The Sunday Mail
Rastafarian Perspectives
LUCKY Dube says, “Not every black man is my friend, and not every white man is my enemy.”
Love is amazing, it transcends beyond all boundaries. Love can literary build bridges, end a war and unite foes. And what is holy matrimony without this ‘thing’.
However, it must be said that love can also ignite wars, rage and discourse. Love is strange, it is the root of hate and evil all at the same time.
The following common expressions solidify the point; love is blind, love is crazy or crazy in love, madly in love, love makes the world go round and so forth.
Again, the love of money is the root of all evil.
Love is God and God is love. We read from left to right. However, reading from right to left, love reads “evol” and god spells “dog”. This is the theory of opposites at work.
How this occurs in an organised (by secret organisations) language is no coincidence.
Love must be celebrated no doubt but how do we go about it?
St Valentine’s Day has attracted controversy, especially considering the origins. Africans embrace the alien culture without questions, this alone raises red flags and red cards.
Satan is the devil yet the word alone is anagram for Santa Valentine.
The origin of the day is queer and must be seriously reconsidered by all, especially active participants.
From February 13 to 15, the ancient Romans celebrated the feast of Lupercalia to ward off evil spirits and enhance the health of the community.
The name came from Greek lukos, and Latin lupus, meaning wolf.
In Roman mythology, Lupercus is the god of shepherds. His festival took place on February 15, and celebrated the founding of his temple. It was partly known as “Wolf Festival” because it honoured Lupa, a legendary she-wolf who suckled infant orphans.
The drunken festival began with the sacrifice of two male goats and a dog.
A feast followed, and they made thongs out of the skins of the sacrificial animals, called Februa, which gives February it’s infuriatingly spelled name!
Lupercalia also had strange and brutal mating practices. Young women would line up for men to beat them, and then the men would draw the names of girls from a jar.
The name they picked would be their sexual partner for the rest of the festival and longer, if it was a good match.
The Roman populace still continued to celebrate Lupercalia even after pagan rituals were outlawed in 5th century A.D. Rome.
That century, Pope Gelasius I established Valentine’s Day at the same time of Lupercalia to honor two martyred Christian priests named Valentine.
Around that time, the Normans (Norse) also had a day, called Galatin’s Day which celebrated the love of women. To further confuse things, the letter “G” in Norse is pronounced “V” in English. It seems like Lupercalia, Santa Valentine’s Day, and Galatins Day all kind of got meshed together.
The two St. Valentines that are sometimes confused as one are to be identified as Valentine of Rome and Valentine of Terni to be bisected one after the other.
During the third century, Roman emperor Claudius Gothicus, otherwise known as Claudius the Cruel, had abolished marriage because he felt marriage and family life was preventing people from joining the military.
Priest Valentine of Rome was discovered illegally marrying people.
Before he was clubbed, stoned and decapitated on February 14, 269 A.D, legend says he fell in love with his jailer’s daughter, Julia, and left her a parting note signed “From your Valentine.”
In some stories, Julia was blind, and he cured her sight. His skull, adorned with flowers, is currently displayed at the Santa Maria in Cosmedin in Rome Italy.
Saint Valentine of Terni was also executed on February 14, but on a different year, though some scholars believe Valentine of Terni is the same man as Valentine of Rome.
Terni’s story is that he championed the validity of Jesus, and is said to have restored the sight of a blind girl.
Although he was not in love with her, this coincides with Rome’s story line and complicates matters.
At that time, with special thanks again to Claudius the Cruel, it was illegal in Rome to practice Christianity, and he was eventually arrested.
Claudius initially took a liking to him, but had Valentine of Terni put to death when he tried to convert Claudius to Christianity.”
Valentine’s Day is definitely red.
It has its origins in bloodshed, martyrdom, religious persecution, drunken debauchery, strange and puzzling mating rituals.
Considering this, should Africans continue to partake in this foggy ritual?
Should Africans continue to name their children ‘Valentine’, especially without full knowledge of the day’s origin?
Either knowingly or in most cases unknowingly, why is it that Africans are still being immensely influenced by western foul ideologies and practices?
Not a single day on the calendar is reserved for giants and greats such as Nehanda, Chaminuka or Kaguvi.
Empress Wayzero Menen, Wife and Consort to Emperor Haile Selassie died (transfigured/transformed) on this day and hence the Rastafarian Empire already recognise this day as Empress Menen Day. We invite all conscious Africans to kindly follow suit.
Instead we name our children funny names like (pardon me) Forget, Patience, Precious, Faith, Pardon, Honest, Privilege, Loveness, Lovemore, Kissmore, l better stop here. These aren’t “names” in the normal sense, yet we press on.
On the other hand, in Europe, America and the rest of the West, they do not bother naming their precious children with African terms.
If the extremely rare phenomenon ever occurs, perhaps it is due to inter-marriage or some other valid inevitable reason.
One love and Enlightening Black History Month to all with disregards to class.
References
The truth about Valentine’s Day: A Dark brutal history
Origin of Valentine’s Day may surprise us: P. Brown
The Enid News and Eagle, Enid OK.
