going to anwer touches. for me.. i grow mines cause i never use to go by a barber. but now as i have it i dont want to cut it. i am a high shcool teacher in canada and no one seems to have a problem with it.
for me it had nuttin to do with attracting women. i was witht he same woman since before it moved brom corkscrew..to dreds. but women r attracted to it i will admit.
i am a designer dred. i am not rastafarian. i am a roman catholic. but with that ebing said i think an di know thier are bald head rastas who take the religion much more seriously than dem fella with long ass bongo hair draggin and sitting ond e side ah de rd burning down babylon complaning dat de system fighitng dem down.
so i think for every individual the decision is a personal one. same way liek some one who has a fro now or hair in cane row. so dai smeh 2 cent sif i repeated anythign sorry but. i didnt wnat to be influenced
;D
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[quote AND chicks love it
Ah no...not all. Ah have tuh admit dat ah didn't used tuh like it at all. Maybe is all de prejudices ah grow up hearing. I had a nephew way back when (now deceased) who was a rasta. De real ting...100 percent. I used tuh be uncomfortable around him but ah was young den. Ah went out wid a fella dat had one (in Canada) and I have tuh reluctantly admit too dat he look good wid his. He was a designer dread. Ah getting more used to it and ah loosing de prejudices.
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[quote AND chicks love it
Ah no...not all. Ah have tuh admit dat ah didn't used tuh like it at all. Maybe is all de prejudices ah grow up hearing. I had a nephew way back when (now deceased) who was a rasta. De real ting...100 percent. I used tuh be uncomfortable around him but ah was young den. Ah went out wid a fella dat had one (in Canada) and I have tuh reluctantly admit too dat he look good wid his. He was a designer dread. Ah getting more used to it and ah loosing de prejudices.
dat means ah ahve ah chance cocoa ;)
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[quote AND chicks love it
Ah no...not all. Ah have tuh admit dat ah didn't used tuh like it at all. Maybe is all de prejudices ah grow up hearing. I had a nephew way back when (now deceased) who was a rasta. De real ting...100 percent. I used tuh be uncomfortable around him but ah was young den. Ah went out wid a fella dat had one (in Canada) and I have tuh reluctantly admit too dat he look good wid his. He was a designer dread. Ah getting more used to it and ah loosing de prejudices.
dat means ah ahve ah chance cocoa ;)
As long as there is life, there is hope. ;D
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[quote AND chicks love it
Ah no...not all. Ah have tuh admit dat ah didn't used tuh like it at all. Maybe is all de prejudices ah grow up hearing. I had a nephew way back when (now deceased) who was a rasta. De real ting...100 percent. I used tuh be uncomfortable around him but ah was young den. Ah went out wid a fella dat had one (in Canada) and I have tuh reluctantly admit too dat he look good wid his. He was a designer dread. Ah getting more used to it and ah loosing de prejudices.
dat means ah ahve ah chance cocoa ;)
As long as there is life, there is hope. ;D
lol dat come liek telling meh one in a million chance..lol...allyuh eh bet allyuh mess up.. :rotfl:
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[quote AND chicks love it
Ah no...not all. Ah have tuh admit dat ah didn't used tuh like it at all. Maybe is all de prejudices ah grow up hearing. I had a nephew way back when (now deceased) who was a rasta. De real ting...100 percent. I used tuh be uncomfortable around him but ah was young den. Ah went out wid a fella dat had one (in Canada) and I have tuh reluctantly admit too dat he look good wid his. He was a designer dread. Ah getting more used to it and ah loosing de prejudices.
dat means ah ahve ah chance cocoa ;)
As long as there is life, there is hope. ;D
lol dat come liek telling meh one in a million chance..lol...allyuh eh bet allyuh mess up.. :rotfl:
So yuh want tuh conduct yuh business in public here den? OK brother..leh meh hear yuh lyrics..ah go tell yuh how much of ah chance yuh have.
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[quote AND chicks love it
Ah no...not all. Ah have tuh admit dat ah didn't used tuh like it at all. Maybe is all de prejudices ah grow up hearing. I had a nephew way back when (now deceased) who was a rasta. De real ting...100 percent. I used tuh be uncomfortable around him but ah was young den. Ah went out wid a fella dat had one (in Canada) and I have tuh reluctantly admit too dat he look good wid his. He was a designer dread. Ah getting more used to it and ah loosing de prejudices.
dat means ah ahve ah chance cocoa ;)
As long as there is life, there is hope. ;D
lol dat come liek telling meh one in a million chance..lol...allyuh eh bet allyuh mess up.. :rotfl:
So yuh want tuh conduct yuh business in public here den? OK brother..leh meh hear yuh lyrics..ah go tell yuh how much of ah chance yuh have.
how every body of late claling meh out and blowing up meh spot.i feel i going on a 10 day no post vibe :heehee: :heehee: :heehee:
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[quote AND chicks love it
Ah no...not all. Ah have tuh admit dat ah didn't used tuh like it at all. Maybe is all de prejudices ah grow up hearing. I had a nephew way back when (now deceased) who was a rasta. De real ting...100 percent. I used tuh be uncomfortable around him but ah was young den. Ah went out wid a fella dat had one (in Canada) and I have tuh reluctantly admit too dat he look good wid his. He was a designer dread. Ah getting more used to it and ah loosing de prejudices.
dat means ah ahve ah chance cocoa ;)
As long as there is life, there is hope. ;D
lol dat come liek telling meh one in a million chance..lol...allyuh eh bet allyuh mess up.. :rotfl:
So yuh want tuh conduct yuh business in public here den? OK brother..leh meh hear yuh lyrics..ah go tell yuh how much of ah chance yuh have.
how every body of late claling meh out and blowing up meh spot.i feel i going on a 10 day no post vibe :heehee: :heehee: :heehee:
:( but that would deprive me of the joy I get in reading your posts. ;D
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[quote AND chicks love it
Ah no...not all. Ah have tuh admit dat ah didn't used tuh like it at all. Maybe is all de prejudices ah grow up hearing. I had a nephew way back when (now deceased) who was a rasta. De real ting...100 percent. I used tuh be uncomfortable around him but ah was young den. Ah went out wid a fella dat had one (in Canada) and I have tuh reluctantly admit too dat he look good wid his. He was a designer dread. Ah getting more used to it and ah loosing de prejudices.
dat means ah ahve ah chance cocoa ;)
As long as there is life, there is hope. ;D
lol dat come liek telling meh one in a million chance..lol...allyuh eh bet allyuh mess up.. :rotfl:
So yuh want tuh conduct yuh business in public here den? OK brother..leh meh hear yuh lyrics..ah go tell yuh how much of ah chance yuh have.
how every body of late claling meh out and blowing up meh spot.i feel i going on a 10 day no post vibe :heehee: :heehee: :heehee:
yeah go ahead nah ;D
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http://www.guardian.co.tt/features1.html
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I never hear about this religion
http://www.trinidad-tobago.net/Article.aspx?PageId=19
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Machel Montano "tried" tur join dem but dey throw him out....cause ah he waist :-\
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This was a very interesting and enjoyable read. When those fellas get "blanked" and someoen doesnt want the peanuts they are sellign they still always are very pOlite and respectful.
i would like to visit thier congress one day.
DOES ANYONE HAVE FIRST HAND EXPERIENCE VISITING THERE...OR KNOWS OF SOMEONE WHO HAS, BEYOND THIS ARTICLE?
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Bobo Shanti ... Bull Bay, Jamaica.
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I never hear about this religion
http://www.trinidad-tobago.net/Article.aspx?PageId=19
Bobo Shanti is a mansion of Rastafari; been around a while now. Started by Prince Emmanuel Charles Edwards in Jamaica in de 1950s and brought to T&T in 1977.
DOES ANYONE HAVE FIRST HAND EXPERIENCE VISITING THERE...OR KNOWS OF SOMEONE WHO HAS, BEYOND THIS ARTICLE?
I haven't been to the Tunapuna congress but I have been to a Bobo tabernacle in Miami for Selassie's Earthday to chant, read scriptures, dance, listen to drumming etc. for a good 4 or 5 hours. In my experience dem brethrens are very disciplined and respectful.
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good topic, solomons line continues to ethiopia through sheba, growing your locks is a sign of strength, i believed it to be a symbol taken from sampson for strength and power...
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Just providing a little research here...
Check what Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rasta) have to say bout Rasta.
I find this Wikipedia thing have plenty contradiction to what was said in the previous pages....however it does have alot of common things too....which as my inital post implied this Rasta thing is a setta confusion. Also Wikipedia itself is not the end all and be all of information but I find it reliable and what I reading here.....may sound good in theory but I think is far from in practice.
Now Rasta diet as taken from wikipedia
As mentioned, many Rastas eat limited types of meat in accordance with the dietary Laws of the Old Testament; they do not eat seafood or pork. Others abstain from all meat and flesh whatsoever, asserting that to touch meat is to touch death, and is therefore a violation of the Nazarite oath. However, the prohibition against meat only applies to those who are currently fulfilling a Nazarite vow, for the duration of the vow. Many Rastafari maintain a vegan diet all of the time, with the exception of the use of honey.
Now after clicking the Ital link check out what popped up
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Ital or I-tal is food approved of in the Rastafari movement. The word derives from the English word vital, with the initial syllable replaced by the word I. This is done to many words in the Rastafarian vocabulary to signify the unity of the speaker with all of nature.
Though there are different interpretations of ital regarding specific foods, the general principle is that food should be natural, or pure, and from the earth. Rastas therefore avoid food which is chemically modified or contains artificial additives (e.g., colour, flavourings, and preservatives). Some also avoid added salt in foods. In strict interpretations, foods that have been produced using chemicals such as pesticides and fertiliser are not considered ital.
In common with religions such as Judaism and Islam, Rasta prohibits the eating of pork. Some Rastas also avoid eating shellfish because, in common with pigs, they are considered to be scavengers. Most Rastas consider the ital diet to forbid the consumption of all red meat, many do not eat fish or those fish over twelve inches in length, and some are strict vegetarians. Stricter interpretations would also avoid food that has been preserved by canning or drying and even prohibit the use of metal cooking utensils. In this case, only clay and wood cooking pots, crockery and cutlery would be used. Few adherents of ital follow the strictest interpretation; some Rastas do not adhere to them at all.
You see the term highlighted...many different interpretations, I find everything bout Rasta is different interpretations, as if people could do what they want and just say I interpret it so and there is nobody to justify, condone pull them up or acknowledge.
There must be a right and a wrong in religious practices.
Also it real hard to believe I see all kinda Ras maintaining a fish....Down to Luciano in one of he videos have he and some youth men ketching fish in a river and dey bubbling a broth, with a rusty ole iron pot and a metal potspoon....and who is more Jah Messenger than he.
Granted I should not let one video on tempo or synergy form the basis of my argument however for those who have seen it one cannot refute the claim.
Anyway carry on
The eternal student
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Now they say a little bit of knowledge is a Dangerous thing.
This Leanord Howell fella....the first Rasta. Look at the "ideas" he was pushing.
Also if you listen to certain Reggae Artistes they have a slight racial slant to some of their tunes. they have one by Warrior King...he has a tune Africa Shall be free...check the lyrics he have.
VERSE 2: africa for africans without a delay
europe for de whites, there dats where they must stay
palestines for jews i say ah ok
india for indians dats where they must pray
i speakin a likkle truth for dats what my fadda say
and even de prophet marcus garvey
world readjustment dats what im all about
restoring de human family without ah doubt
As Dr. E.E. Cashmore observed, "The belief system of Ras Tafari was so vague and loosely defined, even at its inception, due to its lack of a single authoritative voice, that what was to be acceptable doctrine was largely matter of individual interpretation." In spite of that claim, early in the history of the movement Leonard Howell gave the Rastafarians six fundamental principles:
Hatred for the white race.
The complete superiority of the black race.
Revenge on whites for their wickedness.
The negation, persecution, and humiliation of the government and legal bodies of Jamaica.
Preparation to go back to Africa, and
Acknowledging Emperor Haile Selassie as the Supreme Being and only ruler of black people.
This list comes from an organization called "Watchman Fellowship", whose description of Rasta beliefs is based on writings of a Christian counter-cult ministry. [1]
Yet these early black supremacy beliefs were for the most part replaced by a doctrine of racial equality within the first decades of the movement.
Today, three key concepts to Rastafarian beliefs include:
Babylon: "Babylon" is the Rastafarian term for the oppression they see in modern society, equal in their eyes to that in the ancient city of Babylon. Babylon can refer to a political institution, a country, an economic system, or even a single police officer. Rastas remember how blacks were held down physically by the shackles of slavery in the past. In the present, Rastas feel that most black people continue to suffer from poverty, inequality, and a lack of power over their lives. The Rastafari movement strives to remind blacks of their heritage, and have them stand up to make their own lives away from this Babylon.
I and I: This concept has become "the most important theoretical tool apart from the Babylonian conspiracy in the Rastafarian repertoire," as Cashmore explains; "I and I is an expression to totalize the concept of oneness, the oneness of two persons. So God is within all of us and we're one people in fact. I and I means that God is in all men. The bond of Ras Tafari is the bond of God, of man. But man itself needs a head and the head of man is His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia."
Jah: The Rastafarian name for God is Jah. The presence of Jah in His children and in the world is the triumph over the tribulations of everyday life. Ethiopia specifically, and Africa in general, is considered by the Rastas Heaven on Earth. It is acceptable and normal to call Haile Selassie "Jah Jah".
What I want to know is....who change the beliefs from the first 6 principles.
Why were they changed? and since they were changed does all Mr. Howell's work teachings and ideas go tru the window even though he was the founding father?
Come nah Rastas on board enlighten yuhself, educate yuhself and provide me with some answers.....I curious.
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can I interject my opinion about the youths and their knowledge or lack of such where it concerns the movement and what they believe that it entails.
around 2006 years ago a man was born and during his life he gathered many followers, the Start of the Catholic Church. well I am sure that teachings, ideologies, and certain ceremonies that people experience now within their catholic church were not thought of during those early times. there was a train of thought that it was a type of cannibalism as it spoke about the body and blood of someone. I am sure that people during those times 2006 years ago Hoped that Christ was there to lead a revolt against the Babylon of that time , "The Roman Empire".
The Rastafarian movement is just over 70 years old and So what i am saying is that the Rastafarian movement is in its infancy so to speak and over time universality and common ideas and beliefs will become the norm..or maybe not.......... as Tallman says that there are many Christian organisation in the world today. During a sermon that I witnessed, the Minister claimed that there were 26,00 Christian organisations in the world today.
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Been somewhat sampling this thread rather than absorbing it in its entirety - more a product of being time-challenged than interest-deficient.
Ez something right in mih heart.
Tallman, leh me say. Nuff salute eh. From what I sampled you addressed several matters with the appropriate measure. But, then again ez an inborn concept.
(As a man who use to wear di green polyester pants on di Coffee in your time, glad tidings. I love di personal trajectory ... )
And when man utter Rodney, nuff man doan know dred ... this New World movement - even with its deficiencies and ideological gaps (Touches daz a lil kudo in honour of yuh intellectual curiosity) - has so transformed the residual consciousness of the most pedestrian among us.
Black Uhuru will gi yuh di translation if dat too deep:
Long long ago
They use to say
Rastafari going around
taking little children away
But now time is at hand
I and I know those
saying was wrong
And that Rasta let them
know their homeland
And seek their culture
Oh what a joy to hear the utterance of a Rasta!
Not every man might chant Rasta, but plenty men received an education on injustice - some on the sidelines. Some on the front lines. None of them left the experience unaffected. Some man have to dead so other man can live.
Yunnerstan? Locks for rebellion, if not theology ... but doan locks for gallery ... beloved daz a mockery.
QUESTION: Who remember when Tac Tac was cutting man dread?
Doan play allyuh eh know!
I had a front-row seat in dis ting.
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Yes people
I reading and is more and more I getting confused. But still I find alyuh ent giving meh the answers to the questions I seeking.
Every body saying is interpretation and it young etc, but still.....
I have some more thought provokers today and I want alyuh do something for meh. Go find one of yuh LEGIT or Fake rasta brethrin and ask him dese questions and come back to meh. In fact I sure I educate or enlighten with the help of this thread more than 3/4 of alyuh out there and alyuh know more than most of them fellas who walking round the place with a locks or they head tie up.
I see some people say growing of locks is discipline and a sign of strength but what is long hair to a Hippy? Or a Sheik under that turban or any of the other ethnic groups that sport a long hair at some point in their history. At the end of the day it is hair and its a length so really Rasta get the bad stigma due to what?.......Why would someone of the same skin colour not like they neighbour cause his hair is a certain length. Why do families ostracise they offspring and kin for the length of his hair?
Also if yuh check Leonard Howell and his 6 fundamental principles again how would he look at the white rasta who is "Babylon" who have Ras and playing more Rasta than the black people for who this religion was created. I tell yuh the new wave of Rasta in TT all fair skin and have straight hair went to prestige secondary school and they last name have some kinda clout in society and dem ent need Ras to progress or move up in life. If anything it does hamper them.
You really know what I think........
All these fellas who rocking a Ras who come from well off family and who ent know one arse with what going orn just growing hair and looking scruffy so that they could fit in when they go and buy dey weed from the not so well off pusher down the road in an attempt that dey doe get rob.........and its to pull birds.
But anyways my personal opinion and hypothesis aside which is yet to be investigated...Red Howler posted a bess article here.
http://www.trinidad-tobago.net/Article.aspx?PageId=19
AFter reading this lemme hit alyuh with some questions.
Now this is the authors interpretation but lets go.
A visit to their Congress at Second Street, Maingot Road, Tunapuna revealed a well organised and disciplined way of life, which revolves around strict belief in a Black Christ, Black Supremacy, and international repatriation. The Congress, which has a live-in membership of 30 brethren, is headed by His Majesty Priest Shanty Tafari Edwards.
The Bobo Shanty believes in the Bible and it was used in their worship. They read from Pslams and Proverbs. They sung hymns from their Black Supremacy Hymn Book. However, the Bobo Shanty interpretation of the Bible differs from the mainstream Christian interpretation. During the service it was learnt that heaven is actually in Zion which is the body of the Rastaman or woman. It is the Bobo Shanty present reality and not something for which one must look forward. They believe that Africa should be for the Africans, China for the Chinese, India for the Indians etc.
??? ??? ???.....So I am experiencing Zion right now in my body and there is nothing to look fwd to ??? What about those who body not in shape and they suffering from some kinda ailment?.....So the suffering one may experience in this present life is the best there is?
Also Africa for the African, Chinese for the Chinee etc. Warrior King had this in one of his tunes.... Do you not find that racist?....Where would mixed people like me go? Maybe its a good thing Trinidad and Tobago is my home.
Jah is the Black Christ who had manifested as King Emmanuel Charles Edwards, founder of the Bobo Shanty movement in Jamaica. King Emmanuel was the first true Rastaman.
So whappen to Howell? Wais d scene with Selassie and how he was the Black king from the east?
After the service we met with His Majesty Priest Shanty Tafari Edwards -the true manifestation of King Emmanuel- he was accompanied by Priest Pierre, Priest Jah Well and Priest Obadiah. The Bobo Shanty believes in reincarnation and that God must be real or he cannot be worshiped and it is on this principle that King Emmanuel after his death manisfested in the body of Priest Shanty and has remained there.
(http://www.trinidad-tobago.net/Stream/Tobago.aspx?PageId=19&Rank=12)
Priest Shanty explained that King Emmanuel was crucified by his followers in 1994. His death was a shock to the Bobo Shanty community in Jamaica who believed that King Emmanuel had eternal life and would never die. But he had to die to teach his followers a lesson, according to Priest Shanty. They had become disrespectful to King Emmanuel's wishes and he allowed himself to die to show them the error of their ways.
So OK....We have God in the pix above living in Tunapuna and he is the spirit of King Emmanuel manifested in the body of Priest Shanty and he has remained there. NOW what about the Jamaicans who make up this thing or belief? They know the spirit reach across here and do they worship and regard priest Shanty as such.........or do they have a replacement in Bull Bay in Jamaica?.............if they have a replacement...then you saying King Emmanuel spirit manifesting in more than one person?
So is more than one King Emmanuel spirit and it can be shared and go into different people?
SO would Capleton or Sizzla or any other mainstream Bobo or even a Bobo from Jamaica honour Shanti in Tunapuna the same way they hold whoever in JA with high regard and vice versa from the followers in TT or do we have the ReaL deal here and the one in JA is a imi. Or we have the Imi and the real deal across there. Or is More than one man, different spirit and all of them is God.
Interestingly, despite their belief in Black Supremacy the Bobo Shanty is not at all interested in hating persons of other races. Priest Shanty explained that they were not against anyone because of their skin colour. They are basically against dominance and control of one people by another. He looked at Lars who is white and summed it up thus: "We prefer to deal with a white man like you with a black heart, rather than a black man with a white heart."
The movement he said had been betrayed many times over by Black brethren who had "come out of themselves" and adopted the white culture of dominance. Her own children had betrayed from Africa within. Slavery would not have been possible if the children of Africa had not lost the essence of themselves. And the Bobo Shanty mandate is to bring Africans back to themselves, according to Priest Shanty.
I find this thing kinda thought provoking yet confusing.... against dominace and control of one people by another but want Africans to go back to themselves. So if the Africans start to dominate then things nice and thats the end result?
Interestingly, even though the Bobo Shanty should not at all indulge in the things of this world, there do have a television set on the compound. Priest Shanty explained that it was important for them to keep abreast of international and local events.
Ent God supposed to know all...he ent go need a TV then....... and if he have a TV why he cyar have internet and computer?
Also I wonder if they have cable, directtv or is local channels they using?
The Bobo Shanty does not eat meat but they do consume fish, which are not more than seven inches in length. It was explained that fish bigger that this are scavengers and not fit for consumption.
Foods, which grow on vines such as pumpkin, are not used since it by nature grows out of control. It runs in every direction on the ground.
Going and do some research on that and can a vine not be cultured...i.e grown on a stick or something....also for the agri people out there...doesn't everything by nature grow out of control if left unnattended?
So yuh see it have plenty more than just growing yuh hair...pulling a peng...having yuh Selassie badge pin orn yuh shirt and bawling Bless Fadder.
Up to now I ent meet a Bobo or Rasta who could match wits with me and answer meh properly. I just trying to help alyuh reaffirm yuh faith, dig deeper into your religion and help enlighten others who might want to join...But do the thing properly and not have a setta confused youths who being frowned upon on society running around further reinforcing the negative sterotypes that already exist.
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I just came across some info about Ras Tafari
Emperor Haile Selassie
Selassie abolished slavery and worked to modernize Ethiopia. In 1935 the country was invaded by Italy. Selassie personally led his troops into battle, but the Ethiopians were overwhelmed and eventually the emperor was forced to flee the country. His powerful appeal for help to the League of Nations attracted worldwide sympathy, but failed to spur the League to action. At last, in 1941, with the help of the British, Selassie returned home and regained his throne. The Rastafarian religion arose in Jamaica in the 20th century. Its name is derived from Emperor Haile Selassie's original name, Ras Tafari. There is no single central Rastafarian church, but in general Rastafarians believe that Haile Selassie was the Messiah and that Africa, especially Ethiopia, is heaven on earth. These beliefs are based in part on interpretations of Old Testament prophecies. Haile Selassie himself was Christian and not a Rastafarian.
Mussolini and the Italian Intervention in Ethiopia
Benito Mussolini created a fascist state through the use of state terror and propaganda. Using his charisma, total control of the media and intimidation of political rivals, he disassembled the existing democratic government system. His entry into World War II on the side of Nazi Germany made Italy a target for Allied attacks and ultimately led to his downfall and death. In 1935, seeking to expand the Italian Empire in eastern Africa, Mussolini ordered the invasion of Ethiopia on 3 October. During the ensuing seven-month campaign the Italian forces used chemical weapons and air power to defeat the Ethiopians, tens of thousands of civilian Ethopians were killed.. Mussolini announced the Italian victory to a jubilant crowd of 400,000 in Rome on 9 May. In 1937, following a failed assassination attempt on the Italian colonial governor, 30,000 Ethiopians are executed.
from http://www.birmingham-rep.co.uk/data/files/REP_INSIGHT_3_SISTERS.pdf pages 20 and 21
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Yes more confusion...
So I was watching synergy nights...and Jason WIlliams and Blaze have a lil show.
The artiste of the week is Capleton.
So they show the lil hand sign star of David as alluded to by tallman and they say...dat sign is Love..... Blaze say is protection.
Then a Ras who they interviewing say no no...see dat sign...see the kinda circle it forming dais a Globe and the top point with yuh thumbs is heaven and the bottom points is the earth.....So Blaze say but I thought is protection...den the Ras pop down and say yeah yeah isa encompassing of heaven and earth...so yeah dais protection.
Is only because they flim d show alredy I ent call in and hit them the piece of info Tallman give us.
But then again is Tallman correct??........Could the Minister of Information be wrong on matters of the faith.
Anyway I hope it ent look like I fighting down the rastas and dem, But is dis kinda Jokeyness that just being pumped into society, this is a show plenty youths watching and they go take thing like this as gospel and we does just have more and more young people running round with nuttin of substance in they head.
See me I am a skeptic by nature and EVERYTHING a man say or do I does question on some level.
Also it hard to believe any of these fellas who in terms of success ent really make it by society standards. WHen yuh have a conversation with them and yuh probe them with questions you does turn them against theyself. I ent know but i sorry I cyar take none of these local Rasta seriously.
All Rasta beware, doe lemme ketch yuh cause is level questions coming your way.
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So they show the lil hand sign star of David as alluded to by tallman and they say...dat sign is Love..... Blaze say is protection.
Then a Ras who they interviewing say no no...see dat sign...see the kinda circle it forming dais a Globe and the top point with yuh thumbs is heaven and the bottom points is the earth.....So Blaze say but I thought is protection...den the Ras pop down and say yeah yeah isa encompassing of heaven and earth...so yeah dais protection.
De Seal of Solomon aka de Star of David has many intepretations and is used in various faiths such as Judaism, Hinduism, Islam, Christianity etc as well as disciplines like alchemy and ritual magic. In Ethiopia there was even and Imperial Order/Decoration called the The Order of Solomons Seal
(http://www.ethiopiancrown.org/decorations_files/SolomonsSeal.JPG)
To give another perspective to my earlier post on the subject, in the Kebra Negast (the Miguel Brooks translation) there is a pic of Selassie making the sign with his hands and underneath the photo are the following words:
"Haile Selassie I (Last of the Solomonic Kings) H.I.M. Negusa Nagast, His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie I (Power of the Holy Trinity) Emperor of Ethiopia, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah, Elect of God, Light of the Universe - displaying here the mystical and metaphysical "Salutation of Peace" or the Sign of the Holy Trinity. The triangle pointing downwards is and esoteric symbol representing the material phase of the Seal of Solomon; the six-pointed star is also known as the Star of David."
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Loved de post, ah lot of useful information. Thanks to all :beermug: :angel:
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lem me tell alluh up front ah have no locks, iz a ah ball head ah hav, az the bible say it is hidden in ma heart . never thought bout growin a locks . anyhow back intrini ,hanging on the block, ah ask dem rastafari dem bout ah song marley sang . he say got to hav kayah now for the rain is fallin,dem tell me him saying he got to hav weed to smoke cause the rain is fallin , i say no the man say he got to hav a house cause dey rain is fallin . rastars on board give me some enlightment was i right or iam rong.
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i think is weed the man talkin about. granted this is open to debate since alot of what the man saying is metaphors but lyrics like "i feel so high i even touch the sky, above the falling rain" to me sound like he describing the feelings he gets when he partakes of the herb.
when he say "i feel so good, in my neighbourhood, so, here i come again" that might mean that he going and take a next draw on the spliff or the chalice.
i didn't really detect any building/constructing images in the song. there is a scholar at my university called kwame dawes, the man is a bob marleyanatic, i will ask him what he thinks of the song.
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anyhow back intrini ,hanging on the block, ah ask dem rastafari dem bout ah song marley sang . he say got to hav kayah now for the rain is fallin,dem tell me him saying he got to hav weed to smoke cause the rain is fallin , i say no the man say he got to hav a house cause dey rain is fallin . rastars on board give me some enlightment was i right or iam rong.
Just look at de back cover of de Kaya album and it will be crystal clear what he singing bout ;D.
(http://royitomarley.iespana.es/images/caratulas/kaya-back.jpg)
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Question Time Again,
Do the Rastas put up Christmas tree and celebrate Christmas like the rest of Christians or do they have a different celebrations or more than one, e.g. ...King Emmanuel Charles Edwards Bday, Haile Selassie bday?
Any Rasta Christmas traditions?
Do Rastas Have a figure Akin to Santa or any kinda tales or folklore with regards to Christmas.
Thnaks in advance,
The Eternal Student.
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lem me tell alluh up front ah have no locks, iz a ah ball head ah hav, az the bible say it is hidden in ma heart . never thought bout growin a locks . anyhow back intrini ,hanging on the block, ah ask dem rastafari dem bout ah song marley sang . he say got to hav kayah now for the rain is fallin,dem tell me him saying he got to hav weed to smoke cause the rain is fallin , i say no the man say he got to hav a house cause dey rain is fallin . rastars on board give me some enlightment was i right or iam rong.
True cause if he ein't have no roof ,the rain go wet he spliff and it go out :thinking:
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Question Time Again,
Do the Rastas put up Christmas tree and celebrate Christmas like the rest of Christians or do they have a different celebrations or more than one, e.g. ...King Emmanuel Charles Edwards Bday, Haile Selassie bday?
Any Rasta Christmas traditions?
Do Rastas Have a figure Akin to Santa or any kinda tales or folklore with regards to Christmas.
Thnaks in advance,
The Eternal Student.
Must celebrate de birthday of HIM Haile Selassie on de 23rd of july as well as his coronation on 2nd novemebr
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Do the Rastas put up Christmas tree and celebrate Christmas like the rest of Christians or do they have a different celebrations or more than one, e.g. ...King Emmanuel Charles Edwards Bday, Haile Selassie bday?
Some choose to celebrate it, some don't, some may do Kwanzaa or Ethiopian Christmas instead, and some couldn't care less.
Some of de important dates for Rastafari are:
January 7 - Ethiopian Christmas
April 21 - Anniversary of Selassie's visit to Jamaica
May 5 - Ethiopian Liberation Day
July 23 - Birth of Selassie
August 17 - Birth of Marcus Garvey
September 11 - Ethiopian New Year
November 2 - Selassie's Coronation
Any Rasta Christmas traditions?
No
Do Rastas Have a figure Akin to Santa or any kinda tales or folklore with regards to Christmas.
No
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ah hear allyuh, but at the same time, when ah heard the song got to have kaya now for the rain is falling , before ah bring up the topic ah check de dictionary an dise how i got my answer ,so i int saying wah ah think ,ah saying wah the dic say the word mean.
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ah hear allyuh, but at the same time, when ah heard the song got to have kaya now for the rain is falling , before ah bring up the topic ah check de dictionary an dise how i got my answer ,so i int saying wah ah think ,ah saying wah the dic say the word mean.
De word Kaya have many different meanings and "home" or "house" is one of dem, but in dis case it refers tuh de herb.
An excerpt from de official Bob Marley website (http://www.bobmarley.com), in reference tuh de Kaya album (http://www.bobmarley.com/catalogue/?album=kaya) reads:
As Bob put it, "Kaya means herb. It's a password some of the brethren use in JA. So Kaya is really dealing with togetherness and humanity and peace, (because) the thing of peace travel through the earth now. Yes, Rastaman Vibrations and Exodus were 'arder. This time we dealing with something softer."
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Tallman da answer yuh give ma mind int to settle wid it and we go geh back to dat ,as fari said de word kaya and its meaning is debatable.
any how ah was watching a documentary about Selassie when he visit JA ,the queen of reggae Rita Marley was being interviewed by this English guy ,he ask her Wat she tink about Selassie and she said that he is Jesus Christ so he ask why u say that she said that she saw a halo over his head and when he wave his hand she saw the hole from the nail in his hand when he was crucify on the cross . this was an interview on national geographic some time last year, ah mean to say to each his own but tha one to much .as touches would say confusion.
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Tallman da answer yuh give ma mind int to settle wid it and we go geh back to dat ,as fari said de word kaya and its meaning is debatable.
De meaning is not debatable; it has several meanings. It means:
the body - Sanskrit
elder little sister - Hopi
home/shellfish - Swahili
stay and don't go back - Ghanaian
sacred forest - Kenya
prosperous - Indonesia
rock - Turkish
mighty/wealth/great/power/rich - Malay
spear - Aborigine
Nutmeg-yew tree - Japan
Herb - Rastafari
It's just that in the context of Marley's album it refers to the herb.
any how ah was watching a documentary about Selassie when he visit JA ,the queen of reggae Rita Marley was being interviewed by this English guy ,he ask her Wat she tink about Selassie and she said that he is Jesus Christ so he ask why u say that she said that she saw a halo over his head and when he wave his hand she saw the hole from the nail in his hand when he was crucify on the cross . this was an interview on national geographic some time last year, ah mean to say to each his own but tha one to much .as touches would say confusion.
She was probably so excited dat she see what she wanted tuh see.
Rita Marley: "So I say well the only way, I will say yes I know that this man is the Christ, the true Christ that is coming in flesh. Because the Bible tells us of his returning like man, he will be in flesh. Is if I see that nailprint in his hand, because I know that Christ was crucified. And it said that when he is coming, we will see that nailprint in his hand. You know? I say that will be my conclusion on this man. So just as I focus my eyes on it now as he passed by. I said," bwai if only I could only see his hand." You know because looking at him still, I saw that power. Because as I looked at him, his head turn around to me and I was looking straight at him. If only he can mek me see him hand, I was so excited! As I said that to myself, he did his hand like this(waving his hand). And when I looked in his hand, there was the nailprint, the mark, that black mark in the center of his hand. So I said what? You know. And I just turn around mi head. And he went like this(waving hand again) and gave a nod. He turned the other side and I said," My God this is the man!" I was screaming and telling mi friend that this is him!"
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Brothers and sisters greetings to each and every one ,and deir family home an the nex fam in dey oder hoise ,ah tite tong or fulley liquorize . if yuh driving please b safe, ah would try to do the same, but we mus not foget d SOCAWARRIORS an the joy that they brought us on de world stage,to u guys cheers :beermug: :beermug: :beermug: dam dis thing to light.flex i mus tank dey most high for giving u de insight for such a wounderful websight and at dey end of dey day ah hope u gat yor jus reward for a job wel don cheers :beermug: u no daize :beermug: :beermug: :beermug: how we doz do it trini style.tallman from the little dealings on the board u ar a wise broder an i hope u reach to what ever hights u endevour ,cheers :beermug: :beermug: :beermug: or kaya whatever u choose , palos :beermug: :beermug: :beermug: dint have much dealings, but yer guys was chosen to do a job not for flex but from a higher force through flex .GRETINGS .
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As Emancipation Day is imminent, ah feel is appropriate tuh resurrect dis thread.
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As Emancipation Day is imminent, ah feel is appropriate tuh resurrect dis thread.
yuh resurrecting thread?..we go have to call yuh Alberta now eh ;D
Happy Emancipatation Day to you and everybody else here :beermug:
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Is only cause I couldnt find this thread I ent keep alyuh up to date with the Jokeyness that going on in TT.
I am now convinced more than ever that is a setta Salon Dreads running round and the locks are used to pull girls and an excuse to validate the use of weed.
Now I ent mention the 500 or so original Rastas who line up on Wrightson Road to attend a Khaki Dance a few months ago.
Imagine the Guardian newspapers even print a Rasta Dictionary...with a setta slang coined from the dancehall tunes invading our airwaves today...and the terms used wrong.
One setta Folly.
Also I does real ketch kix when the richest of indian and syrian...both men and women...who have no "Real" oppression, does wanna play more Rasta than the youth on the block or the fella up in the hills. Yuh does see it in the West. You cyar smoke more weed, know more tune, or talk bout Jah more than them fellas.
Also as is Emancipation...why people does hadda move Gallery Harry and play Tanto Ting and coast Dashiki and Kofi hat. If you into that scene wear yuh cloth and styles right tru the year. Go a Carnival fete and yuh Christmas jump up in yuh garb. Go to Zen and yuh 51 in dat too.
They have only a few fellas who does move so right tru..and yuh must admire them for that. The rest on antics.
Anyways to all Rastas..Fake or Legit.
Bless up and continue to fight the good fight...real or imagined.
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Touches i have to jump in. I haven't read all the pages yet. Still doing it.
To me the dreads thing to Caribbean people is like Hip Hop culture to AA in the US. Most of the styles come out of gang and prison culture but it has become popular (without understanding). The same I feel is for Dreads. There is scripture that talks about not cutting your hair in the OT. Nuff man refer to that. However, it is easier to do that than keep the laws of the OT. People also make reference to that double standard.
For many black males the dread locks is a form of identity. As in i'm special on account of what my hair can do. Especially in white socities. Dreads is a form of mystery for women (white!!) It implies natural verility etc. But in the caribbean it's more fade than anything else. For many it gives cheap religion, in such that they could jess grow their hair long and that would some how complete their religious duties. Where I believe religion goes deeper than that.
ah goin back and read.
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easily one of the most enlightening and insightful topics i've ever read on this message board.
thanks to all for the substantial input..
I will just say this much..
The same way that you have pointed questions to the Rastafarian ideology, religion, faith and practices is the same way one can ask questions of Catholicism, Islam, Hinduism or any religion or belief system for that matter..
The sole difference is that these are much older and more accepted and established belief systems with doctrines and practices honed over a much longer period of time.. However, every religion has different interpretations, glaring inconsistencies and loopholes; which is why I believe more in spirituality than in religion...
The same way it have designer rasta coasting dreads is de same way it have designer catholic coasting rosary on dey chest, designer muslim coasting hijab and garb and designer hindu coasting sari and dhoti.. You will get that in any faith.. If someone sat down with you and ask you pointed questions about your religion, belief system or general way of life, you would probably be stumped for answers in the same way as the rastas who have been questioned in this thread..
The truth is... No one has or needs to have all the answers. Therein lies faith.
I respect anyone making an effort to find consciousness, spirituality and new meaning to life irregardless of oppression and objection to non-conformity.
Plenty of them men selling nuts on the highway much happier than you and me, because their goals in life don't necessarily entail waking up 5am every morning to battle traffic and go and work for some institution day to day... they have different goals in life and go about it their own way to achieve them..
much respect to them...
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Becoming ah Ras ..
Is okay if before you start smoking ,you decide to do it .Praying and giving your life to god . But is never a good idea to make such a life altering decision while your high . To start listen to Bob and do it ,without really tinking wha yah doing . You really want to join a ereligion that start in the jungles of jamiaca ,if you do fine ,you ll go to heaven .
I still have serious doubts about Silassi being jesus doh ,cause Garvey say so .but ultimately you praying so is ok . But remeber jah is ah nother acient name for jesus ,so you praying to jesus ,like everybody else .
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The irony about this is those that profess to be rastafarians (ah not talking bout the haridresser dread dem) are following a man who was an Orthodox Christian. His belief was in the incarnation of our Lord Christ, and his virgin birth. Orthodoxy is the Eastern part of Christianity that has preserved most of its customs and holds on to its apostolic tradition despite the changes of mankind. Selassie came to the West, and sent the Orthodox Church to teach men about Christianity that existed in Africa from time immemorial, but men still didn't listen. Doh vex, but who are men following: Sizzla, Buju? Dem fellas cyar be we leaders. At least not mine. If men want to be conscious and talk bout we African ancestry and Black consciousness, why men don't research African Christianity. You will realize that the most ancient forms of African Christianity still exists today. His Majesty tried to expose the diaspora by sending the Ethiopian Church, but men still doh want to listen. Now slay me for my words.
I ah year late, but still...
Just to add that the Ethiopian Orthodox church is but a small part of the larger Eastern Orthodoxy based in Istanbul, formerly Constantinople, one time seat of the the Roman Empire. The Holy or Great Schism refers to the break in the Christian church that occurred in the 4th century between what is now the Roman Catholic church, and the Eastern Orthodox church.
Additionally, the presence of Africans in the Roman Catholic church should not be downplayed. In fact two of the earliest and greatest of the Church fathers were St. Athanasius and St. Augustine (yes, that Saint Augustine, of The Confessions fame). St. Athanasius was born in Alexandria and would later become it's Archbishop, before taking a star turn at the Council of Nicea in defending the Church against the Arian Heresy. He is revered by not only the Roman Catholic church, but also Oriental Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox & Eastern Orthodox Churches, Eastern Catholic Church, the Lutheran Church, and the Anglican Communion, and is regarded as a great leader of the Church by Protestants.
St. Augustine needs no introduction as most are already familiar with him, but he was born in Tagaste, which was then closely aligned with Carthage, and is now in present-day Algeria. Before some dismiss him as being Algerian and not truly African, remember that Hannibal too was from Carthage, and even though they are separated by 400 yrs, there is no reason to think that they are not of the same people. Here are some additional links on St. Augustine
http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/jod/twayne/aug1.html
http://www.dacb.org/stories/tunisia/augustine_.html
I know this is a different direction from the thread's initial purpose...but it's central to any discussion on Afro-Christianity.
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hmm. breds i really don't know. i suppose the ivy league would have their old boys network but who knows...stranger things have happened.
This is just from my limited experience as a grad student, observing things at my own school as well as visiting other campuses and meeting people there and maybe I'm treading on thin ice by generalising but I think diversity is fashionable in academia these days, esp at prestigious institutions. It seems as if there are some people who have an agenda to appear open-minded/enlightened and having locks might actually be a small advantage in some situations.
Agreed. Not from experience, but purely on the basis of casual observation.
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An article in today's Sunday Express.
the guy made some interesting points but i would like to know exactly what "help" he expects to get from some of the african nations when they themselves have so many problems to deal with.
also, i am in agreement with most of what omarldinho said i.e. there are many christians, muslims etc who are ignorant of many of the true tenets of their faiths so why only attack the Rasta?
The dream of returning to "the cradle of creation", "Mother Africa" has long been embraced by some members of the African diaspora and particularly within the Rastafarian community.
Historically, the most notable efforts at repatriation were organised by the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) in the early 1900s, under the leadership of Marcus Garvey. Garvey and the UNIA hoped to establish a genuine black state in Africa and managed to send equipment and large numbers of men and women, but their efforts were blocked by the United States and others who accused them of being subversive.
More recently, a number of Caribbean nationals have gathered in the area known as Shashamane in the Shoa Province of Ethiopia and have begun to build a repatriated community. The Rastafarian settlement in Shashamane was recently reported to exceed 200 individuals. In January 2007, the community organised an exhibition and bazaar in the city. In 1963, the then Emperor of Ethiopia, Haile Selassie I donated 500 hectares of this land to allow Rastafari faithful from the Caribbean to return to their ancestral homeland in Africa; although when Selassie I was deposed in 1974 the new government of Mengistu Haile Mariam confiscated all but 11 hectares.
Here in Trinidad, the repatriation movement not only exists, but is vibrant largely through the efforts of the local Rastafarian chapter known as the 12 Tribes of Israel. There are three distinct Rastafarian orders/sects, the Bobo Shantis, The Nyabhingis and the 12 Tribes of Israel. Each possesses varying beliefs and symbols, but all agree on two common principles: the exalted status of Haile Selassie I and the rejection of white Eurocentric images of divinity.
The local 12 Tribes chapter was founded in the 70s and is rooted in the belief that the Bible is their guide through life and that we are all children of Mother Africa and should look after each other as such. This community adheres to several basic principles. Foremost among them is the belief that each person should read "one chapter a day" from the Bible, in order to obtain divine wisdom, knowledge and guidance through his/her life. Over the last two decades, The 12 Tribes chapter has been funding construction and infrastructural development in Shashamane and several of its members have either visited and/or migrated to the African state.
12 Tribes Elder, Selwyn Tyrell explains why repatriation is so important to the Rastafarian community:
"Firstly, you cannot call me a West Indian," he said, "because my lineage never came from India. For the people who are descendants of India, that may be appropriate, but not us Africans. I would respond if you call me a Caribbean man because as we like to say: they took us from our home in Africa and 'carried us beyond' the horizon. Now, we believe that Africa is the cradle of civilisation and the mother of creation and as such, we can never be whole until we are returned to her bosom. The teachings around the world are influenced by those who colonised it, so they cannot and would not teach me about myself, or teach my children about my people except through their eyes, which we already know are full of greed and hate and envy. Rastafari believe in peace and love and unity. In repatriating to Africa, we are building a state away from the systems of Babylon, where we can live and thrive in these positive ideals. The reason we love Ethiopia so much is because this was the one nation which was never colonised and thus, the land is free from persecution."
While Tyrell readily admits that living conditions in Africa are far from perfect he says that the Rastafari faithful are hard workers, who are dedicated to re-building their long lost legacy.
"Imagine if all the Rastas in Trinidad left all at once," he said, "and migrated to Africa. That would mean all the builders, all the masons, all the carpenters, all the business-men and women, the hairdressers, the chefs, all the hard-workers who are Rasta could now populate Shashamane and help to build a great nation!
"Right now, a ticket to go to Africa will cost you about TT$15,000 and that's just airfare alone. Obviously, not everyone can afford that, which is why we are also petitioning the governments of the West to give us what is owed to us as the descendants of the slaves, so that more of us can make the journey home. I was lucky enough to go there in 1983 and my mission at the time was to go and see the land and come back and report on what was going on there. Back then, it was really rough, but now it's a lot more improved and the brothers and sisters are improving the facilities. The government there is also working with us because they recognise that we are responsible people and they are helping us to improve the conditions there."
Sister Barbara Asher is a 12 Tribes Member from Jamaica, who has been visiting the members here in Trinidad over the last week or so. She also visited Shashamane in the 80s.
"At the time I went there, Africa was really broken down, but this is what I see: We helped to build all these places here in the West, so we need to go back to Africa and rebuild what has been destroyed there because Africa needs us; she needs her people to return her to her original glory."
"Our greatest joy," said Tyrell, "is when we can leave in numbers and go back to Africa. There are brothers and sisters who have repatriated and have been living on the land for more than 30 years already. There are many people who were successful here in Trinidad and have sold out everything and migrated there and set up businesses. Africa has about 900 million people, Trinidad only has about 1.3, so you can do well in business in Africa if you are hard-working and determined. There is no reason for our people to be afraid of it: Africa is our home and repatriation is our destiny."
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Fari,
Thanks for posting this article, there was another one on emancipation day with members of the Bobo tribe saying essentially the same thing but they wanted the Queen of England to pay for their passage home.
Omardinho I like your post good one.
I also like how we getting educated here in this thread for it is interesting to read. But to my dismay no one here has really answered my first inital post on the subject matter except Spideybuff to an extent.
Anyways, given the article posted about repatriation, let me put a spin on this one yet again.......
If Africa is our home and a return to the Motherland the final end result...so do those who dont believe that Africa is home, who don't believe in reptriation and who are not black be considered Rasta?
Again scroll back a few posts and look at Leonard Howell and the first Rasta ideals. If this is the case then he is a big racist and this is another form of racism.
So essentially are all those Rastas who are not black psuedo Rastas?
Wouldn't it be Hypocritical for a White Blonde Haired, Blue Eye Ras to say he leaving to go back to Africa and set up shop in Shashamane. Further, if he does go and sets up shop and is making the most of the business opportunity there...would that be seen as exploitation by Babylon?
I await the responses.
The Eternal Student
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Questions again...
How do you Rastas feel about Soca and Calypso music?
The wining season and jamishness...
Would any of you put orn a costume and chip down the road Mon and Tuesday? and pelt mud, oil and cocoa on people Mon morning?
Has the tune Ras Mas by Explainer ever come to fruitation?
Finally What do Rastas do for lent? Do you observe the 40 days like other Christians?
Sincerely,
The eternal student
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What are rasta's take on traditional religion from West Africa where most of the Africans in the diaspora came from. Xango, Yemanja... etc and even Obeah!
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How do you Rastas feel about Soca and Calypso music?
Is all good. Like Bob say "One good thing about music, when it hits you feel no pain. ". Of course, we all have we taste, so man eh go like everyting dat playing.
Would any of you put orn a costume and chip down the road Mon and Tuesday? and pelt mud, oil and cocoa on people Mon morning?
Depends on de kinda mas. Plus it have some people who just not into de Carnival scene, and would just hit ah beach.
Has the tune Ras Mas by Explainer ever come to fruitation?
Dat is ah borse chune, but it never manifest itself in a literal sense. Is like a utopian dream. Ah never know what was Explainer real scene. Either he was a Rasta sympathizer, or he was jes commenting on de times. Remember he had other songs like Dread, and Rasta Chick
Finally What do Rastas do for lent? Do you observe the 40 days like other Christians?
This depends on the orientation. For example, if ah man is an Orthodox Rasta, which means he follows the Ethiopian Orthodox Church then chances are that Lent would be observed. However, Lent starts on the Monday for these followers.
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What are rasta's take on traditional religion from West Africa where most of the Africans in the diaspora came from. Xango, Yemanja... etc and even Obeah!
Respect is due to those traditional religions that you mentioned because in de earlies Rastafari co-opted some practices from these said religions. After all, de slaves brought these things with them so they were familiar patterns of behavior. However, de parts of it dat have to do wit ting like sorcery, witchcraft and dem kinda ting is frowned upon. When yuh relly think about it, most of these things is just a variation on a theme.
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How do you Rastas feel about Soca and Calypso music?
Is all good. Like Bob say "One good thing about music, when it hits you feel no pain. ". Of course, we all have we taste, so man eh go like everyting dat playing.
Would any of you put orn a costume and chip down the road Mon and Tuesday? and pelt mud, oil and cocoa on people Mon morning?
Depends on de kinda mas. Plus it have some people who just not into de Carnival scene, and would just hit ah beach.
Has the tune Ras Mas by Explainer ever come to fruitation?
Dat is ah borse chune, but it never manifest itself in a literal sense. Is like a utopian dream. Ah never know what was Explainer real scene. Either he was a Rasta sympathizer, or he was jes commenting on de times. Remember he had other songs like Dread, and Rasta Chick
Finally What do Rastas do for lent? Do you observe the 40 days like other Christians?
This depends on the orientation. For example, if ah man is an Orthodox Rasta, which means he follows the Ethiopian Orthodox Church then chances are that Lent would be observed. However, Lent starts on the Monday for these followers.
fasting is good. there are rastas who do it often. you have to feed your self with spiritual food every so often. open up and let the light of Jah come in.
soca and calypso are not 'devil music' as claimed by some. i don't see nothing wrong with grooving to some sweet soca tunes. calypso, especially of the kind produced by the real exponents of the genre is food for thought and should be consumed on a regular basis.
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Saw this topic in another site and felt it would make an interesting debate over here..I my self have the same sentiments as the original poster of this topic...his post below (which is in bold) says..
"I have quite a few rastas in my family...mostly around my age group 18-35 yrs. I always felt rastas were very informative when it comes to black history, diet, a strong mental for life in general. But I could never understand for the sake of my life why hailee selassie is praised. No disrespect it makes no sense to me! I mean why? Is it because he has lineage connected to king solomon? And if so...so what? He is simply just a black militant and political leader . no different from a Malcom x or Marcus Garvey. My cousins and shit never answer me this with a straight answer some are even ambivalent when it comes to hailee. need anwers"
Now from what I've read on another site Ethiopians dont even view Salassie the way Rastas do, and Salassie did not even understand why Rastas loved him so much when he visisted Jamaica.(that can be true or not).Now T&T have rastas but I myself will like to know why some of my Trinbagonian bredrin praise Hailee selassie?..if he is was just a black political leader then is that enough reason to praise him as a GOD?..Malcolm X and Nelson Mandela were black leaders also (just to name a few)..everytime ah ask a rasta in T&T these questions they can never answer..anyone care to educate me :beermug:
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Well Sando I have no full view of the matter but someone tell me that Salassie had took in some Jamaicans exiles and gave them land and shelter and a place to live and so came the appreciation of Hailee Selassie from the exiles that somehow past on to the Caribbean. For some reason the local Jamaicans decided they needed to exalt him.
Now I am not sure how true this is so don't lambast me eh :angel:
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Well Sando I have no full view of the matter but someone tell me that Salassie had took in some Jamaicans exiles and gave them land and shelter and a place to live and so came the appreciation of Hailee Selassie from the exiles that somehow past on to the Caribbean. For some reason the local Jamaicans decided they needed to exalt him.
Now I am not sure how true this is so don't lambast me eh :angel:
breds thanks for the little insight..am trying to understand this whole selassie ting..and any amount of knowlege i will appreciate..i see a significant fraction of my trinbagonian population indulge in this, so its imperative that i try to understand it....
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Saw this topic in another site and felt it would make an interesting debate over here..I my self have the same sentiments as the original poster of this topic...his post below (which is in bold) says..
"I have quite a few rastas in my family...mostly around my age group 18-35 yrs. I always felt rastas were very informative when it comes to black history, diet, a strong mental for life in general. But I could never understand for the sake of my life why hailee selassie is praised. No disrespect it makes no sense to me! I mean why? Is it because he has lineage connected to king solomon? And if so...so what? He is simply just a black militant and political leader . no different from a Malcom x or Marcus Garvey. My cousins and shit never answer me this with a straight answer some are even ambivalent when it comes to hailee. need anwers"
Now from what I've read on another site Ethiopians dont even view Salassie the way Rastas do, and Salassie did not even understand why Rastas loved him so much when he visisted Jamaica.(that can be true or not).Now T&T have rastas but I myself will like to know why some of my Trinbagonian bredrin praise Hailee selassie?..if he is was just a black political leader then is that enough reason to praise him as a GOD?..Malcolm X and Nelson Mandela were black leaders also (just to name a few)..everytime ah ask a rasta in T&T these questions they can never answer..anyone care to educate me :beermug:
Lol... no doubt then you saw my contributions at the end of that thread.
Pass... the 'exaltation' came a goo number of years before the gifting of the land... he became Emperor in 1937, visited Jamaica in 1961, received a Jamaican entourage in 1967. At that point, in response to repatriation overtures, he gifted the land for all West Indians and many (primarily Jamaicans) took up residence there in Ethiopia.
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Yeh Bakes I saw your contribution...
but still not one rasta in T&T can answer me, about what seperates this political leader (saelassie) from other political leaders so much that he is worshipped as a GOD...when I see man crying out Salassie and saying "praise be to salassie the almighty"..and singing about "salssie say dont do this and that" (and those are just two examples)....makes me curious and wonder about this so called GODly figure name Salassie..I hope my Rasta bredrins just not in de "follow fashion ting", cause we already know T&T is still a copy cat society..(although its currently slowly changing and getting out of that copy cat mentality) maybe they see or hear bout some other rastas worshipping salassie and they think thats the cool thing to do!..lol.. dunno I need answers :-\...If you going to worship a man, you should atleast know why yuh worship him..
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So he became Emperor in 1937, visited Jamaica in 1961, received a Jamaican entourage in 1967. At that point, in response to repatriation overtures, he gifted the land for all West Indians and many (primarily Jamaicans) took up residence there in Ethiopia.
Hmmm if thats why today he is worshipped as a GOD then I will forever never understand this mystery :-\...seems like he was just a very popular political leader visiting the caribbean and felt like that was the best gift at that point in time..
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Saw this topic in another site and felt it would make an interesting debate over here..I my self have the same sentiments as the original poster of this topic...his post below (which is in bold) says..
"I have quite a few rastas in my family...mostly around my age group 18-35 yrs. I always felt rastas were very informative when it comes to black history, diet, a strong mental for life in general. But I could never understand for the sake of my life why hailee selassie is praised. No disrespect it makes no sense to me! I mean why? Is it because he has lineage connected to king solomon? And if so...so what? He is simply just a black militant and political leader . no different from a Malcom x or Marcus Garvey. My cousins and shit never answer me this with a straight answer some are even ambivalent when it comes to hailee. need anwers"
Now from what I've read on another site Ethiopians dont even view Salassie the way Rastas do, and Salassie did not even understand why Rastas loved him so much when he visisted Jamaica.(that can be true or not).Now T&T have rastas but I myself will like to know why some of my Trinbagonian bredrin praise Hailee selassie?..if he is was just a black political leader then is that enough reason to praise him as a GOD?..Malcolm X and Nelson Mandela were black leaders also (just to name a few)..everytime ah ask a rasta in T&T these questions they can never answer..anyone care to educate me :beermug:
First of all, Selassie is not viewed as God by all Rastas. The Twelve Tribes of Israel typically view Selassie as Christ in his kingly character, basically the character of Christ was revealed through H.I.M. The Bobo Shanti's Holy Trinity is Prophet, Priest, and King, where Selassie is the King. The House of Nyabinghi steadfastly believes he is Earth's Rightful Ruler. So as you can see, there is a difference of opinion.
The divinity of Selassie was first preached by Leonard Howell, Archibald Dunkley, and Robert Hinds back in the 30s. Without going in to too much detail, they based their belief on the scriptures of Revelation, Psalms, Song of Solomon etc., his coronation titles, his lineage, as well as utterances of Marcus Garvey and Reverend James Morris Webb. In one of his speeches, Garvey said "Look to the East for the crowning of a Black King, he is the redeemer for the days of deliverance are near". Also, Selassie's divinity is assumed because of his being part of the Solomonic line of kings. Jesus Christ and Haile Selassie belong to the Royal House of King David, therefore they share some kinship. Keep in mind that divinity does not necessarily equate with being God. For example, The Twelve Tribes believe in his divinity, but they don't believe he is God. However, the Solomonic lineage of Selassie and Jesus can be debated, but I'll leave that to the genealogical researchers. Some ask how can Jesus be from the root of David when Joseph was his adoptive father. I have also read that there may have been some gaps along the Ethiopian line of kings. It always have questions, but that is part of the quest for knowledge.
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Hmmm if thats why today he is worshipped as a GOD then I will forever never understand this mystery :-\...seems like he was just a very popular political leader visiting the caribbean and felt like that was the best gift at that point in time..
Nah.. I not saying that is why he's deified. That was to explain to Pass (10trini) the gifting of the land to West Indian peoples.
First of all, Selassie is not viewed as God by all Rastas. The Twelve Tribes of Israel typically view Selassie as Christ in his kingly character, basically the character of Christ was revealed through H.I.M. The Bobo Shanti's Holy Trinity is Prophet, Priest, and King, where Selassie is the King. The House of Nyabinghi steadfastly believes he is Earth's Rightful Ruler. So as you can see, there is a difference of opinion.
The divinity of Selassie was first preached by Leonard Howell, Archibald Dunkley, and Robert Hinds back in the 30s. Without going in to too much detail, they based their belief on the scriptures of Revelation, Psalms, Song of Solomon etc., his coronation titles, his lineage, as well as utterances of Marcus Garvey and Reverend James Morris Webb. In one of his speeches, Garvey said "Look to the East for the crowning of a Black King, he is the redeemer for the days of deliverance are near". Also, Selassie's divinity is assumed because of his being part of the Solomonic line of kings. Jesus Christ and Haile Selassie belong to the Royal House of King David, therefore they share some kinship. Keep in mind that divinity does not necessarily equate with being God. For example, The Twelve Tribes believe in his divinity, but they don't believe he is God. However, the Solomonic lineage of Selassie and Jesus can be debated, but I'll leave that to the genealogical researchers. Some ask how can Jesus be from the root of David when Joseph was his adoptive father. I have also read that there may have been some gaps along the Ethiopian line of kings. It always have questions, but that is part of the quest for knowledge.
Good post.
Indeed the Solomonic lineage of Selassie can be debated in large part because of the fact that not all the Kings of Ethiopia descended down the male line... for instance, Sahle Selassie was Emperor in the 19th century and the crown was eventually passed via his son to his grandson, who became Menelik II. Menelik II had no heirs, but he had a favorite cousin by the name of Ras Makonnen, an Amhar General who had fought alongside him in many wars. They were related in that Makonnen's mother was the sister of Menelik's father... and children of Sahle Selassie. When Menelik II died the throne was passed to the son of Ras Makonnen... Tafari Makonnen aka Ras Tafari, Haile Selassie.
So Selassie became King, but he was connected to the royal line via his grandmother, the daughter of Sahle Selassie (I'm not including all the names b/c it may just get more confusing than it already is). So while he's blood related to the Solomonic Lineage... it's genealogically unlikely that we can tell with any certainty that he descended from Solomon.
Another major hurdle is the fact that Solomon lived in Jerusalem... some 1500 miles away from Ethiopia. We know that Solomon and the Queen of Sheba (thought to be Queen Makeda) had a son... and that this son was said to be called Menelik. The evidence isn't conclusive one way or another that this Menelik is the very same Menelik I who began the Solomonic Dynasty in Ethiopia. So one would first have to establish that they are one in the same... then show an unbroken bloodline leading from him to Ras Tafari. The Solomonic lineage is 'traditionally' claimed by the Ethiopian royal family... but it hasn't been proven.
But religion isn't science and there has to be a leap of faith inherent to whatever the theology, so I won't ask Rastas to provide some sort of conclusive proof of this lineage. So whether I personally (or anyone else) want to accept their reasons or not is beside the point... but THIS lineage, disputed as it is, is the reason for the Messianic belief.
In addition to the other things pointed out of course... the Garvey "prophecy" etc...
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Just saw this on youtube then i notice this discussion
BINGHI celebration
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ne2Ju9K5ZyE
BTW tallman who is "King Emmanuel I" they alway praise ...
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Just saw this on youtube then i notice this discussion
BINGHI celebration
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ne2Ju9K5ZyE
BTW tallman who is "King Emmanuel I" they alway praise ...
Not sure (yeah, ah know I'z not Tallman ;D )... but remember that "Emmanuel" was also an unofficial name for Jesus.
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Just saw this on youtube then i notice this discussion
BINGHI celebration
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ne2Ju9K5ZyE
BTW tallman who is "King Emmanuel I" they alway praise ...
King Emmanuel is also known as Prince Emmanuel Charles Edwards aka Dada, de founder of de Bobo Shanti movement.
(http://www.geocities.com/joshua_tt/emmanuel100.jpg)
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reading and observing...the rest of questions will come later.
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Alyuh Rasta could swim good?
Do your locks hamper underwater swimming, is it boyant or does it weigh you down.
I notice in timed sports etc, running, swimming etc Rastas are not represented....coincidence or ?
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Alyuh Rasta could swim good?
Do your locks hamper underwater swimming, is it boyant or does it weigh you down.
I notice in timed sports etc, running, swimming etc Rastas are not represented....coincidence or ?
Must be have more to do with the health of the lungs .even doh Ricky Williams was super fast
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Alyuh Rasta could swim good?
Do your locks hamper underwater swimming, is it boyant or does it weigh you down.
I notice in timed sports etc, running, swimming etc Rastas are not represented....coincidence or ?
Yuh ever hear about de coefficient of drag?
... ah doh mean puff puff pass neither :rotfl:
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Alyuh Rasta could swim good?
Do your locks hamper underwater swimming, is it boyant or does it weigh you down.
I notice in timed sports etc, running, swimming etc Rastas are not represented....coincidence or ?
Yuh ever hear about de coefficient of drag?
... ah doh mean puff puff pass neither :rotfl:
Doh Bogart that Joint :rotfl: ;D :D
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Alyuh Rasta could swim good?
Do your locks hamper underwater swimming, is it boyant or does it weigh you down.
I notice in timed sports etc, running, swimming etc Rastas are not represented....coincidence or ?
Walter Dix have short locks.
We boy woulda be in trouble if Dix was a baldhead.
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If Africa is our home and a return to the Motherland the final end result...so do those who dont believe that Africa is home, who don't believe in reptriation and who are not black be considered Rasta?
As ah say before, repatriation can be physical, mental or spiritual. See below about de black Rasta business.
Again scroll back a few posts and look at Leonard Howell and the first Rasta ideals. If this is the case then he is a big racist and this is another form of racism.
I wouldn't brand Howell ah racist, just like ah wouldn't brand Malcolm X ah racist. In de context of de times, when he was railing against white people, he was merely responding to de persecution dat was being meted out to black people.
So essentially are all those Rastas who are not black psuedo Rastas?
No. It started out black, but it is obviously no longer that way. However, there are those who would term them "pseudo rastas".
Wouldn't it be Hypocritical for a White Blonde Haired, Blue Eye Ras to say he leaving to go back to Africa and set up shop in Shashamane. Further, if he does go and sets up shop and is making the most of the business opportunity there...would that be seen as exploitation by Babylon?
It would only be hypocritical if de individual trying tuh be deceptive, and have ulterior motives. It would be seen as exploitation by Babylon among those who are simple minded, or only if the individual was being given opportunities that were not available to all. It's kinda like how some Caribbean folk down in Brooklyn does carry on about how dem Korean does come and set up shop, and make money off ah dem. But when yuh ask dem why Caribbean people doh set up dey own groceries, and produce markets etc., dey cyar answer. And if by chance somebody open ah store, dey rell give dem de support dey need. Dey find de Korean cheaper.
Alyuh Rasta could swim good?
Do your locks hamper underwater swimming, is it boyant or does it weigh you down.
I notice in timed sports etc, running, swimming etc Rastas are not represented....coincidence or ?
What exactly yuh mean by swim good? Locks or no locks, if ah man could swim, he could swim. Obviously, if yuh talking about competitive swimming, den yeh, de locks will hinder yuh speed, unlike ah baldhead man. However, on ah recreational level, everyting cool.
I doh relly follow dem sports like how ah does follow football and cricket, so I eh know if it have any locksman competing at any elite level. But just like in swimming, de locks will definitely impede yuh quest for fast times.
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So Tallman,
I read an article bout the Bobos and they keep their women seperate when they have their "monthlies"...by seperate I mean different quarters, cyar lime around etc.
Do Rastas have any other customs?
Also same way a certain "Christian" group does not allow blood transfusions etc...Do Rastas have any kinda thing so?
Alyuh does go Doctor and ting?...wha bout Circumcision...like the Jews and Muslims?.
Alyuh could take Panadol and cold medicine?...or is Herbs and Tonic alyuh does concoct.
Thanks in advance,
The eternal student
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Tallman in terms of clothing?
Rasta's have anykinda dress code for men and women?
Could a Rasta rock a smedium shirt and a kick and stab Rumpelstiltskin shoe with a hamstring hugger pants and a WWF belt buckle?...and not be scorned by his brethren.
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So Tallman,
I read an article bout the Bobos and they keep their women seperate when they have their "monthlies"...by seperate I mean different quarters, cyar lime around etc.
Do Rastas have any other customs?
Also same way a certain "Christian" group does not allow blood transfusions etc...Do Rastas have any kinda thing so?
Alyuh does go Doctor and ting?...wha bout Circumcision...like the Jews and Muslims?.
Alyuh could take Panadol and cold medicine?...or is Herbs and Tonic alyuh does concoct.
De Bobo and Nyabinghi are de ones who yuh could say engage in plenty customs/rituals. You could get good details at House of Nyabinghi (http://www.nyahbinghi.org/).
About de blood transfusion ting, de one ting dat comes to mind, is dat those who take de Nazarite vow must not attend funerals or be around dead bodies.
No problem wit going to a doctor if it is required. Not aware of anything concerning circumcision.
Herbs and natural products are usually de order of de day, but if is some kinda serious condition and time is of de essence, and yuh not improving, den yuh go wit prescriptions and so on. Personally, I doh typically meddle wit tablets and cough medicine and dem ting. If ah have ah sore throat, ah gargle wit cayenne pepper in warm water. If ah feel ah coming down wit someting, ah load up on some citrus, or golden seal, or echinacea. But in general, is more of a prevention is better dan cure scene. Of course, if ah man have tuh undergo surgery or some kinda ting, den dat is ah different story.
Tallman in terms of clothing?
Rasta's have anykinda dress code for men and women?
Could a Rasta rock a smedium shirt and a kick and stab Rumpelstiltskin shoe with a hamstring hugger pants and a WWF belt buckle?...and not be scorned by his brethren.
Bobo and Nyabinghi have dress codes. De woman wears skirts, both man and woman should dress modestly. Bobo and dem don dey turban etc. In de tabernacle or at a Grounation/Nyabinghi, de man head is uncovered, but de woman must be covered etc. Outside of those two mansions, there are no specific dress codes, but at de same time, yuh wouldn't see ah proliferation of plum huggers being worn.
Ah fella who dressing as yuh mentioned, should be stoned by anybody :rotfl:.
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So Tallman,
I read an article bout the Bobos and they keep their women seperate when they have their "monthlies"...by seperate I mean different quarters, cyar lime around etc.
Do Rastas have any other customs?
Also same way a certain "Christian" group does not allow blood transfusions etc...Do Rastas have any kinda thing so?
Alyuh does go Doctor and ting?...wha bout Circumcision...like the Jews and Muslims?.
Alyuh could take Panadol and cold medicine?...or is Herbs and Tonic alyuh does concoct.
De Bobo and Nyabinghi are de ones who yuh could say engage in plenty customs/rituals. You could get good details at House of Nyabinghi (http://www.nyahbinghi.org/).
About de blood transfusion ting, de one ting dat comes to mind, is dat those who take de Nazarite vow must not attend funerals or be around dead bodies.
No problem wit going to a doctor if it is required. Not aware of anything concerning circumcision.
Herbs and natural products are usually de order of de day, but if is some kinda serious condition and time is of de essence, and yuh not improving, den yuh go wit prescriptions and so on. Personally, I doh typically meddle wit tablets and cough medicine and dem ting. If ah have ah sore throat, ah gargle wit cayenne pepper in warm water. If ah feel ah coming down wit someting, ah load up on some citrus, or golden seal, or echinacea. But in general, is more of a prevention is better dan cure scene. Of course, if ah man have tuh undergo surgery or some kinda ting, den dat is ah different story.
Tallman in terms of clothing?
Rasta's have anykinda dress code for men and women?
Could a Rasta rock a smedium shirt and a kick and stab Rumpelstiltskin shoe with a hamstring hugger pants and a WWF belt buckle?...and not be scorned by his brethren.
Bobo and Nyabinghi have dress codes. De woman wears skirts, both man and woman should dress modestly. Bobo and dem don dey turban etc. In de tabernacle or at a Grounation/Nyabinghi, de man head is uncovered, but de woman must be covered etc. Outside of those two mansions, there are no specific dress codes, but at de same time, yuh wouldn't see ah proliferation of plum huggers being worn.
Ah fella who dressing as yuh mentioned, should be stoned by anybody :rotfl:.
Does echinacea really work for you? ...I've heard both sides of the coin. Always wanted to try it but wasn't sure.
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If ah have ah sore throat, ah gargle wit cayenne pepper in warm water. If ah feel ah coming down wit someting, ah load up on some citrus, or golden seal, or echinacea.
Does echinacea really work for you? ...I've heard both sides of the coin. Always wanted to try it but wasn't sure.
Ye, but yuh know how it is. Not everyting is for everybody.
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Rastas here for summit
Published on: 11/30/08.
The Nation (Barbados)
RASTAFARI from the region and beyond are gathering here for the 12th Summit, Cultural & Trade Expo of the Caribbean Rastafari Organisation (CRO).
The summit, which takes place between December 4 and 8, is intended to "expand the membership, secure the legitimacy and advance the mission of CRO". This mission is "to organise and centralise the Caribbean Rastafari community through sustainable trade and development programmes and activities in pursuit of our ultimate goal of reparations and repatriation".
The opening ceremony, on Thursday from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Solidarity House, Harmony Hall, St Michael, includes blessings by priests representing the houses of Nyabinghi, 12 Tribes of Israel and the Church of Haile Selassie I.
CRO co-chairperson Sister Asheba Trotman will make the opening address, followed by remarks from CRO chairperson King Frank-I. Minister of Culture Steve Blackett will deliver the feature address.
On Friday from 10 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. the summit on CRO business takes place at the Israel Lovell Foundation, also the venue for a public health seminar, public exhibition and sales from 7 p.m. until 10 p.m.
Queen's Park is the venue for Saturday's Cultural & Trade Expo, from 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. It includes cultural presentations, paper presentations and health consultations. The park is also the venue for the next day's Cultural & Trade Expo 2 and Family Day, which runs from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.
The final day of the conference, Monday, December 8, starts with a Press conference at 10 a.m. at the Commission for Pan African Affairs, Hincks Street, The City, after which there will be a scenic heritage tour.
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I find Rasta these days scarce in TT.
Most shave orf they dread and gorn mo-hawk.
On the positive....they have diversified from selling nuts exclusively and now sport rasta coloured coolers on the highway peddling beverages...gatorade, redbull, water etc.
It seems the Rasta Fad is wearing off...Jersey with Pin of Emperor Selassie out....Metro Print Smedium, Tight pants and WWF Belt buckle IN.
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I find Rasta these days scarce in TT.
Most shave orf they dread and gorn mo-hawk.
On the positive....they have diversified from selling nuts exclusively and now sport rasta coloured coolers on the highway peddling beverages...gatorade, redbull, water etc.
It seems the Rasta Fad is wearing off...Jersey with Pin of Emperor Selassie out....Metro Print Smedium, Tight pants and WWF Belt buckle IN.
touches boy i wear meh first smedium shirt today and scared to wear it. the store had nuttin else and i swear years now i would never wear it :-\
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I find Rasta these days scarce in TT.
Most shave orf they dread and gorn mo-hawk.
On the positive....they have diversified from selling nuts exclusively and now sport rasta coloured coolers on the highway peddling beverages...gatorade, redbull, water etc.
It seems the Rasta Fad is wearing off...Jersey with Pin of Emperor Selassie out....Metro Print Smedium, Tight pants and WWF Belt buckle IN.
Well yuh have to take into consideration dat your movements typically limited to a certain locale.
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Jah rastafar i ,I and I salasli I Iand I rastafar i .nothing wrong in selling honestly jah know . Thing is this a religion eh not a style ,if u want to pray alot fix to suit ,nothing wrong with jah I guess ,but the king of kings and lord of lords man calling ,when he come doh back.thank Jah jah for all my blessings ,my family and my little baby boy 'who jah have to get ah special big up for ,he hooked me up" and my new house praises be on to the father .king of kings most high ,house of David ,Conquering lion of the Judah.
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Yes Tallman....but...
If there is a reduction in the sample would it be wrong to make such an inference?
The fastest growing Rasta group...white boys/indian/well off youths...d west nah...like they seeing the light and the scruffy vibes ent cutting it for them no more. They cyar play rootsy to go buy they weed and ting anymore.
Hence they releasing themselves from the hair and not using it as an excuse no more. They could be a spranger and be comfortable in they own "skin"
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Emperor Selassie visits Trinidad & Tobago (April 18, 1966)
http://www.youtube.com/v/XuNmCrmUO68
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So I say breds...yuh like Ethopia...whas dah scene about?
Ethiopia is very significant to Rastafari mainly because of its relation to His Majesty. It also symbolizes the resilience of Africans because it is the only African country that has never been colonized. In a historical aspect, Rastafari looked toward Africa and Ethiopia in particular in order to rediscover their heritage. Remember, in the late 20s and early 30s which was the dawn of Rastafari, black man was still being heavily persecuted and of course in the Caribbean colonialism was alive and well. They felt marginalized and out of place in Jamaica. To illustrate those feelings, there is a Rastafarian saying: "Jamaica is an island, but it is not I land"; also back in the day when Marcus Garvey was asked "Are you an African or a Jamaican?", he answered "I will not give up a continent for an island!". Ethiopia is seen by many to be associated with the Garden of Eden:
Genesis 2:10-13
10And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads.
11The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold;
12And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone.
13And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia.
Other than that, there are many references to Ethiopia in the Bible (http://www.rastaites.com/HIM/bibleref.html). It is also associated with lost Ark of the Covenant.
When yuh hear Rastaman talking bout repartriation[/b], sometimes it is physical, but many times it is spiritual[/color], cultural, psychological etc..
Thank yuh tallman for explaining my signature, BC nuff man used tuh fight down my sig. saying how i bigging up africa over T&T my birthplace, when i've been trying tuh tell them what i mentioned in my SIG was not to be taken literally but figuritvly, and you just explain what i wrote in my sig to ah tee. positive.
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Tallman or any of the other bonafides, what is the origin of the Rasta "Hands Sign" (index fingers and thumbs of both hands touching each other while making a hexagonal type shape) that many "modern" rastas use?
I ask the qu b/c I did a paper many moons ago on the origins of Rastafarinism and read quite a few references for it (Barrett's "Rastafarianism"; Bilby's "Growth and Spread of Rastafarianism Music"; Campbell's "Rasta and Resistance"; Hill's "Leonard Howell and ...", Jacobs "Roots of Rastafari" etc etc) but never came across this specific trait, is it recent? Just curious, thanks
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Check my response here: http://www.socawarriors.net/forum/index.php?topic=21846.msg205660#msg205660
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Check my response here: http://www.socawarriors.net/forum/index.php?topic=21846.msg205660#msg205660
Thanks Tallman, ah guh use de search option nex time ;D
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just wanted to drop a few lines in the thread which i haven't visited for a while.
pan-africanism as we know it existed before the rastafarian movement, founded by Henry Sylvestor Williams from tt, who was the father of pan-africanism but was not given the credit. forming the african association and later called the pan-african movement, which i studied indeptly in university many years ago. marcus garvey and dubois modelled their ideologies after williams ideas after he had the first conference in 1900 and his caribbean lecture tour series.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Sylvester-Williams
the idea itself of mother africa is not new, its older than many think and believe. what evades many is that most, meaning 90% or more of the afro-caribbean diaspora originate from west africa, namely the ashanti and kongo kingdoms which were matriarchal societies that were strong and vibrant.
the stronger tribal heads would endeavour into the kingdoms and capture many smaller african tribes within the region to sell them for weapons to the portugese, as it first started that way. It later enveloped into the arabs entering the trans atlantic slave trade, many of the enslaved africans captured were made muslims and branded with earrings, there were also many that remained tribal in religion.
the only country/region in east africa that was apart of trading was kenya, not ethiopia nor somolia that i recollect from research where enslaved africans were captured outside the kongo, empire of mali and ashanti kingdoms, many of those people were sent to the US and brazil, not the caribbean. ethiopia was widely known for its domestic enslavement of its people.
as for many afro-caribbean men and women identifying with salassie and ethiopia as their homeland, it is far fetched, however if it gives an individual a sense of belonging, culture and pride, so be it, i am not a perfect man to condemn anyone. however, the designer rastas in tt are just that, designers in nature and not true to the beliefs and customs, despite it not being their ancestral root.
with the geneology testing these days you can trace back your roots to which part of africa your descendents are from. in canada they have a series called ancestors in the attic, its worth a look, one episode is where a vincey woman traced her roots to west africa, where the majority of caribbean diaspora originates.
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Controversial,
pretty good analisys.
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as for many afro-caribbean men and women identifying with salassie and ethiopia as their homeland, it is far fetched, however if it gives an individual a sense of belonging, culture and pride, so be it, i am not a perfect man to condemn anyone. however, the designer rastas in tt are just that, designers in nature and not true to the beliefs and customs, despite it not being their ancestral root.
I believe that most look at Ethiopia as a spiritual homeland rather than physical. As you have pointed out, it is well documented that the vast majority of Africans in the Caribbean came from West Africa. In T&T, many have descended from the Yoruba and Mandinka tribes.
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In a slightly different vein. I saw this article on BBC. Traditional African leaders should aplogize for their forfathers' complicity in the slave trade.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8356357.stm
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Now from yuh opening paragraph if it is....... and tallman has alluded to this.... that there is no organised doctrine and men have to develop their own ideas.....
If each idea passed from one person to another is corrupted....then it will get watered down confused and it will essentially lack substance.
Ah came across something recently which reminded me of the point that Touches raised above.
Many observers believe that Rastafari movements have been "disorganized" and "lacking in leadership". This view rests upon the inappropriate assumption that decentralization and ideological diversity are signs of weakness and instability rather than a form of adaptation with particular strengths. Decentralization and diversity mitigate state suppression, creating a range of "niches" that a group can penetrate, and encourage dynamism and innovation. They add to the survival and persistence of vulnerable groups in ways that centralization and bureaucratization impede. There is salience in the Rastafari's arguments against centralization and in favor of indigineous anarchism. Although diffuseness may protect against efforts to root out completely a movement or people, it leaves them susceptible to divide-and-conquer strategies and can lead to detrimental competition between different groups.
Pg 7, Becoming Rasta: Origins of Rastafari Identity in Jamaica (http://www.amazon.com/Becoming-Rasta-Origins-Rastafari-Identity/dp/0814767478) by Charles Price
Hence we have a setta of pseudo, wannabe mock d dreads running around bawling I and I...Bless Fadder...and these confused individuals are the same ones who are to be the "followers or recruiters" of the Rastafarian faith....so if anything goes...then yuh just leading yuhself into a state of confusion.
To me is a setta jokey men who take chain up...from they partners...who in turn chaining up more people .....who all feel they is victims...that the world against them and they cyar advance theyself because they does look a certain way and the system against them.
You cannot join Rastafari. It is not something you join. That is foolishness. It is something inside of you, an inspiration that come forward.
Ras Sam Brown
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The Myth of Garvey and Rasta
By Martin Henry (Jamaica Gleaner)
Tomorrow marks the 123rd anniversary of the birth of Marcus Mosiah Garvey, perhaps the greatest black leader and philosopher of the 20th century (not forgetting Martin Luther King Jr), and one of the greatest of all times.
Professor Carolyn Cooper claimed in her column yesterday, 'Claiming Garvey and Rastafari', that Garvey would certainly endorse the inaugural Rastafari Studies conference hosted by the Institute of Caribbean Studies at the UWI, Mona this week. Garvey may possibly have been willing to endorse the conference for some reason, but not for the reason of affinity between himself and Rastafari on some critical points.
One of the prevailing myths of the culture is that Marcus Garvey was some kind of proto-Rasta. The Rastafarian movement, aided by 'scholarship', has (mis)appropriated Garvey as a special icon of the movement. Professor Cooper has previously functioned as a medium for bringing messages from the dead, like Morris Cargill, and may indeed have a message from Garvey. But from Garvey's own copious words while alive, it is extraordi-narily doubtful if he would ever be a locksman dragging on the sacramental chalice and shouting "Selassie I, Jah Rastafari" and 'bun Jesas'.
Inchoate movement
Rastafarianism is a rather inchoate movement, something which we hope a serious conference of scholarship about Rastafari will have the courage and honesty to explore. One of its principal proponents, Mutabaruka, is an atheist. Others venerate Selassie I. Some are respectful of Jesus; others want to bun him. For some the 'blessed hope' is repatriation to Africa. Others have dropped out of Babylon but will sell brooms and vegetables to the Babylonians, while still others, the pop musicians perhaps and academics being the best examples, have accommodated Babylon and are using the system to their advantage, while 'chanting down Babylon'. Some are polygamists. Others are monogamists. Some lick Arnold, some don't.
A few things hold the movement together with any kind of coherence: veneration of Selassie I, either as god or great man-hero; the sacramental herb; and black pride - the last being perhaps the only point of real contact between Garvey and Rasta.
Incontestable record
It is a matter of incontestable record that Marcus Garvey detested Selassie I and severely chastised him for his conduct as emperor of Abyssinia in the war with Italy and in the treatment of his own people.
Listen to Garvey: "Haile Selassie ... kept his country unprepared for modern civilisation. He resorted to prayer, feasting and fasting, whilst other nations were building up armaments ... .
"When Haile Selassie departed from the policy of the great Menelik and surrounded himself with European advisers, he had taken the first step to the destruction of the country.
"Why he kept the majority of his countrymen in serfdom and almost slavery is difficult to tell. Why he refused to educate the youth of his country to help him to carry on the government and lead the masses in a defensive war against Italy cannot be understood.
"If Haile Selassie had only the vision, inspired with negro integrity, he would have still been the resident emperor in Addis Ababa, with not only a country of twelve million Abyssinian citizens, but with an admiring world of hundreds of millions of negroes [around the world]."
Garvey had more nasty things to say about the Rasta-venerated Selassie I. But listen to this one on Solomon: "The new negro does not give two pence for the line of Solomon" which is venerated by Rastas. "Solomon was a Jew. The negro is no Jew."
Despite her supporting quotations, Cooper is far from being right, and certainly not honest, in her assertion that Garvey had a "daring conception of God" with which Rastafarian thought and theology, such as it is, coincide. While rejecting the Europeanisation (the whitening) of God, Garvey was close to being an orthodox Christian. It is more likely to the Ethiopian Orthodox church, which retained purer conceptions of God and the gospel of Jesus Christ than almost anything in Europe, that Garvey would be aligned, not Selassie I-venerating Rastafarianism.
Garvey through Cooper: "We negroes believe in the God of Ethiopia, the everlasting God - God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Ghost, the one God of all ages." As orthodox as Christianity comes and anchored in the Apostles' Creed."
'Righteous' cause
"Our cause", Garvey said, "is based upon righteousness. God Almighty is our leader and Jesus Christ our standard bearer." 'Bun Jesas'? Jesus the first great reformer had the blood of all races in his veins, Garvey said. "The Church is the most beneficent institution, the greatest civilising agency; the institution which is the begetter and ward of the rights and privileges, the freedom and liberty, not only of the community, but of the individual."
And as a personal profession of faith Marcus Garvey wrote: "I believe in God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Ghost; I endorse the Nicene Creed. I shall never hold Christ or God responsible for the commercialisation of Christianity... ."
The Rastafarians and their apologist scholars cannot just be left alone to misinterpret and misappropriate Garvey, his faith and his philosophy. They cannot just be allowed to make things up as they go along and foist falsehood upon us because it serves their interests.
At odds
Sociologically, Garvey would be at odds with much of Rastafa-rianism. He was an unabashed capitalist and advocated wealth and power - not dropping out of Babylon, or repatriation - as the key to the advancement of the black race.
Garvey was a serious advocate of science and almost certainly would have had strident objections to the use of a herb religiously or otherwise that evidence suggests may worsen the lackadaisical attitude of 'the negro' against which Garvey complained so much as an obstacle to the progress of the race.
Garvey actively engaged politics and founded the People's Political Party whose extra-ordinarily progressive 1929 election manifesto remains as relevant - and as unfulfilled - as it was then. Rastas have tended to philosophically and practically withdraw from political engagement and to call down fire pon Babylon.
Garvey was no Rasta.
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Interesting article,although I always thought it was common knowledge the only thing the two parties share is a 'back to africa' mindset
One look at garvey pomp & circumstance pirate hat would tell anybody he not on ah humble rasta vibes....plus dais ah belly full ah souse
(http://passionweiss.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/marcus_garvey.gif)
Some lick Arnold, some don't.
Er? what does this mean?
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Some lick Arnold, some don't.
yeh, what does that means?
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I have to read and digest this article....but I see we have a new resident rasta on the board....bongo.
Lewwe invite him and suss him out nah.
By the way some Rasta I see gone corporate...get a wuk and fly the dread.
Is a phase ting yuh know.
As I type mohawk and tight pants is the new Ras in T&T.
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Who killed Tenorsaw?
Folks, what is the truth on this one? I have seen on some blogs folks say Nitty Gritty, but find it hard to get conclusive statements in this direction, Tallman, anyone?
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before rasta was pan africanism and repatriation to the mother africa
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before rasta was pan africanism and repatriation to the mother africa
Correck is right!
Who killed Tenorsaw?
Folks, what is the truth on this one? I have seen on some blogs folks say Nitty Gritty, but find it hard to get conclusive statements in this direction, Tallman, anyone?
As far as I know there has never been a definitive statement on his death. Some of de thing that have been said are:
1. He was a hit and run victim
2. He was dealing drugs on de side, and some men bump him off
3. He was arguing wit some promoters about getting paid, dey beat him bad, throw him at de side of de road, and he contract pneumonia and dead
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Film tracing rasta's roots hopes to debut at Toronto festival
By Jasminee Sahoye (The Caribbean Camera)
A 90-minute documentary Rasta - a souls journey tracing the roots of Rastafarism from a global perspective is set to release in September and the producers are hoping to have it launched at this years Toronto International Film Festival.
A granddaughter of the late great reggae superstar, Robert Nesta Bob Marley, who is working on the documentary along with the producers, says she is honoured to have travelled around the world to find the roots and how Rastafari evolved as a cultural movement.
They have been gathering the materials for about six years from Washington, DC, Ethiopia, Israel, South Africa, Jamaica, England, Canada and India.
Donisha Prendergast told The Camera that India has a special place in Rastafarism adding that the ganja seed has its origin in India. The ganja seed is a major part of the culture of Rastafari and to understand the connection as simple as it is, it was just amazing because the first man to call Rastafaris name in Jamaica is a man by the name of Leonard Howell and his best friend was an Indian indentured labourer. So when Rastafari as a culture started to exercise its lifestyle, a lot of the principles were borrowed from Hinduism.
She added that many have told her that Rastafari evolved through reggae music and her grandfathers message, but therereothers who identify solely with the mission of Rastafari, which is back to Africa, which is knowing our identity, which is living how we want to live outside the idea of society.
Prendergast, whose mother is the daughter of the late Jamaican reggae Icon, said she wanted to produce the documentary because as a child growing up, she always knew she was a Rasta due to the fact that she is the granddaughter of Bob Marley.
There are two questions, what does it means to be a Rasta and then what does it really means to be Bob Marleys granddaughter? What are my roles, what are my responsibilities outside of the celebrity of everything else, outside of the red, green and gold and the reggae music. This documentary has brought me so much closer to the mission of the man, not just the man himself.
Rastafari, according to this Howard university grad, has evolved in many countries over the years. She explained that there are some main staples of the culture. You have to eat well, your mission to learn about self is mandatory and Africa has to be a part of the vision.
Prendergast hopes that the documentary will create a greater awareness of Rastafarism among a younger, noting that there have been some negative connotations to the culture because of the lack of knowledge.
One of my observations is that the mission has kind of fallen kind off of track, especially through the overuse and over marketing of my grandfather. I believe it has taken people away from the mission and has concentrated solely on the man. We have become so materialistic because every time you see Bob Marleys image, you dont remember the word Rastafari but you will always remember Bob Marley. And thats a major problems because he has sacrificed a lot of his time to teach people about Rastafari and for them to come back years later to forget what Rastafari is and to just remember him, I dont think it is very fair.
When asked what makes someone a Rasta?, Ms Prendergast said: Doing the work, the action, like there are children who need to be fed, to be educated, there are perspectives that need to be changed, so once you decide that you are a Rasta and say that youre a Rasta, you decide to give up your life to making the lives of others better.
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Film tracing rasta's roots hopes to debut at Toronto festival
By Jasminee Sahoye (The Caribbean Camera)
A 90-minute documentary Rasta - a souls journey tracing the roots of Rastafarism from a global perspective is set to release in September and the producers are hoping to have it launched at this years Toronto International Film Festival.
A granddaughter of the late great reggae superstar, Robert Nesta Bob Marley, who is working on the documentary along with the producers, says she is honoured to have travelled around the world to find the roots and how Rastafari evolved as a cultural movement.
They have been gathering the materials for about six years from Washington, DC, Ethiopia, Israel, South Africa, Jamaica, England, Canada and India.
Donisha Prendergast told The Camera that India has a special place in Rastafarism adding that the ganja seed has its origin in India. The ganja seed is a major part of the culture of Rastafari and to understand the connection as simple as it is, it was just amazing because the first man to call Rastafaris name in Jamaica is a man by the name of Leonard Howell and his best friend was an Indian indentured labourer. So when Rastafari as a culture started to exercise its lifestyle, a lot of the principles were borrowed from Hinduism.
She added that many have told her that Rastafari evolved through reggae music and her grandfathers message, but therereothers who identify solely with the mission of Rastafari, which is back to Africa, which is knowing our identity, which is living how we want to live outside the idea of society.
Prendergast, whose mother is the daughter of the late Jamaican reggae Icon, said she wanted to produce the documentary because as a child growing up, she always knew she was a Rasta due to the fact that she is the granddaughter of Bob Marley.
There are two questions, what does it means to be a Rasta and then what does it really means to be Bob Marleys granddaughter? What are my roles, what are my responsibilities outside of the celebrity of everything else, outside of the red, green and gold and the reggae music. This documentary has brought me so much closer to the mission of the man, not just the man himself.
Rastafari, according to this Howard university grad, has evolved in many countries over the years. She explained that there are some main staples of the culture. You have to eat well, your mission to learn about self is mandatory and Africa has to be a part of the vision.
Prendergast hopes that the documentary will create a greater awareness of Rastafarism among a younger, noting that there have been some negative connotations to the culture because of the lack of knowledge.
One of my observations is that the mission has kind of fallen kind off of track, especially through the overuse and over marketing of my grandfather. I believe it has taken people away from the mission and has concentrated solely on the man. We have become so materialistic because every time you see Bob Marleys image, you dont remember the word Rastafari but you will always remember Bob Marley. And thats a major problems because he has sacrificed a lot of his time to teach people about Rastafari and for them to come back years later to forget what Rastafari is and to just remember him, I dont think it is very fair.
When asked what makes someone a Rasta?, Ms Prendergast said: Doing the work, the action, like there are children who need to be fed, to be educated, there are perspectives that need to be changed, so once you decide that you are a Rasta and say that youre a Rasta, you decide to give up your life to making the lives of others better.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sadhu (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sadhu)
They have been smoking ganga for centuries in India, along with growing a ras as a part of their hindu faith
however, as many know, all of us originate from mother africa, so it is not hard to believe that the adoption of rastafarian religious practice would spread from india to the afro-caribbean diaspora eventually, as we all have the same root.
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They have been smoking ganga for centuries in India, along with growing a ras as a part of their hindu faithhowever, as many know, all of us originate from mother africa, so it is not hard to believe that the adoption of rastafarian religious practice would spread from india to the afro-caribbean diaspora eventually, as we all have the same root.
According to the following: (L. Barrett, The Rastafarians, Boston: Beacon Press, 98), weed was actually introduced by a small band of Indian slaves in JA, as one of the bodyguards of the founders of the movement (L. Howell) was a former Indian slave. Also, according to Horace Campbell's book (Rasta and Resistance), dreadlocks came about due to identification w/the Mau Mau freedom warriors of Kenya who wore their hair as dreadlocks during the anti-colonial uprisings...
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From Our Files: February 7th 1973
New cult springing up near the banks of the East Dry River
TnT Mirror
RAS RALPH never ran a comb through his hair for seven or eight years now.
Ras Victor McQueen is likewise.
He has not touched a comb in four years.
Who are they?
They are part of a group that is attracting the most comment in Trinidad, because of their weird look.
They are Ras Tafarians.
The Ras Tafarians are members of a new cult springing up in shadows of the East Dry River, on Observatory Street, Port of Spain.
But what are they after, these Ras tafarians?
If they are after public comment and ridicule they already have it.
For, theyre being looked upon by certain sectors of this community, as a bunch of filthy, unkempt black power terrorists who are only out to make trouble.
But, is this true of the Ras Tafarians?
Are they out to scare people with their matted hair, and grisly beards?
Are they troublemakers?
To find, out we went into the headquarters of the cult on Observatory Street.
The Ras Tafari way of life would cause certain people in this community to take greater offence.
For, they do not believe in church marriages.
They believe the best way, is to get together with a virgin and live as man and wife.
The Ras Tafarian way of life appears to be a protest against the present-day established order of society.
For they do not follow todays fashion trends.
Their hair is grown long, kinky, and unkempt, and as a result turns a bright rust colour after a few years.
They prefer simple blue duck pants, jerseys, merinos and lumber jackets.
Their shoes are soled with discarded motor car tyres.
They are not against weed smoking, since they believe that marijuana is pure and holy.
However, they are not for violence, but peace. They even have a peace prayer.
Ras Ralph said: We believe in a peaceful life.
And we have a peace prayer to guide us.
He recited it: I give thanks and praise to thy most Holy God, Jah Ras Tafari.
Even though I fall, let the wicked beware for I shall rise again.
Flip the pagan heart, O Lord, and smite the wicked in thy name, Jah Ras Tafari.
Although their protest is against the present-day order of society, need to survive causes them to seek out the capitalists for work.
However, they prefer certain jobs.
Said Ras Ralph: Most of us work with the Port of Spain City Council and on road projects.
We do not work on offices, because we feel employers would be prejudiced against us.
So, we dont bother to seek employment there.
Ras Victor McQueen, another Rasta, said:
I would like to get a job in an office behind a typewriter. I believe that society would not give me the chance.
Why did Ras McQueen become a Rasta?
He said: Life for me was one big economic struggle. I had not other choice but to create my own world.
There are lots of people who would like to become Rastas, but they do not, because of their jobs.
Rasta is now a way of life on this block.
People in Trinidad think we are dropouts from society, but we feel proud to be ourselves.
Ras Tafarians means self-consciousness, and thats what we are about.
We prefer to do for ourselves and live our own life.
If you follow society you achieve nothing.
While there are imitation Rastas roaming the streets of Port of Spain there are only about 25 real hard-core Rastas in Trinidad.
They are not anxious to go back to Africa like their Jamaican counterparts, but to remain here and develop the place where they were born.
However Ras McQueen pointed out they were following the philosophies of Marcus Garvey and other black revolutionaries.
He said they were trying to establish links with their Jamaican Ras brothers who live in secluded areas.
There are thousands of them, McQueen pointed out.
He said Rastas in Trinidad were not yet organised into any kind of group as such, but this will be done soon.
McQueen, who was the most talkative of the lot, added: There is talk that the Jamaicans hate Trinidadians.
This is not true.
If our Government is trying to establish closer links with Jamaica, why then, we cant do it at this grassroot level.
The Ras Tafarians concept in Jamaica is a different thing to Trinidad.
The Jamaican cult, claims Haile Selassie as its God, and has grown to an estimated 60,000 in 30 years.
They disclaim allegiance to the laws of Jamaica.
To the Ras Tafari in Jamaica, all white men are English, just as all black men are Ethiopian.
They do not believe in the white mans Christianity.
They say its a hoax perpetrated on the black race by the white.
Also, the Jamaican Ras Tafarians believe that all black men are all reincarnation of Gods chosen people, the Israelites.
The Jamaicans too, believe that blacks were exiled to the West Indies as slaves because of their transgressions against God, and blacks are superior to white in every way.
They believe that God is not a spirit, and Haile Selassie is God by reincarnation.
Ethiopia, Selassies country they say is Heaven, and Jamaica is a hopeless hell.
The Jamaicans believe that soon Selassie will arrange for them to return to Ethiopia.
They say that all the lands in Jamaica is theirs by right, and that Jamaica is for black men only, and that taxation is illegal and that the throne of England is subservient to that of Ethiopia.
As a result, the Jamaican cultists squatted on lands as they saw fit, and allowed their hair to grow uncut and seldom washed.
Slowly but surely, their habits put them outside normal living with fellow Jamaicans, who set up barriers against them, and refused to employ them.
Is this going to be the future of the Ras Tafari in Trinidad, now that it has started her? Only time will tell.
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Rasta Forum members take it easy now very interesting discussion .....
http://www.youtube.com/v/U7iHYAP3WYc
http://www.youtube.com/v/L9PT_lfr6Rs
http://www.youtube.com/v/88Y7ET2TlZw
http://www.youtube.com/v/Vf9ezoU8DSU
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Nice! Remember seeing that programme on the BBC years ago!
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Darcus was suitably provocative. Let there be no mistaking it: that exchange is an echo of voices past such as Alexander Crummell and Frederick Douglass.
Powerful stuff. May I suggest that - at some point - it be merged with the legendary thread started by Touches!?
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Wha bout the person who I ask the question in the first post, is now a public figure and his ras has been flown a few yrs now.
For those who responded over the years, do you still have your Ras?
Has your outlook on life and your hair opened or closed doors for you since?
In fact only Big Magician and Tallman are amongst the few who still have dey locks.
Let's hear how we progressing...
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Wha bout the person who I ask the question in the first post, is now a public figure and his ras has been flown a few yrs now.
Well dis is de second time he fly it. Who knows, it might return one day? ;D
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Depressing thread for when yuh going naturally bald.
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Depressing thread for when yuh going naturally bald.
Doh feel no way
http://www.youtube.com/v/nAzmKZrvoVE
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Wha bout the person who I ask the question in the first post, is now a public figure and his ras has been flown a few yrs now.
Well dis is de second time he fly it. Who knows, it might return one day? ;D
Touches, i think you getting mixed up with "dread lucks, nutty/ natty dread" and rastafarianism. a true rastaman is not defined by a hair style, but his creed and allegiance.
there are many rastas who are dreadless, take for instance the emperor himself, the one who most rastas claim as their shining example and GOD/ creator, is ah pure bald head!
not only is he a bald head, but the man is also an aristocrat with a fervor for entertaining high society guest, he also gave expensive gifts to royalties the world over and does not share the same conservative views as most rastas,
hek, the man barely made it as ah black man, bc IMO he looks more like an arab or a modern day jew, than a black man, though i accept him as an african.........just saying, and the man does not fit the bill as having anything to do with the bohemian minded rastafarians and rastafaianism, as far as i can see.
nutty dreads and dread locks on the other hand could fall in a wide range of categories, such as roots men, who live on the land and rejects anything modern (check out mother earth), "bifal" a group in senegal who follow sufism that wear their hair in a dread lock style, and the black heart men from jamaica, who wears the hairstyle but does not identify with selassie or christianity for that matter.
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Rastas won't budge
Maria Bradshaw | Sun, March 17, 2013 - 12:01 AM
The Nation
http://www.nationnews.com/index.php/articles/view/rastas-wont-budge/#94202
When Judy Phillips was told by her partner that he would put a roof over her head, she might have expected a dream home.
But when he took her to a wooded area where he had built a small shanty for them to live in, she found dream land.
He showed me the land and ask me if I like it and I told him yes, said the soft-spoken herbalist who raised all of her 11 children on the land.
Today, the close-knit Rastafarian family of 23, including Phillips 11 children, 11 grandchildren and one great-grand, may well be Barbados richest poor family.
They still live in the woods occupying five shanties made out of old galvanized sheets and pieces of old wood, scattered on almost 8.38 acres of the land.
But the property has turned out to be prime real estate, forming the undeveloped portion of the affluent Fort George Heights neighbourhood in St Michael, where million-dollar homes are built and only the well-to-do can afford to live.
However, for Phillips and her family who have been squatting on the land for more than 30 years, it is not about the money or even the fact that they are sitting on some of the most sought-after land in Barbados.
They have refused to budge even though land owners insurance conglomerate Sagicor Life Inc. offered them over a million dollars at one point and also four acres with title deed to boot.
We are not moving and we are not taking any bribes or offers, said son Junior Phillips, 36. We will stay here and fight for what is ours. We were on this land before there was a place called Fort George Heights.
Their attorney David Comissiong has already stated that, by virtue of living on the land for so long, they have acquired certain legal entitlements through the Limitations And Prescription Act.
The family has no electricity and their running water was disconnected a while ago for non-payment of a huge bill.
Judy remembered living in the area when there were no houses, no amenities; just her family and canes.
She said the then owner of the land, a Caucasian plantation owner they knew as Mr Deane, gave them his blessings when he discovered that they were living there.
He told us that we could live on the land for as long as we wanted as long as we did not give any trouble, she explained. I remember when the white man use to be out there cutting canes, my children would see him and run but he use to call them and give them cane to suck and something to eat.
Junior pointed out that over the years they had cut down some of the trees and started farming the ground, planting food and herbs.
They said it was only when Sagicor bought the land that their peaceful inhabitance changed.
They have been trying to get us off the land for years. I dont know what the fight is about because we dont want to fight. All we want is a piece of the rock but it seems to us that people grudge us. This is a whole heap of jook-out-eye thing.
Junior complained that everything had been done to make living for them uncomfortable, with access paths they once used being blocked off.
We had trees planted to form a barrier and they brought a Bobcat and cut them down. My family kept a lot of noise and they had to replant them, he said.
The family now uses an access road in Lower Burney, St George.
Judy remains undaunted by the struggle. Her only dream now is to keep her close-knit family intact on the land where many of them were born.
Junior dreams of better surroundings.
Right now our family is tight, he said. We are just a little financially embarrassed but I would like to see the day when my brothers and sisters can rise up and build decent houses out here and continue to live on this land.
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I wonder what kind of herbs they planting?
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The Rastafarians' flawed African 'promised land'
By Chris Summers
BBC News
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-28059303 (http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-28059303)
Forty years ago Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia was overthrown. It was a blow for all Rastafarians, who revere him as a god - and for those Rastafarians who had emigrated to Ethiopia, life suddenly got more difficult.
In 1948 Emperor Haile Selassie gave 500 acres (200 hectares) of land at Shashamene, 150 miles (225km) south of Addis Ababa, to black people from the West who had supported him in his struggles with Mussolini's Italy.
The first settlers to arrive were African-American Jews, but they soon moved on to Liberia or Israel. After them, in 1963, came a dozen Rastafarians, and the numbers swelled after Selassie made an emotional visit to Jamaica three years later.
The Rastafarians' adoration of Selassie stems from the words of black consciousness leader Marcus Garvey, who said in 1920, "Look to Africa, when a black king shall be crowned, for the day of deliverance is at hand". When Selassie was crowned emperor, 10 years later, many thought Garvey's words had come true.
Another belief widely held by Rastafarians is that they will eventually return to Africa - the continent their ancestors left in slave ships long ago. And quite often, according to Erin MacLeod - author of Visions of Zion: Ethiopians and Rastafari in the Search for the Promised Land - "back to Africa" is treated as synonymous with "back to Ethiopia".
Today there are up to 800 Rastafarians at Melka Oda, near Shashamene, as well as a few in the capital, Addis Ababa, and in the city of Bahir Dar. But how has life turned out for them in Ethiopia - and what do Ethiopians make of their Rastafarian neighbours?
It has not been a love affair.
In 1974, the communist Dergue regime overthrew and imprisoned Selassie - who died the following year - and began purging all vestiges of the imperial dynasty. Land was nationalised, including the land granted to foreigners at Shashamene, and some Rastafarians settlers fled.
Even today, long after the fall of the Dergue, Selassie remains a controversial figure in Ethiopia, and many look askance at the Rastafarians who venerate him.
"There are people who have extreme love for Selassie, the modernising leader who did so much for the country, but others say he was a representative of a colonial empire, was enamoured by the opulence of Europe and did not lead the country in an equitable way," says MacLeod.
There have been other problems too.
One is "ganja" - marijuana - considered a herb of religious significance by Rastafarians, who sometimes refer to it as the "wisdom weed" or "holy herb".
In Ethiopia, by contrast, it is regarded as a dangerous drug, comparable to heroin or cocaine, says MacLeod. Ethiopian police sometimes raid the Rastafarian settlement at Shashamene to search for it, she says - even though khat, a stimulant leaf that is widely chewed in the country, is held by some experts to be more harmful.
It is also unfortunate that the land granted by Selassie is located in a region populated by the Oromo people, who say they have been oppressed for years by Ethiopia's dominant Amhara commnity, to which Selassie belonged.
According to MacLeod, Selassie was for the "Amharisation" of Ethiopia.
"On the local level, in Shashamene, the Rastas support the emperor, who, in the eyes of the Oromo people, represents a coercive central power," agrees Dr Giulia Bonacci, an Italian Rastafarian researcher based in Addis Ababa.
"In a region still marked by a history of alienation from land and economic and social dominance, symbols of imperial power are not appreciated."
The Rastafarians have, up to a point, integrated with the local Ethiopian population. Some have married Ethiopians, but on the whole these Ethiopian partners have not adopted the Rastafarian faith.
"She don't fight me about my faith. I don't fight her. She's a Protestant," says Vincent Wisdom, a Rastafarian man with an Ethiopian wife. None of his five children share his faith either. "Two of them are Orthodox and one of them is Protestant; the others are too small," he says.
MacLeod has met only one Ethiopian, Naod Seifu, who has converted to Rastafarianism.
"I used to have dreadlocks but I have to trim them to work," he told her. "In Ethiopia having dreadlocks is taken as bad behaviour and inappropriate." He added that any Ethiopian who believed the king was divine was regarded as "mad".
The main Rastafarian sects or "mansions"
Nyahbinghi - the oldest of all Rastafarian orders. The name is derived from Queen Nyahbinghi who ruled Uganda in the 19th century and fought against the British Empire. They were the first to proclaim Emperor Haile Selassie as the incarnation of the supreme deity. The Nyahbinghi pushed for repatriation to Ethiopia.
Bobo Shanti - the name is derived from Bobo, which stands for Black, and Ashanti, a tribe from Ghana. It is believed most of the slaves brought to Jamaica were from the Ashanti tribe. Prince Emanuel Charles Edwards founded the Bobo Shanti order in Jamaica in the 1950s. He, along with his descendants and Haile Selassie, are seen as gods. Marcus Garvey is regarded as a prophet. The Bobo Shanti also believe black people should be compensated financially for slavery. They wear long robes and very tightly wrapped turbans, and avoid eating salt and oil.
The 12 Tribes - this sect was founded in 1968 by Dr Vernon "Prophet Gad" Carrington and is the most liberal of all Rastafarian orders. Twelve Tribes members are free to worship in a church of their choosing or at home. They consider themselves the direct descendants of the 12 sons of Jacob. They are divided into 12 houses which are determined by birth month and each house is represented by a different colour. Bob Marley was their most famous follower.
When MacLeod first visited Shashamene in 2003, she was surprised by what she found.
"It was not at all the way it was described to me. It's not a Rastafarian town. It's 100,000 Ethiopians and only a few hundred Rastas living on the outskirts," she says.
Many more Rastafarians come to Ethiopia on holiday, either for a once-in-a-lifetime pilgrimage or for regular sojourns.
"Some will come once a year or every couple of years and they describe themselves as having 'one foot in Ethiopia'," she says.
Even those who live in the country long-term have mostly retained their British, American or Canadian passports to make it easier to travel abroad. But taking dual citizenship - and obtaining a second, Ethiopian passport - has never been possible.
Talks on the issue had been due to take place with former prime minister Meles Zenawi, according to MacLeod, but his death in 2012 put paid to the plan.
Most Ethiopians still consider Rastafarians foreigners, or "ferenjoch", she says.
"We know God is Haile Selassie, Him Mighty God. Now Him save the poor earth right now, and Him save the people," Bob Marley was quoted as saying in 1978, four years after the emperor was toppled.
"True dat dem overthrow 'im. In a sense, all a de people around him was really weird. But just how it go..."
In the same year Marley visited Shashamene, While there, says political scientist Horace Campbell, he began to realise "the problems of translating a dream into reality".
His wife, Rita, has talked nevertheless about the family's hopes of burying him in Shashamene.
Ethiopia, MacLeod says, will always remain the Rastafarians' promised land.