First concept that I want to discuss is Garveyism that played exceptional role in the development of Rastafarianism. Garveyism is a philosophy of Marcus Garvey, who is considered to be a visionary and messiah for Jamaican people. Garvey considered that African Americans and other black people – descendants of slaves, who were forcefully moved from Africa, had a right to return to their homeland. Garvey argued that people that do not know their history and past are like trees without roots; and the roots of black Americans were in African continent. He was a charismatic spokesman and leader and managed to mobilize African Americans in the organization with a slogan “One god, one aim, one destiny”. The very idea of black Americans’ return to Africa was not new, as after the Civil War, a lot of African Americans went back to Africa and founded a new state – Liberia with a constitution, tailored after the Constitution of the United States. Nevertheless, Garvey gave a new spirit to the old idea, unified black Americans, gave them a vision and means to achieve their “one aim”. The ships of ‘Black Star Line’ gave African Americans an opportunity to return to their beloved motherland and find their roots. The philosophy of Marcus Garvey played a significant role in the development of Pan-African movement and in the religion of Rastafari. Garvey was not only a prominent thinker and philosopher, but he also prophesized a coming of a great king – prophesy that came true with the rule of Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie, according to the beliefs of Rastafari. Even though Garvey himself did not accept Selassie as the one and only ruler and even criticized him for his decisions in the war with Italy, this emperor remains one of the key heroes of Rastafari’s mythology and religion (Rastamia – Introducing Rastafari). In my opinion, the prophetic figure of Garvey and his influential concept of the return to the roots make him one of the key heroes of Rasta, their religion, philosophy and ideology. He is like one of the biblical prophets that divined the coming of messiah.
Here I want to introduce the second concept that will demonstrate the influence of Judaism on the Rastafari religion. The idea of messiah is central to Judeo-Christian religions and made a considerable impact on the beliefs of Rastafari. While Christians believe that Jesus Christ was the messiah, for Rastafari, a figure of the same importance in Ras Tafari Makonnen crowned Emperor Haile Selassie in 1930 in Ethiopia. Rastafari believe that Selassie – a direct descendent of King Solomon, was a god in flesh, a Supreme Being, a creator of the mankind, and the only true ruler. Rastafari refer to Selassie as H.I.M. and revere him as a God (Rastamia – Introducing Rastafari). While Selassie is a God, kind and loving, promoting peace and equality, like Jesus Christ, Ethiopia – the country he ruled, is a sacred land for Rastafari, having the same importance to Jamaicans as Palestine for Jews. Thus, Garvey’s philosophy of the return to the roots can be viewed in the religious context, as return to the Holy Land.
The third concept that I want discuss is ital and its meaning for Rastafarianism. I think ital is important because in this concept the Judaist idea of kosher food is mixed with the Indian Buddhist tradition of vegetarianism. While for Jews only several types of food (pork, seafood, etc.) and its particular way of cooking (mixing meat and milk) are prohibited, the Rastafarian concept of ital rejects any food that involved a suffering of living beings. They consume everything that grows in the ground: vegetable, fruit, crop plants, smoke marihuana – ‘Indian medicine’ (Rastamia – Introducing Rastafari). Therefore, even though Jamaican Rastafari claim their Judaic understanding of Bible and emphasis on Old Testament, it can be argued that their practice of ital considerably reflects the impact of Indian immigrants and their beliefs and traditions that they brought to Jamaica than Judaist beliefs in what is considered kosher and what is prohibited to eat. In my opinion, the direct contact with Indian workers had greater impact on the practices of Jamaican Rasta and their lifestyle than traditions of remote nation, learnt from the Holy Book. The strict vegetarianism that Jamaicans follow, the habit of smoking marihuana, also introduced by Indians, dreadlocks that has become a symbol of Rastafari – all these aspects of Rastafarianism carry the imprint of Indian religions, traditions, their way of life. Thus, in my opinion, ital that is called a kosher food that follows the Old Testament tradition is not a completely accurate description and misses out other factors that have affected the lifestyle of Rastafari.
The issue that I consider important to discuss concerns the considerable part of Jamaican Rastafari lifestyle – the use of marijuana. Even though it may be argued that marijuana itself can be beneficial for health of its consumers, as one of the Rastafari in the movie claim, its use can have other, negative (habit-forming) effect as well. In my opinion, this issue is relevant nowadays and not only for Rastafarians, but for other societies as well. Today in the United States, people actively discuss the issue of legalization of marijuana and opinions on this issue are divided: some believe in medical benefits of marijuana, while others point out to the negative side.
Reference:
Rastamia – Introducing Rastafari. Retrieved from https://vimeo.com/12601955
