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There cannot be said to be any one identifiable and logical origination of the Rastafarian personality and consciousness I-lusive as very spirit of Jah himself. Yet Rastafarian is an outpouring of spirit, ever the more present in the world of today. An uprising out of the past moving into the present, a striving of the Israelite to establish salvation in a world hell-bent upon destruction and annihilation of the being known as ‘man’.
A progression and metamorphosis of the spirit evolving through the prophetic years of the ‘coming’ towards the reality of the revelations of the written words being manifested; the ruler and creator of the universal world in his majestic glory present in our midst.

Rastafari as a manifestation of the Father’s spirit upon the earth in this millennium, a present day Christ consciousness moving towards the formation of a living spiritual awareness; a movement without boundaries, as Israel was, when every man lived a conscious life and did that which was right in his or her personal I.Several organised groups on the I-land give praise unto the King each in their own way, variations based upon the central themes. Rastafari exist here there and everywhere as a reflection and inspirational force of unification, a reality and potential resting in the hands of Jah. Acceptance and doubt is, as it has always been, a fine and subtle thread of perfect personal choice. When each soul/spirit sees and knows the glory of the I-heights, then in I-ssence the eureka will be experienced as Rastafarian know and live reality.

Truth and its essence cannot be communicated fully by words as it is an intuitive process light years ahead of its continual birth and rebirth; truth as an eternal, uniqueness in born within the heart of life as the supreme gift of God/Jah as love and inspiration within one’s personal Iration.

ISAIAH Chapter 11; Verses 10-12: “And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathos, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hammath, and from the islands of the sea. And he shall set up an ensign for the nation, and shall assemble he outcasts of Israel and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth”

Up until the 1950’s Herb smoking was not an identifying mark of the Rastas. Chevannes believes that the smoking of herb became formalised by the group, Youth Black Faith. This group founded in 1949 were active in attempts to reassess basic Rastafarian beliefs. There were public in their use and Chevannes says (1995 p. 84) that ‘by giving it ritual sanction they were in fact expressing their contempt for the state and society.’

Chevanne’s evidence is limited and cannot be taken as a definitive analysis. Availability, recreational use and peer group reinforcement would explain its continued use within the commune. Also of importance would the rebellion implicit in illegal activity and a visible symbol of freedom from the laws of ‘Babylon’

As the Rastafarian movement grew, the acceptance of use of the ‘Holy Herb’ appears to have grown with it. Since the 1960’s the use seems intrinsic and the reasons for its use unquestioned. Bob Marley said that the smoking of the herb was to ‘aid were meditations on de truth’ (White 1991 p. 25) Barrett quotes a Rastafarian as saying ‘It gives a good meditation: it is a door inside, when it is open, you see everything that is good (Barrett, 1977 p. 136)

Peter Clarke quotes a Rastafarian who says ‘Ganja is correctly used when Rastas wish to become more aware, more receptive, when one wants to assimilate something one has just heard or read or seen, and this is best done in groups, at a reasoning sessions. (Clarke, 1986, p 89)

These ‘reasoning sessions’ are also called ‘groundings’ or ‘grounation’ Such sessions have a historical link with the Rastafarian ‘Universal convention’ held in Kingston, Jamaica in March 1958. The nature of these sessions will depend upon many variables and a reasoning session held in the Jamaican Blue Mountains will be markedly different from one held in the tenements of large inner city. Nonetheless, the essential purpose is similar, that is ‘Members come together in informal social interactions to discuss spontaneously partially any issue concerning them personally and how this related to the movement’ Such discussions were aided the the insights offered by Ganga.

Of primary importance is the use of ganja to develop insights into God and the Universe. According to a leading Rastafarian:
Man basically is God but his insight can come to man only with the use of the herb. When you use the herb, you experience yourself with God. (Barrett, 1977, p. 217)

In recent times the ‘Holy Herb’ has been revealed to mainstream as the powerful medicinal and divinative plant that it is. Greed and Trickery have held this herb in contempt for nearly a century. It is always important to remember as the corporate takeover, modern breeding and dismantling of this plant are now in full swing that seed genetic purity and personal growing of this medicine are both essential for maximum individual benefit.