Superficially it is the same, sharing the main symbols of the Rastafari faith (repatriation back to ethiopia, escape from the evils of the world, etc) but there is a fundamental difference in the approach to dealing with Babylon.
Marley's particular brand of Rastafari is very proactive, actively seeking to alleviate the conditions of Babylon by using music to alter the minds of the people, and thus by extension the society they live in. Marley's Rastafari seeks to change the entire world.
The Boboshanti on the other hand seem to have a more inward focus. They are concerned with extracting themselves (and their families) from the Babalonyian system and are prepared to do without the benefits of society in order to do so. Within the context of their community they maintain a high level of social contact but the community itself imposes an isolation on them by simple virtue of geography.
Both of these approaches are valid ways for dealing with the corrupting influence of Babylon but I can't help but think that Marley's was more effective. The Boboshanti may have achieved
their goal of a deeper connection with their faith but Marley's music has done far more to spread the message of Rastafari to those who would otherwise not have heard it.
i like what you say here, but i still wonder how effective marley's music actually was in spreading rastafari beliefs - if non-rastas don't know what he's singing about, the music has a very different meaning. in our class, we've become hyper-aware of rastafari beliefs in his lyrics, but does the average rastafari also hear these?
ReplyDeleteanother thing I think you can add to your observations of the Boboshanti wanting to remove themselves from Babylon, it the idea that they have such a desire to be detached from it they are "preparing themselves" for the journey to Ethiopia--another distinction from the Marley-style rastas.
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