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This article is from the Reggae FAQ, by Mike Pawka eznoh@niceup.com with numerous contributions by others.

11]. Can anyone give me some info on the rasta culture?

Rastafarians

{rah-stuh-far'-ee-uhnz}

Rastafarians are members of a Jamaican messianic movement dating back
to the 1930s; in 1974 they were estimated to number 20,000 in Jamaica.
According to Rastafarian belief the only true God is the late Ethiopian
emperor HAILE SELASSIE (originally known as Ras Tafari), and Ethiopia is
the true Zion. Rastafarians claim that white Christian preachers and
missionaries have perverted the Scriptures to conceal the fact that Adam
and Jesus were black. Their rituals include the use of marijuana and the
chanting of revivalist hymns. REGGAE music is the popular music of the
movement. The Rastafarians, who stress black separatism, have exercised
some political influence in Jamaica.

Bibliography:
Barrett, Leonard E., The Rastafarians: Sounds of Cultural Dissonance
(1977); Sparrow, Bill, and Nicholas, Tracy, Rastafari: A Way of Life
(1979).

"In the beginning Jah created heaven and earth".

This is what the the Bible says. Jah is the creator, Jah is God. Jah,
Jahova, Jehova, Jahve are just different spelling of the name of God.
In the beginning of this century, a man called Marcus Mosiah Garvey
from Jamaica said "Look to Africa, where a black king shall be crowned". A
little after that, Ras Tafari Makonnen was crowned, and became the Emperor
of Ethiopa, His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie I, King of Kings, Lord of
Lords, conquering Lion of the tribe of Judah, Elect of God.
Marcus Garvey started an organization with the aim to help black people
in Babylon (the West World) cross river Jordan (the Atlantic Ocean) and go
back to Zion (which is not Israel, but all of Africa, especially
Ethiopia). People in Jamaica followed Marcus the prophet. This was the
beginning of the Rasta movement. Rasta is of course short for Ras Tafari,
the name of Haile Selassie.
There is more to say, and I'm sure many others will add to and correct
what I have written.

Jah Love

Bo

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