The message that Garvey was trying to convey called for all blacks to return to Ethiopia, promoted black pride and told black people to stop being ashamed of being black. He also claimed that white Christian preachers changed the scriptures to conceal the fact that both Adam and Jesus were black. .
At nearly the same time as Garvey's preaching Haile Selassie was crowned king of Ethiopia and many thought that the prophecy had been fulfilled. Selassie claimed that he was a direct descendant of King David, the 225th ruler in an unbroken line of Kings from the time of Solomon and Sheba According to Rastafarian belief, Haile Selassie (originally known as Ras Tafari) is the only true god, and Ethiopia is the true Heaven. To quote from "From Babylon to Rastafari": "Rastafari is a movement of black people who know Ethiopia as the birthplace of mankind and the throne of Haile Selassie--a 20th century Manifestation of god who has lighted our way toward righteousness". .
There are many rules involved in Rastafarianism, which are difficult, if not impossible to follow in the society of today. A true Rasta eats only I-tal food, food that is cooked, but served as raw as possible. Many Rasta's are vegetarians (maybe because eating raw meat is not pleasant), although they are allowed to eat meat with the exception of pork and shellfish which are considered scavengers of the land and sea. Any fish that a Rasta eats must be less than twelve inches long, and they are forbidden to drink liquor, coffee, milk or soft drinks, as these are seen as unnatural. Airplane or "Iron Bird" travel is prohibited (I wonder how Bob Marley was able to get to his concerts?) as it is also considered unnatural. .
Rastafarians are not allowed to use soap, instead using a fruit called ackee to wash themselves. They are also forbidden to "make baldhead upon their hair, neither shall they shave their beards".
