How Bob Marley died
At just 36 years old , reggae legend Bob Marley closed his eyes forever, leaving behind a strong musical and cultural legacy that brought Rastafarian culture to the whole world. Thanks to him we have remained unforgettable songs like "No woman no cry", "Redemption song", "Three little birds" or "I shot de sheriff". With Bobby, reggae music was spread around the world making it stop being Jamaica's "ragtag music" to become a prestigious musical genre that currently has innumerable followers across the length and breadth of the country. of the planet. In this article we are going to tell you how Bob Marley died discovering all the long process that he lived with his illness and, also, talking about the Rasta culture of which he was its maximum exponent.
The discovery of Bob Marley's cancer
Bob Marley was passionate about football and, every time he went to a European city, he organized a friendly match between the journalists and the members of his music group. And this was also what happened on June 26, 1978, the day on which Bobby discovered that he had malignant melanoma on his foot . He was a journalist of the magazine Rock and Folk that stepped on his foot during the meeting and the artist began to feel severe pain in his big toe, went to the hospital and gave him the terrible news.
The doctors advised him that the best way to stop the cancer was by amputation of the finger. But Bob Marley refused because according to the Rasta religion, to which he belonged, no person can violate his body or with injuries, amputations or even tattoos.
The artist endured for three more years during which he did not cease his musical career and continued to offer concerts that, every time, gathered more people. But on October 5, 1980, he went running for Central Park and fell flat during his training. When the ambulance arrived, Bob had foam in his mouth and his condition was very critical: the doctors found out in the hospital that the cancer had metastasized to the lungs, liver, stomach and brain.
They gave him a month to live but, even with those, the artist stopped acting. In fact, three days later to this incident Bob Marley acted in a concert in Pittsburgh celebrating, thus, what would be his last performance.
The experts said that if the big toe had been amputated, it could possibly have been saved.
His race against death
To know how Bob Marley died, you must understand that, after that concert and after the serious diagnosis promulgated by the doctors, Bob Marley canceled his tour to try to save his life. Breaking with the Rasta religion, the singer allowed him to undergo radiotherapy to try to stop the cancer, he also let himself be advised by a Mexican "sorcerer" doctor who had managed to cure a Hollywood actor with his healing practices.
During this period, Bob Marley moved to the Ethiopian religion through his wife, Rita. Marley's baptism in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church meant that his given name Bob was changed by Berhane Selassie, the same name of the Emperor of Ethiopia that for the Rastas is as if he were the Christian Jesus Christ.
After this change of religion, Bob went to Germany to undergo the practices of Dr. Josef Issels, a former member of the SS and was reputed to stop the advance of cancer with practices of the most questioned among the scientific community. There he spent 8 months trying to save his life but the struggle was in vain.
On May 11, 1981 Bob Marley died . It is said that his last words were addressed to his son Ziggy Marley (recognized reggae singer today). He was buried in Nine Miles, north of Jamaica, a place that is currently the Mecca of many Rastafarians. His wife buried objects that were very dear to him, such as his golden guitar, a soccer ball, a ring, a Bible and cannabis buds, the sacred grass of the dreadlocks.
In the epitaph of Bob Marley reads: "My music fights against this system of crazy governors who only teach to live and die."
The rasta culture
The word "reggae" is a variant of "ragga" which, in turn, is a diminutive of "raggamusic muffin" or, what is the same, "music of the ragtag". And that was reggae music in Jamaica before Bobby, the music of the marginalized, of the poorest people in society. That was until this great genius managed to spread it, internationalize it and give it the prestige it deserves. It is currently one of the most listened to musical genres in the world.
Marcus Gravey was an Ethiopian evangelist who prophesied the coronation of a black king in Africa who would bring together all the tribes that had spread throughout the world because of the enslavement of this race and return them home, Africa. Therefore, when in 1930 the emperor of Ethiopia Haile Selassie was crowned as emperor, the Rastas recognized him as "Ras Tafari", that is, the God of prophecy, the King of kings, the Lion of Judah or Jah.
The feeling of wanting to return home is still a maxim among the Rastas and, meanwhile, they continue to live in Babylon, that is, the world of the West that was imposed on them by force by the colonizing movements of the first world.
The Rasta culture has a series of premises that are strongly followed by its members:
- They do not drink alcohol
- They do not eat meat
- Live in communion with their neighbors
- They never beg or steal
- Consume the sacred herb (marijuana) to reach spiritual fullness and be closer to the gods
- Respect for others is their maxim
Bob Marley was, for most of his career, a loyal representative of Rasta culture throughout the world, a culture that even today still has a strong presence in countries around the world that have an African population.
