Ras+Tafari



Greetings in the name of Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie I, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah, Elect of God. You are now in the world of RASTA... which gets its origination in the beautiful land of Jamaica.

As many of you may or may not know, the island of Jamaica had its own inhabitants prior to the colonial endeavors of the Europeans during the 1400's and beyond. Unfortunately, Christopher Columbus, referred to by some as "Christopher Come Bus Us" was responsible with other spanish conquistadors for a genocide in the Carribean which killed the native Arawak peoples who once inhabited its islands. It is during this time that the trans- Atlantic slave trade emerged on the world stage as a result of the colonial need for unfree labor. Subsequently, Jamaica was repopulated with Africans, who were brought to the West Indies, North and South America to serve as slaves to the white imperialistic powers of Europe. This political system of exploitation instituted by the white opressors is referred to by the Rasta as "Babylon" or "Babylon System." In contrast, you will here many Rastas refer to Zion, or Holy Mount Zion, which is a referral to Ethiopia, the land which is Heaven on earth to the Rastafari.



Africa--- the homeland. During the 1920's, a Jamaican by the name of Marcus Mosiah Garvey promoted what was known as the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA). Garvey propogated the idea of "Africa for Africans," believing that blacks scattered about the world as a result of colonization should return back to Africa, since they were all decendents of the African people. Moreover, Garvey told his followers of an African redemption, which would soon come, telling them to "look to Africa for the crowning of a king to know that redemption is near." In 1930, in the country of Ethiopia, Garvey's "prophecy" was fulfilled when Tafari Makonnen was crowned with the title His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie I, whose name translates to "power of the Trinity." Although he himself subsribed to the Ethiopian Orthodox faith, Ras Tafari, (a title combining the honerary Ras, with Tafari, his family name) Haile Selassie I unwittingly became the diety of the Rastafarian movement, and is referred to by Rasta as JAH, meaning GOD.

The Rastas believe that Selassie was the embodiment of the Messiah, Jesus Christ, returned in human flesh. "The Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah" is a Biblical term given to Christ in Revelation 5:5, a passage that appears also within the Kebra Negast, which is the version of the Bible used by the Rasta. The lion is a symbol which is prominent within the Rasta religion, as it represents Selassie. In nature, the lion is also the King of Kings, ruling over the other animals in the kingdom. Also, it is from this symbol of the lion and its mane that the Rastas derived the way in which they sport their dreadlocks, representative of the lion's mane.



The dreadlocks themselves, symoblize the Rasta roots, their heritage. The dreadlocks adorning the head of the Rasta are far more than a hairstyle, and like many Rasta belief can be supported Biblically.

Perhaps this is a good time to explain the significance of the red, yellow and green. These are the colors which many have come to associate with Rasta, whether they know a great deal about Rastafari or very little. The colors are symbolic in the following way: Red represents the blood of the martyrs which has been shed since the history of the Rasta Yellow is the wealth of the homeland, Africa Green represents the beauty and vegetation of Ethiopia, the Rastas' promised land



Rasta religious, political and moral systems would not be nearly as popular or well known were it not for reggae superstar and well known Rasta, Bob Marley. While his music embodied the Rasta belief with such songs as "Jah Live," "Rastaman Live Up," and "Natty Dread," many of Marley's songs carried a more political tone, and served as a powerful and positive way in which the Rastas could promote their political ideology, which in many ways is inseperable from their religious agenda. Rastas like Marley used their super star status to promote ideas such as economic equality, black pride, and nonviolent protest in Jamaica and worldwide. In one of the bloodiest elections in Jamaica's history, Marley brought candidates Edward Seaga and Michael Manley to center stage at his "One Love Concert," promoting the Rasta ideology that in Jamaica, "out of many, one people."