What is a Rasta?

Question

I was watching the movie Cool Runnings and i kept hearing and seeing the word Rasta everywhere. I was wondering what it meant.

Answer 1

Rasta, for Rastafarian.
Spiritual movement born in Jamaica during the first half of the 20st century.

Key feature of this spirituality:
Belief that Africa is the garden of eden, and that it is the place where black men will be free.

Worship of Haile Selassie (who was emperor of Ethiopia).

Faith based on the Old Testament.

Pot smoking as a form of bonding ceremony.

Disdain and distrust of white man, called the oppressor, the downpressor, or more commonly Babylon.

Belief in reincarnation.

Most of the Rastas I have met consider Bob Marley as a prophet.

The cult movie Countryman shows precisely what the Rasta lifestyle is.http://imdb.com/title/tt0083762/

Answer 2

Rastafari movement
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"Rasta" redirects here. For other uses, see Rasta (disambiguation).

His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie I of EthiopiaRasta, or the Rastafari movement, is a religious movement that accepts Haile Selassie I, the former emperor of Ethiopia, as Jah (the Rasta name for God incarnate, from a shortened form of Jehovah found in Psalms 68:4 in the King James Version of the Bible), and part of the Holy Trinity as the messiah promised to return in the Bible. The name Rastafari comes from Ras (Duke or Chief) Tafari Makonnen, the pre-coronation name of Haile Selassie I. The movement emerged in Jamaica among working-class and peasant black people in the early 1930s, arising from an interpretation of Biblical prophecy partly based on Selassie's status as the only African monarch of a fully independent state, and his titles of King of Kings, Lord of Lords, and Conquering Lion of Judah (Rev. 5:5). Other factors leading to its rise include the sacred use of Cannabis, and various Afrocentric social and political aspirations, such as the teachings of Jamaican publicist and organiser Marcus Garvey (also often regarded as a prophet), whose political and cultural vision helped inspire a new world view. The movement is sometimes called "Rastafarianism" by non-Rastas although some Rastas themselves regard that term as improper and offensive.

The Rastafari movement has spread throughout much of the world, largely through interest generated by reggae music—most notably, that of Jamaican-born singer/songwriter Bob Marley. By 2000, there were more than one million Rastafari faithful worldwide. About five to ten percent of Jamaicans identify themselves as Rastafari. Many Rastafarians follow an ital diet which essentially means living by the dietary Laws of Leviticus and Deuteronomy in the Old Testament.

Answer 3

Short for Rastafari, which is a religion which accepts Haile Selassie as Jah, which is the Rasta name for God (Jehovah) which was made popular through reggae music.

Answer 4

Do you listen to Bob Marley? well he's a rasta....Buffalo soldier Dreadlocks Rasta. It is a way of life, they have beliefs it's actually pretty cool. All have dreadlocks too.

Answer 5

short for rastafarian - a reggae guy from the Carribbean with big dreadlocks and listens to reggae music, smokes joints anddresses like Bob Marley

Answer 6

Go and Listen to Bob Marley.
He'll explain.

Answer 7

DUNNO!