There are many people that do not understand Rastafari. There are many that fear Rastafari. The Rasta culture has been around since the 1930′s. It evolved in Jamaica and has now spread across the world and has been adapted by many. It is a belief in Haile Selassie who was the emperor of Ethiopia from 1930-1936 and 1941-1974. Rasta’s do not have a strict and formal set of beliefs. Being a Rasta is seen as understanding and practicing one love for everyone. It is about peace and prosperity and fighting off the ways of babylon. There are some things that are just not acceptable such as eating pork and in many cases shell fish. Pure Rasta’s, who are the Rasta’s that follow the commandments of the bible to the fullest extent do not eat any meat or product that is made from an animal at all. But if you do eat meat you are not going to be cast out for it. Being a Rasta is about living in a way that is pure to your specific individuality. It is a lifestyle and everyone’s lifestyle is different.
Rasta’fari is about overcoming oppression. It is a revolution against the things that bring about negativity. In the Rasta language oppression would be pronounced downpression, and overstanding in place of understanding. Africa, more specificially Ethiopia, is viewed as Zion, or the promised land. The place your soul will travel to upon death. It is going back to the place where we originated. Many wear dreadlocks as a signature of their natural being. Though it is not mandated, everyone practices the belief that you do not take the razor to your head. Meaning, you do not shave yourself bald. So some will wear short cuts or long hair. But dreadlocks has been viewed as the universal signature in determining who is Rasta and who is not even though it’s not.
The colors of the Rasta’s are red, green, gold, and black. Red signifies blood, green signifies the lush of the countryside, and gold the wealth of Africa. Rasta’s do not deal with politics as it is seen to destruct the lives of people. Many battles throughout the world are at the hands of politics. But Rasta’s are not bad people. We just have our own meaning of what it means to live in peace and harmony.
Dear Mens Gold,
First and foremost I would like to wish you the best of luck and success in your launch of your photography website. I myself also have a passion for photography and find it very rewarding. At first it was very easy to publish consistently as I had so many ideas and things that I wanted to say and express. Now that I have been doing it for a while its a little harder. You find yourself working harder to produce material without duplicating what you already have. But photogrsphy is a little different and it all depends on your approach. I’m sure you will do fine and find a niche that works for you. When you’re all done with your site let us here know, I would like to check it out. Until next time…
The Reality Guru