11.) Rastafarian Formation,Pilgrimage, and Image.

"A system of symbols which acts to establish powerful, pervasive, and long-lasting moods and motivations in men by formulating conceptions of a general order of existence and clothing these conceptions with such an aura of factuality that the moods and motivations seem uniquely realistic". (Geertz definition)

The Rastafarian Movement has been expressed to the world through Bob Marley's music, but that is just a preview of the long history the Rastafarian's possess. For years, many misunderstood their way of life and traditions. My goal for this final project, was to visually illuminate the "long-lasting moods and motivations" of the Rastafarian's to better understand their culture.

I've included a picture that I feel sums up some parts of my final project. It includes Marcus Garvey, the Lion of Judah with Haile Selassie, Bob Marley, the flag, and Zion

10.) Rastafarian Formation,Pilgrimage, and Image.

Redemption Song is a very touching popular song in my opinion for 3 reasons: 1.) this was Marley's last song before his death 2.) The overall message in relation to Marcus Garvey 3.) The song in relation to the Rastafari Movement. The song refers to a lot societal and political issues that have occurred in the past directly effecting black people. "Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our minds" (Redemption Song)In this song Bob Marley is informing his people that the only way to beat Babylon is to redeem ourselves spiritually, physically and mentally.

9.) Rastafarian Formation,Pilgrimage, and Image.

Bob Marley became thee most popular reggae singer and songwriter World Wide. He is known for songs such as: No woman, No Cry, Exodus, I Shot the Sheriff, Get up stand up, and Redemption Song. I would say that Exodus, Get up Stand Up and Redemption Song are the best representations of the Rastafarian system of symbols. The main chorus in Exodus is “Exodus, Movement of Jah people”. The main chorus in Get up Stand up is “get up stand up, stand up for your rights”. Going back to Marcus Garvey, these lyrics represent the African Redemption movement. He’s calling out for his people to recognize the corrupt Babylonian way of living. He wants his people to rise up and become more spiritually in tune so that they might be able to create change in their community and eventually go on their religous journey to Zion in Ethiopia.

8.) Rastafarian Formation,Pilgrimage, and Image.

The Bobo Shanti tribes are the more spiritually developed Rastafarian's.They separate themselves from the rest and, if blessed with the opportunity, they will go up to the mountains in Bull Bay, Jamaica to prepare for their pilgrimage back to Ethiopia through prayer mediation, and other traditions. The term Bobo means black and Ashanti derives from an African tribe in Ghana. Their system of symbols is represented by their clothing. The boboshanti wear long robes and often red turbans to identify themselves. They also post signs around their territory to remind them of their beliefs and to assure justice and reasoning for their pilgrimage. The YouTube video we watched in class is a pretty accurate representation of the Boboshanti. In this video, a man by the name of Ancient talks about the Boboshanti purpose (1:40- 2:15):

7.) Rastafarian Formation,Pilgrimage, and Image.

This is a picture of Zion. As you can see most are wearing traditional long robes and turbans, I'm not quite sure who these people are but there may be some Bobo Shanti here in this picture.

This is a picture of the Saint Mary's church in Zion.

Zion is the “ultimate paradise” for the Rastafarian's. The most spiritually developed Rastafarian's take their pilgrimage to Zion to seek unity and spiritual oneness with Jah.

6.) Rastafarian Formation,Pilgrimage, and Image.

The Lion of Judah represents Hailee Selassie.The Lion is often shown with Selassie and/or the Ethiopian Flag (green, red and yellow or gold, and sometimes black). I watched this YouTube video a while back and this Rastafarian Man referred to Selassie as “King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Conquering of the Tribe of Judah, Selassie”. This represents the powerful religious figure that he is for the Rastafarian's. Selassie has no biblical recognition, yet the Rastafarian's believe that he does.

Ive included a picture of Emperor Halie Selassie and a lion.

4&5.) Rastafarian Formation,Pilgrimage, and Image.

The Rastafarian's even created their own English dialect also known as Iyaric. The Rastafarian's did not believe in the use of negative vocabulary. The use of negative or belittling vocabulary was a part of the Babylonian society. For emample: The use of me and my are replaced with I; “I man”. I represents their oneness with Jah or God. This is an important part of their system of symbols, separating themselves from society.

5.) Dreadlocks, another Rastafarian symbol, are now a hair style amongst popular culture. There are many theories as to why they are called “dreads” or “dreadlocks”. The one that seems most reasonable in terms of the Rastafari movement would be the Europeans expressing their dreadful feeling towards the hairstyle. The Rastas took this term and flipped it from having a negative connotation to a more positive one embracing their distinctiveness.

3.) Rastafarian Formation,Pilgrimage, and Image.

The Rastafarian's live an “Ital” or a natural way of life. Although the Rastafarian's smoke marijuana, they don't use any other substances. Marijuana was is not for recreational purposes by the Rastafarian's. The use of Ganja or marijuana goes along with this Ital way of living and it is used in everyday life for different things. For example: they sprinkle a little ganja on their food as herbs,or some smoke it while having intellectual conversations, and they use it for meditation. The Rastafarian's do not eat any processed foods and many create their own herbal remedies rather than receiving medical attention.

I've included a picture of a Rastafarian Ital dish. Vegetable and Fish soup.

2.) Rastafarian Formation,Pilgrimage, and Image.

Hailee Selassie was the emperor of Ethiopia from 1916 to 1930. The Rastafarian's believed Hailee Selassie was Jesus reincarnated . The name "Rastafari" actually comes from Hailee Selassie. His original name was Tafari. Selassie worked to modernize Ethiopia without the help of the Europeans. The Rastafarian's admired his power creating their “long lasting moods and motivations” (Geertz). Babylon is the "system" or the European way of the world. The Rastafarian movement’s main goal was to isolate themselves from the corrupt Babylonian way of life.

1.) Rastafarian Formation,Pilgrimage, and Image.

1.) Marcus Garvey was an activist, writer, publisher, and founder of The Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA-ACL) in the early 1900s. Marcus Garvey was a prophet, according to the Rastafarian's. He inspired the Rastafarian movement; he wanted all his people to go back to Africa to redeem their land and to rebel from European Colonialism. Many tend to believe that Hailee Selassie was the only predominant religious figure who inspired the Rastafarian's, but Marcus Garvey actually started the African Redemption movement which then led to the formation of the Rastafarian Movement.

The Dawning Place

The title of this video represents Baha’u’llah’s teachings: The Dawning place. Baha believed in change; every day the world is developing. Baha’u’llah’s teachings of human and religious equality are also shown in this video. Our discussion on Monday led to the question: are we all under the same flag? The narrator mentions that Baha believes all the different religions and revelators (as seen on page 200 in the Baha’u’llah book) come from one God. “Illuminate our spiritual path to ONE true god”. The quote on the Hurvis crossing here at LU represents similar Baha teachings: “So powerful is the light of unity that it can illuminate the whole earth”. (LU Hurvis crossing, Baha’u’llah) Baha believed that each day we are maturing and developing to understand this concept.

Ital!

Christian Science and The Rastafarian's Ital way of living are very similar. I don’t know much about the Christian scientists but I am familiar with some of their beliefs. They believe that very illness happens for a reason. Illnesses are a result of evil thoughts; therefore one is not to receive any medical attention.

The Rastafarian's have an “Ital” or an all natural way of living. The food they eat, the medical remedies they sometimes create, everything is all natural. I never knew how Bob Marley died before we discussed it in class. For some strange reason, I thought he was shot, but I found that he was diagnosed with toe cancer. The Ital way of living caused him to refuse any medical treatment. The disease then spread throughout his body, leading to his early death.

These ways of living are very appealing to me. Many of the religions we've studied are becoming more and more appealing in the sense that I would like to adopt a doctrine or two from each religion, and maybe create my own one day. =/..Ha ha….

Here is video that is completely irrelevant in connection with my blog, but I think its pretty funny:

Baha'u'llah

So I have read some of the other blogs and notice that some classmates are generalizing the Baha’i Faith and many other religions. Yes, many religions struggle in their formation and it’s not easy, but each struggle is different. Many elements are found in establishing this new religion, but a couple that stood out and made the Baha’u’llah foundation different are sacrifice, and the peoples respect.
This particular religion exists because of Baha’s leadership skills and his story. Not to say that his story or struggle is more phenomenal than other struggles that can occur during the formation of a religion, but this guy was a well respected leader among his people by choice. I don’t get the sense that he was all “preachy” like and manipulative; telling people what they should and should not do because of his personal beliefs. The people are following this man upon their own free will.
One section of the book that really stood out for me was on page 39 “In the early days of our arrival…..” Baha’u’llah left for northern Baghdad in the mountains. His words say it all and his motivations show that he was truly for the people.

Redemption Song

Today in class we discussed Bob Marley's Redemption Song to kind of lead us off with Rastafari. After listening to Redemption song, our class discussion led to an interesting question: Redemption from what? I think this was Marley's goal in creating this amazing song. He is challenging us to think of all the political social and spiritual issues that the Jamaicans encounter on a daily basis. He is also allowing us to recognize that these things are somewhat inevitable. “How long shall they kill our prophets, while we stand aside and look? Ooh. Some say it’s just a part of it, we’ve go to fulfill the book” (Redemption Song, Marley). Political and Societal issues will never die. The only thing we have control over is our minds, which is why we need to “free ourselves” or in other words, “wake up and smell the coffee” . This is why Marley is a musical icon and genius. Not only are his songs catchy and cool, but they challenge me to think.

The Boboshantis

I saw many symbols reflected in this video on the Boboshanti people of the Jamaican Mountains. They identify themselves as African children and the most obvious of symbols is their clothing. The Bobshanti wear the Rastafarian colors, and red turbans. Some symbols: The turbans are worn as crowns; they created signs to represent their beliefs; they pray three times a day; and they keep a “fire of light” at the top of the mountain. In some of the areas, the Boboshanti’s have no electricity or water, but their preparation for their pilgrimage is more important to them.

This version of Rastafarian life is no different than what Marley sings about. The Boboshanti's are similar to most religions in which you often have the people who are more spiritually developed and prepare for their pilgrimage. Marley sings about the spiritual development of the people in some songs, but his more popular songs focus around societal issues. For example: Redemption song by Bob Marley relates to the Boboshanti’s. Marley refers to redemption song as “these songs of freedom.” Most of the lyrics in this song represent what the Boboshanti’s are all about. For example: “Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our minds” (Redemption song, Bob Marley) The Boboshanti’s seek redemption to renew themselves spiritually, mentally and physically. A Boboshanti by the name of “Ancient” mentioned in the video that he wants to be born again and redeem himself.

Is this what religions do?

On Wednesday we spoke about the Anglo Saxon World in connection with the Ethiopian version of The Queen of Sheba. The discussion led to the idea that religions find a way to associate themselves (rather than isolate themselves) to the world in a creative way. Is this what religions do? I don’t want to generalize, but in terms of the Geertz definition, I agree that this is what religions do. “A system of symbols which acts to establish powerful, pervasive, and long-lasting moods and motivations in men by formulating conceptions of a general order of existence and clothing these conceptions with such an aura of factuality that moods and motivations seem uniquely realistic.”- Geertz

The Anglo Saxons World finds a way to connect themselves in the 1950s, to the powerful figures in the bible. They have created their own Seal, suggesting that they are descendants of some sort. The creators of this Seal hit the Geertz definition right on the nose. They literally set up a system of symbols which motivates them and is the foundation of their beliefs. This is a veryyyy creative way to take on a religion.

The Ethiopian version of The Queen of Sheba also finds a very creative way to associate their beliefs to the world. The Queen of Sheba actually represents Ethiopia, which suggests that they are a nation of royalty. A story that had no sexual connotation in the Hebrew biblical version is turned into a very creative representation of Ethiopia.
They took a familiar story and created their own realm. Very interesting!

Kebra Negasta

Well I have to say this version of The Queen of Sheba is definitely different from the version I am familiar with. The Hebrew biblical version has no sexual connotation at all which completely changes the story. The fact that The Ethiopian version is very sexual shows a lot about Ethiopia’s values.(It also makes me wonder if the Hebrew biblical version is just trying to sugar code what seemed to be strictly platonic between the Queen of Sheba and Solomon).

Although Ethiopia is a very poor country, the nation remains very independent having a brief colonial history. I think this is strongly represented in Kebra Negasta. One powerful representation of the nation is The Queen of Sheba. She represents Ethiopia and Solomon is a man of great wisdom, so we are already presented with two very powerful figures from the beginning. The Queen of Sheba in the Ethiopian version was seduced by Solomon and conceived a child, her only son, Menyelek. This shows a special significance because this implies that Ethiopians come from Royalty; it is in their blood, and they definitely still hold these family values and show their pride today.

Side note: This can also play a part in why their Art is so unique, beautiful and full of color. These colors represent their pride.

Haile Selassie

Hailee Selassie was the Emperor of Ethiopia. Hailee Selassie also serves as a religious symbol for the Rastafarian's. Ive heard from some uncles of mine that Rastafarian's believe Selassie is Jesus reincarnated, pretty interesting. Bob Marley made a song for Selassie. This video also includes some pics of Rastafarian and Selassie. Check it out:



Rastafarian.net is an interesting website that has some blogs and Psalms up relating to the Rastafarian religion. Here are some cool websites:
http://www.rastafarian.net/
This website has Rastafarian artists, pictures,
articles etc. :
http://www.earthcultureroots.com/

Korean Christian Gospel Music

Gospel Music is music that expresses the beliefs of Christianity. I always thought gospel music was specifically a part of the African American Christian community, but apparently not. Check it out:

Conceptual Blending

A metaphor is an implicit comparison. I can find many implicit comparisons within the study of religion. Conceptual blending can be a metaphor but they remain two different things. I really like one of Augustine’s quotes on book 4. “But the speaker who is awash with the kind of eloquence that is not wise is particularly dangerous because audiences actually enjoy listening to such a person on matters of no value to them, and reckon that somebody who is heard to speak eloquently must also be speaking the truth” (Augustine 104).

So soooo true! I couldn't agree with Augustine more and for this reason the idea of religion can be a little frightening: The idea of conceptual blending in terms of religion can be a way to manipulate others to believe the orators personal beliefs. This is where the skepticism comes in.

I think there is some conceptual blending within this quote. First input: The truth is something or a statement that is factual. Second input: Somebody who speaks eloquently is someone who speaks “beautifully” or forcefully. So if we blend these two concepts we get that someone who speaks eloquently is telling the truth. Example: If a woman who is not so religious attended a religious convention (her friend dragged her there) to hear Augustine speak, she may walk in with some doubts. Even though the woman may not have agreed with the orator before she heard him speak, she is now interested in Christian Teachings. It is because he spoke with such a deep desire and passion to enlighten that the woman is now intrigued and believes that what Augustine is saying is true. Would this be a valid example of conceptual blending? hmmm

Side note: I really understood Conceptual Blending when reading the basketball example on page 279 of Facccounier’s work.

Augustine on Memorization

Augustine‘s method of memorization seems pretty effective. When I first read about his method of memorization I thought to myself, “Imagine memorizing the bible….. This dude must be crazy!” But now I can see where he is coming from: Memorize the bible so you’ll always have it in the back of your head so that in your future life experiences and interactions with people you will draw a connection a finally get to say “o0o I get it!”

I am a theatre/psych major, and I find it easy to apply Augustine’s method to memorization in terms of acting. Memorizing a script is no easy task. Every actor has a different memorization style. Some find a way to relate the script to personal experience in order to remember, some people just repeat lines over and over and over etc. When you are a part of a production, you have to understand all the different concepts, relationships, and the overall meaning within and beyond the actual script. Character building is one way to develop this understanding. Because you have already memorized the script, the process of character building is very helpful in performing the essence of that specific character. You are then able to connect the script, the character and yourself into the production. It’s a beautiful thing =)

Mr. Smith mentioned that Augustine wanted people to understand their position in the world while remaining open to new ideas and connecting to the world (correct me if I’m wrong). I feel like I can draw a connection between Mr. Smith’s interpretation of Augustine and an actor. A good actor knows how to shake it off after the performance. Just because you are now portraying the essence of this character does not mean you have to literally become the character. You still understand your position.

Side Note: After reading Ariana's blog and her buddhist quote, i found some interesting websites and blogs:

- http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/buddhism/

- http://beastorbuddha.com/2009/01/22/unauthorised-access-to-company-websitesinformationsystems/
Here is a meditation website too, it was some pretty sweet tunes:

http://www.buddhanet.net/audio-meditation.htm

How would Augustine interpret the Psalms?

In book two of Saint Augustine’s On Christian Teaching I found that there are many different ways to interpret the Psalms through his examples of interpreting scriptures. Many of the Psalms are kind of ambiguous, therefore we should as he states; “follow the ideas rather than the words”. I really like this concept and for some strange reason it makes a whole lot of sense. I guess I can draw a connection between his ideas and the discussion we had in class on Psalm 18. Many people visualized the speaker in a literal battle, but for me I guess it’s made clear that I was just focusing on the ideas as oppose to the actual words.

“But casual readers are mislead by problems and ambiguities of many kinds, mistaking one thing for another” (Augustine 32). This connects with my personal beliefs while reading the Psalms. The author was more focused on historical context; his interpretation of the Psalms kind of took away from the actual meaning. I found a way to connect most of the Psalms with personal experience to understand them. Augustine’s ideas are very helpful for interpreting the Psalms. I think if Augustine was in our Religious Studies class trying to interpret the Psalms he would say: Ignore Alters translations for they are just words; rather follow your ideas.
=)

Psalm 18 Follow up

Wednesday we discussed Psalm 18. I feel like many people who were involved in the class discussion pictured the speaker in a literal battle. I found this very interesting because as I was reading, I did not picture him being in an actual war or being physically rescued. I read it with a different perspective. The speaker was thanking God for rescuing him from himself.

The man before God saved him was “evil” and tried to dominate his spirit, and mind. This is also why I do not view god as “scary”. God, in this sense, is not defeating others because this man asked him to. God aids this man in defeating the “evil” man that he was before he turned into the holy man that he is in the present.

Also, Mr. Smith mentioned discussing the differences between having those who have a belief in a religion but remain open to new ideas vs. those who take on one religion and become hostile to the world around them. I found this interesting and it made me think about myself. Which do I take one and why? I would not consider myself a Christian, but, I do however keep the beliefs of Christianity in my mind. Before this question was brought up in the classroom I never understood why I did this. I realize now that I do it for perspective. I am open to new ideas and religions, but to keep me grounded and to have a better understanding of the world, I relate most things to the Christian perspective first, and compare and contrast based off of those teachings.

Side note: Today I really enjoyed our class discussion: drawing a connection between the movie happy feet and religion.

Psalm 18

Given the image of God as a volcano, it does not seem unordinary to view this Psalm in a bizarre or frightening light. Personally, God’s image in Psalm 18 does not scare me because I can kind of relate. As a child, I used to think God controlled the weather. I believed that when it rained, God was sad= (. I was fascinated by God’s power. He was so interesting and played such a huge role in my life, that I would relate him to everything. As I got a little older, I learned about precipitation and all that jazz and became less comfortable about my childhood beliefs. My point: the speaker in Psalm 18 and I were once on the same page.

The image of God as a fighter is no more (or less) frightening or problematic than the image of a rabbit’s foot. What I mean by this is simple. Some people choose to carry around a rabbit’s foot with some expectancy of good luck and protection. The speaker in Psalm 18 has this same level of expectancy. God is his source of strength and protection. Without him he would die (he almost did); therefore he carries God with him wherever he goes.

In verse 9, Alter believes that the man simply uses imagery to express his strong belief in God’s power; God is literally the volcano. His belief is so strong, that he literally sees nothing else in its natural form. Maybe before God saved him from evil he would have said “Eghh…that’s just and old volcano...about to erupt.” But now, he sees the God in everything. God is a volcano, a tree, a rabbit etc. God is everything to this man. This is his way of giving back to God after rescuing him from evil.

I can think of many different ways that Psalm 18 can be interpreted. Right now I can’t formulate the words to actually write these thoughts down, but, I will write about them sometime in my future blogs. This is the most interesting Psalm thus far!

Random Blog

I will always remember rainy days when I was younger. I would say “Daddy I’m bored” and he would always reply “An idle mind is the devils workshop”. This scared the crap out of me. Every time he said this I would think, “O no I don’t want a little red man with horns screwing up my brain. What made the devil so powerful anyway?

I never really understood the relationship between God and the Devil. The only thing I knew from my parents teachings was that God is “good” and the devil is “bad”.
As I was sitting on the green yesterday with some friends =), a conversation on Christianity sparked. According to my friend, in the bible there is the story of the “fallen angel” or the devil (I believe the bible also refers to the devil as Lucifer, or Satan). Apparently, the devil was an angel in heaven before he became “the devil”. The devil was the angel of music and always tried to get beside him in gods kingdom; he wanted to take over.

I would never imagine the devil being an angel of God, and of music at that! My church always referrers to some rap or rock music as “devils music” which is funny to me because now I realize that it is actually the devils music. (That was corny) But anyway….. This is such an interesting topic for me because my parents would always try to instill this fear of the devil in me. This could have been for two reasons: 1) they both really didnt want me listening to rap music or 2) because he’s kind of like the rebellious teenager who decides he’s going to drop out of school and hitch hike across the country.

\Here is a pretty interesting link. It has many of the controversial themes in our society today in terms of the bible: http://www.religioustolerance.org/christ.htm

Here is a picture of the "Fallen Angel". This is a statue in Madrid:
http://www.travelblog.org/Photos/49539.html

Psalm 2

I noticed a change in the meaning of the word “anointed.” In my opinion, this separates both contexts completely.

“Kings of the earth take their stand and princes conspire together against the LORD and against HIS anointed” (Alter, Verse 2). The rhythm of the Alter version seems to have a more violent connotation. The “I” is defending his land whereas in the Bay Psalms version, the “I” is claiming it with confidence; there is no need to be defensive.

The “I” in the Bay Psalms version is “the anointed” or the son of God. The fact that one is using “I” statements indicates a certain level of support, faith, and comfort. It kind of implicates that there is no longer this fear of war because we have in some ways found and appreciate ourselves. “But I anointed have my king up upon my holy hill” (Bay Psalm 2, verse 6). There is a sense of confidence and appreciation.

Not sure if this is going to be relevant, but there just some thoughts: Thinking in terms of the Old and New Testament: It seems logical to assume that the Alter version was written before the birth of Jesus (Old Testament) because the “I” is not yet defined. Whereas in the Bay Psalms version, it is clear who the “I” is. It was written connecting to the New Testament because Jesus was born.

???

I grew up in a Christian house hold. My father is very religious. He brought me along with my two brothers to church every Sunday. We prayed together. I was involved in my church: the Easter plays, bible study, teen Fridays and all that jazz...
Since the beginning of my senior year in high school, I began to question my belief in Christianity. There are so many different perspectives on how we as humans were first created. The idea of evolution seems pretty logical. But that’s where the skepticism comes in. Human beings are so complex. There is no way I’m going to accept this theory that we just developed from a different species. The end! This idea is wayyyy too simple. I believe our creation may have been so complicated, that it is impossible to describe. I like to believe that it is beyond human understanding; I love the mystery. I’m taking this class because I want to learn about different religions beliefs on human creation/development.

Effigy Mounds

I agree with the Geertz definition of religion in relation to the effigy mounds. I also agree with the idea of the mounds and cemeteries representing a renewal of the earth; however I believe that the mounds were also built to establish a sense of territorial dominance and worship within Native Americans culture.
Native American societies, specifically the Red Ocher complexes, and the Adena people, buried many different materials along with the body to represent a person’s social status. They chose to put all power into material items to establish a sense of worth. The effigy mounds were built with this same concept in mind. It seems to me that the construction of the mounds was the beginning of the Native American societal hierarchy. The mounds were somehow the authority figure in the hierarchy; they represented the idea that nature comes before humans. Nature was always recognized and worshiped in the Adena rituals. The mounds were built so that one could not get around it without recognizing its beauty and its size. It gets in the way of one’s path.
Question: “Like the Old Copper and Red Ocher Complexes in Wisconsin and adjacent regions, Adena was not one culture, but a cluster of rituals shared by a number of different people” (page 83). In my opinion, culture within a group consists of shared beliefs and values. The Adena people shared the same rituals and beliefs among their people; wouldn’t this make them one culture?
Some sweet mounds: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCLGUqG87E0

Rastafari Religion.....?

Ok. So I have 3 cousins in Jamaica, and 2 back at home in New York who identify themselves a part of the Rastafarian religion. Many tend to think that all Rasta’s do is smoke weed and dread their hair. I’m pretty sure this is not true, which is why I’m super excited to get to the Rastafarian section of the course =). The only thing I know about the religion, is that it originated through the teachings of Afro centrism, and that they speak an English dialect called Patois. (I could be totally wrong.)

Specifics that I want to learn:
Rastafarian history, belief system, music, art, politics, language, rituals, community………Ok so I want to learn a lot; because my Rastafarian cousins are by far some of the coolest people I know. =)

Palaeolithic art and religion

The primary element of religion in this article seems to be the notion of expectancy. The significance of the Shaman rituals did not necessarily lye in the artwork itself, but the faith, truth, and power they put into their creative inventions. These people expected a sense of goodness and guidance to come out of their work. This was their motivation. The Upper Paleolithic people set up a system, and created rules and regulations to abide by, which is key in any religion. In our society , there are many rules one must abide by. As the Upper Paleolithic people had an understanding of which animals are considered “monsters”, today we practice these same concepts. We consider some people to be criminals and thieves. Many may view these rules/labels as secular, but in a sense our society has formed a religion. Whereas the UP people used their artwork as a representation of their beliefs and understanding of the eachother, our society uses labels and written laws to portray a common understanding of what is right and what is wrong, along with what is expected of us. We are expected to obey these rules to feel rewarded, and somehow it works.