Should a Rasta be allowed to cut his locks for summer due to the heat?

[diabolical_Tanya]

Does the Sikh remove his turban because it is summer or the muslim woman her hijab or burka ??

[Tropicana]

Saw this question asked in a tweet and thought it was interesting. Should a Rasta be allowed to cut his locks for summer because of the heat?

What is that expression "locks up your heart and not your hair"...okay I made that up based on "render your heart and not your garments" but it is the same principle.

There are many who don't have locks or no longer have locks but their thinking is consistent with Rastafarian beliefs. (I have a cousin like that.) There are many with locks who are not Rastas. For some of them it is just a look or a fashion statement. It is more about your heart and outlook than your hair. So if the heat is getting to you, sure why not trim if you feel like trimming.

[Tropicana]

juss tie it up pon top a u head...wat is hot is dem who ha di style locs n it pack wid all dat wax etc so di heat a melt di wax which a bun dem scalp....n all dat dye whe some use fi ha blond locs , di peroxide a heat up an a bun dem...

.bwoy if it was legal mi would walk wid scissors n go pon a trimming walk by...Jah know....whappen Ras, how tings wid u....an all dem supposed Ras who a get dem locs tightened up by hairdresser who a nyam pork mawning , noon n night,

dem fi trim too.... he who sits upon his vanity wid no love for humanity shall fade away, fade away......dem get rich n switch fi real...

[Fancy DatdamnDiva]

Does the Sikh remove his turban because it is summer or the muslim woman her hijab or burka ??

good one

[Tropicana]

Does the Sikh remove his turban because it is summer or the muslim woman her hijab or burka ??

The early Rastafarians including Leonard Howell the founder did not have locks. It is not an essential part of the religion. Locks first started appearing at Pinnacle. Ras Tafari did not have locks. Notice some of the older Rastafarians on this video don't have locks.

[Xavier]

Tropicanna, I believe I see Marcus Garvey in the photo with the other gentlemen (who are they). Please note that Marcus Garvey was not a Rastafarian and did not seem to believe in the movement. In fact he wrote stinging speech against Emperor Haile Selassie (HIM). We have some info on this on Jamaicans.com but I would be bias to quote us as an only source. Search his speeches on HIM online and also also see this 2010 article.

Now back to to the regular discussion..Good points on the Sikh removing his turban.

[Tropicana]

The photo has Leonard Howell's brother, Leonard Howell and Marcus Garvey. Leonard Howell used to be a Garveyite. I have a Leonard Howell thread that goes into this. I will post the link in a second.

[Tropicana]

Leonard Howell - the First Rastafarian:

http://www.jamaicans.com/forums/showthread.php?70583-Leonard-Howell-The-First-Rastafarian&highlight=leonard+howell

By the way, Leonard Howell's son who grew up at Pinnacle doesn't have locks either.

[Xavier]

Didn't Leonard Howell and Garvey later have a falling out?

[Tropicana]

Yes exactly.

[Emperah]

the adoption of locks came later after dem visit africa and saw the mau mau and it became a tenant to the faith. ppl love fi point out how dem a ras but dem nuh wear locks all de while an den point tuh de morgans heritage chune.
They were fisrt known as bearded men which then evolved into the wearing of locks which is pawt of the sufferation, struggle and as in Number 6 a vow on the head, the representation that every ras must go through.

[Tropicana]

Exactly....by then they were living at Pinnacle.

[Tropicana]

Joseph Nathaniel Hibbert, Robert Hinds and Archibald Dunkley didn't have locks either as far as I know. I had seen photos a long time ago but can't find them online. May have to dig up an old book and scan them.

[Tropicana]

Sorry been through my books, no photos of Hibbert, Hinds or Dunkley...one book is missing not sure if it had photos. Mirror, Mirror: Identity Race and Protest. Does anybody have it?



Anyway one source said that locks did not appear in Kingston until 1947.



Perhaps this book by the same author has more photos:

Rastafari In The New Millennium

http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/2.../ent/ent2.html

There is a photo of 2 of the rastafarians who visited Ethiopia in 1963 ( book says 1963 other sources say 1961...which is correct or were there 2 visits) and they did not have locks. Is it Mortimer Planno, Douglas Mack, and Fillmore Alvaranga who visited Ethiopia? What about Samuel Clayton?

Anyway, this is a photo from one of the delegations...it says second delegation..notice no locks.



Look at 02:19 and 08:15 and 08:40 you will clearly see some of the Rastafarians who greeted Selassie when he visited Jamaica and they did not have locks. Some were very clean cut and even wore suit and tie. The drummers did not have locks 09:34

Anyway, all of this proves locks are not mandatory.

[Tropicana]

This is interesting so here is part 2: