Rastafarianism, that should be our religion/way of life (whatever) right? Apart from traditional African or 'Aboriginal' practices, Rastafarianism isall about US. So why aren't more 'black' people following it? Why flock to a 'Jesus'/'Muhammed' etc.,whenthere's Sellassie?

@Athaba. I have always been a massive respector or Rastafari and its proponents and believe and can prove they are by far some of the most advanced and concious people we have produced. For example Rasta concept of 'livity' has not and cannot be beaten. I was at Portland a month or so ago in JA and a Richie Spice et al concert with a massive crew or Rasta bredrin and sistren and you cannot buy better company.

However, Rastafari fails fundamentally in its concept of god which the majority do not appreciate. One and two wiser Rasta heads understand these things, but far too many don't. For example check the overwhealming majority of concious tunes they all root the power of god outside man eg Jah will come and do this that and the other. I was analysing a DVD I brought from JA with some wicked concious music but if you analyse the central themes, they all for the most part put power outside of them similar to the apocolytic school of Christianity. ..Eg father is going to come and do this that and the other. Truth ismother creator is not going to do Jack because she gave us the ultimate power to do anything and everything, including shaping the environment, natural forces and cosmic forces.

There is absolutely nothing that you can think about that man or women at their most highest levels of spirtual conciousness can do, including simply looking at you and killing you dead with a simple look.

So yes Rasta talk nuff truths, but still needs to go further.

FBniceone.gif

I suppose it depends on one's view on 'religion'as to whetheranyone will'believe' anything at all regarding a 'how to live' doctrine. But my main point is because there are so many 'black' 'religious' people out there, why isn't Rastafarianism the natural placeto go to?

I agreethat how Rastas view God may be a problem for some, (my problem too, also the 'weed' thing).

But wouldn't the fact that it's close to Christianity be a pulling factor? The way I see it Rastas are just re-claiming what was OUR religion in the first place. In other words - Christianity how it was meant to be.

Athaba. Yes yes yes. You are right. Rastafari are more closer to and knoweldgable about Christianity than most of these Christian bible basher and that is not even a question. In fact most Christians no nothing about the radical African Christian nostics who founded and shaped Christianity and its radicalism, or the Ethiopian Christian Church being theoldest in the world, orEthiopia being the oldest and first Christian state. No they donot knowthese things because Rasta isessentially radicaland Afrocentric, most Christiains for the most part are the disciples of the enemy.

So the facts are our people's exposure to the white Roman Christian and heathen tradition was designed to keep them enslaved and ignorant which most of them are...hence they are not going to look at Rastafari on any serious level, because they have been reduced to a state where they cannot do that. Sis the Christian church was hostile to all things African. In my country like most it was these animals who led the attack on our traditional practices and beliefs. Telling us to not go to our traditional healers and doctors or spiritu mediums etc which served us. So when Rasta like Capleton talks about putting fire on the church he is damn right.

Remember my sister when they had informal and formal death policies eg death squads in the CAribbean murdering innocent RAsta the bulk of so called CAribbean Christians supported it.

FBniceone.gif

Rastafarianism is not much different from Nation of Islam. It is still Black people desperately seeking to find our history in other people's books. The Rastafarians use that same white Bible that was used to enslave us. They make all of this noise about Afrika this and Afrika that and use it as an excuse to have a boatload of children that they don't look after.

If everything is so Afrikan why are they using the cracker's Bible? The other thing about Rastafarianism that is a contradiction is the fact that Ras Tafari himself DID NOT WEAR DREADS. NEVER DID. Rastafarianism does not teach us to stand up for ourselves. It teaches us to retreat into poverty stricken communities. There is a great deal of misogyny in Rasta folklore. Slapping, smacking, or even taking a belt to a sister is considered no big deal by many (but not all).

If we are so AFRIKAN, why can't we have a relationship with God without the cracker or the arab?

NO WHITE FOOT ON A BLACK NECK.

@HH got to respond to some of your observations. I agree with your opening point. But I think the difference between Rastafarians and NOI ismassive and that is a very misleading comparison. Sorry you cannot resort to stereotypes. I don't know how manyRastafarians you know, but they are amongst some of the best black fathers I have seen or know and I know a wholeheap worldwide too.

Furthermore, a particular type of manbeats women with a whole heap of things other than belts. Why has this inyour mind become inseparable with Rastas because I know awholeheap who would die first than acting in that manner. Youknow of a few people with dreadlocks who act in that manner and nowthisis inseparable with Rasta...Since when?

Finally, what has the ancient concept of African divine kingship has to do with whether Selassie was this or that. Can't stand the man myself, but the concept of divine kinship has nothing to do with the man's personality.It is because it is. Moreover, Rastafarians are historically and factually correct that Selassie is directly related to the line of David etc. Not because I want it tobe or he wants it to be. Sothe Rastafarian case is farmore stronger than most people think. Selassie was the head of theEthopian Christain Church whether he wanted to be or not be virtue of who he was and his line of descent.

Peace.

It's not that bad Hat.

As we all should know, you'll always get splinter groups calling themselves under the same name of the original but they are not. And you'd find irresponsible/ignorant people in all walks of life.

As for coming from the same bible - it's about how you interpret it. But more than that - asI said before, Christianity was ours first - full stop.

NOI preach different messages.And Rasta was there first.



FB you're right - I do believe that the whole slave mentality thing is one of the reasons whyAfricans do not take it up as easily as the whitemans version of religion.

But becauseour people are still turning to religion in big numbers,how can wemake Rastafarianism more accessible to take up?

Father is going to come and do this that and the other. Truth ismother creator is not going to do Jack because she gave us the ultimate power to do anything and everything, including shaping the environment, natural forces and cosmic forces.


Hmmm... I also disagree with their lack of self determination. SometimesI feel as though its a sit back and do nothing till it all falls down religion and that nah work. I also don't agree with their following of the bible so much, someone needs to get the Torah out there and give it to those people,its as though they're lumped with what they were first givenand haven't moved on. Talking about JAH from the wrong book.

Their Dreads are a statement HH more than just hair, it features in the Jewish religion as well. If it wasn't for Rasta, JA/the carib would be 10x worse off than it is now, I honestly belive they fought off the invasion of cokaine with their 'stay Ital' teachings. Not that theres no coke on the island but I've always noticed that drugs aren't a big thing to be seen doing out there they avoided the crack epidemic and I think that was down to the Rastas and their teachings.

Damn shame they spit the island in two with all that pray to an Ayran BS, when I had my 'dreads' my grandparents couldn't stand it, hurts seeing that and knowing its a result of their games, a 'deny yourself' survival technique thats still popular in the US and UK.

[align=center]ethflagethflagethflagethflagjamflagethflagethflage thflag[/align]

@Le Moor Cantankerous...You are but that is not a bad thing....

A person has the right to believe what they want. Their ability or inability to square what they believe with the real world and their own internal equilibrium is their own affair....But the way I check it unless my man comes with that argument to me given their is over 20 Caribbean islands consisting of a host of ethnic and racial groups from the Dutch, French and English and Latin Caribbean, I would love him or anybody to make such an argument....to prove their intrinsic or other superiority to Africans in the Caribbean I would love them to make it because I don't think I would have very little difficulty proving otherwise with their own foolishness. Before I drop some ugly facts on their arse....

My bredrins in South Africa, when they walk through the village they get massive respect simply because they are from the Caribbean and those people in that community are highly politicised and educated about pan Africanism and who is who in the African world. It is an ANC stonghold..

Another bredrin on mine is a Rasta and a teacher and been in Zimababwe for over 20 years and he gets massive love out there because of who he is and where he is from and the status of those islands and its peoples. Another close sistern of mine Professor Caroline Cooper just came back from Ghana to check Rita Marley and the rest of the girls in her massive palace out there and everywhere Caroline went...Big love..and she has been to Ghana god knows how many times...

So my man can come with what he wants any time or place....and by the way my three bredins are all Jamaican if anybody wants to start some divide and rule thing..Because highly educated people know who serious Jamaicans are in the world....as they do Bajans which is why per ratio they are the most educated people in the world.

Don't even bring that sh*t to town....

FBniceone.gif

Give me a true Ras to spar with more than any African Christian anyday.

Its only Ras who will talk and continue to push the reparations issue in the carribean. Christians are not remotely interested.

Its only Rasta that tried (quite succesfully) to Africanise the white mans Christianity. You wont find a white Jesus in a Rasta house.

The only thing that undoes them and limits their potential for me is their rejection of polictics and of infiltrating mainstream politics. For good reason too.

Seeing that a high pecertange of Rastas come originally from Marroon communities / its only right that any rejection of white standards and values comes from the same people. How could it of been any other way. Yes they are limited by their faith in Bible.. but many Africans all over the world are severley crippled by their faith in Christianity. Broken even.

The concept of "I and I" to me shows a leaning towards a concept of Universal mind that is one and unbroken. They just need to let go the Bible once and for all. But considering that the Bible is law tomanyAfricans the world over I think they have done well considering the circumstances.