Grounation Day (April 21) is an important Rastafari holy day, and second after Coronation Day (November 2). It is celebrated in honor of Haile Selassie's 1966 visit to Jamaica. Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia Rasta, or the Rastafari movement, is a religion and philosophy that accepts Haile Selassie I, the former (and last) 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... The word holiday has related but different meanings in English-speaking countries. ... Haile Selassie Haile Selassie (Power of Trinity) (July 23, 1892 – August 27, 1975) was the last Emperor (1930–1936; 1941–1974) of Ethiopia, and is a religious symbol in the Rastafarian movement. ... 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1966 calendar). ...

Visit of Selassie I to Jamaica

Haile Selassie I had already met with several Rasta elders in Addis Ababa, and had allowed Rastafari and other people of African descent to settle on his personal land in Shashamane. It has been suggested that Arkebe Oqubay be merged into this article or section. ... Shashamane (or Shashemene) is a town in the Ethiopian province of Shoa, about 150 miles from the capital of Addis Ababa. ...

Haile Selassie visited Jamaica on April 21, 1966. Somewhere between two and two hundred thousand Rastafari from all over Jamaica descended on Kingston airport having heard that the man whom they considered to be God was coming to visit them. They waited at the airport smoking lots of cannabis and playing drums. When Haile Selassie arrived at the airport he delayed disembarking from the aeroplane for an hour until Mortimer Planner, a well-known Rasta, personally welcomed him. From then on, the visit was a success. Rita Marley, Bob Marley's wife, converted to the Rastafari faith after seeing Haile Selassie; she has stated that she saw stigmata appear on his person, and was instantly convinced of his divinity. It must be said also that Jamaica had been suffering a serious drought at the time, that was suddenly punctuated by rain upon Selassie's arrival; this must also have done much to spread the Rastafarian message. April 21 is the 111th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (112th in leap years). ... 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1966 calendar). ... Norman Manley International Airport (IATA: KIN, ICAO: MKJP) (located , ) is an airport in Kingston, Jamaica. ... A Cannabis sativa plant Look up marijuana in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For other kinds of drums, see drum (disambiguation). ... Emperor Haile Selassie I (Geez: , Power of the Trinity, full title His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie I, Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah, King of Kings and Elect of God, Geez ) (born Lij Tafari Makonnen Geez , Amh. ... Mortimer Planno Planner, born in 1920 in Kingston, Jamaica, is a Rastafarian elder, and is considered one of the ideological founders of this back-to- Africa religion. ... Alpharita Constantia Marley Anderson, better known as Rita Marley (born July 25, 1946 in Cuba) is a Jamaican singer of Cuban descent. ... Francis of Assisi, an early stigmatic. ...

The great significance of this event in the development of the Rastafari religion should not be underestimated. Having been outcasts in society, they gained a temporary respectability for the first time. By making Rasta more acceptable, it opened the way for the commercialisation of reggae, leading in turn to the further global spread of Rastafari. { Reggae is a music genre developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. ...

Because of Haile Selassie's visit, April 21 is celebrated as Grounation Day. It was during this visit that Selassie I famously told the Rastafari community leaders that they should not emigrate to Ethiopia until they had first liberated the people of Jamaica. This dictum came to be known as "liberation before repatriation." April 21 is the 111th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (112th in leap years). ... Look up Liberation in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Repatriation (from late Latin repatriare - to restore someone to his homeland) is a term used to describe the process of return of refugees or soldiers to their homes, most notably following a war. ...

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