363 22 promotIng human flourIshIng through rastafarI Ital foodways In afrICa Fortune Sibanda 1 INTRODUCTION The production and consumption of food are common processes amongst all human beings in order to attain a flourishing life. Food is a biological necessity, which humanity needs in order to sustain life. 2 Since food is embedded in the cultural system, the cultivation, preparation and consumption of food contribute significantly towards the formulation of identity claims of individuals and groups. 3 Essentially, food binds people together and gives them an identity, culturally, socially and religiously. 4 What we eat, how we eat, when we eat and with whom we eat varies across group, spatial and temporal dimensions, 5 but ultimately deploys an overarching influence on identity and human flourishing. For Mary Douglas, a renowned social and cultural anthropologist, food can be a “blinding fetish in our culture”, which makes “our ignorance [to be] explosively dangerous” and at the same time reveal its dual nature as necessity and luxury. 6 As a necessity, food becomes a practical question and a basic human right to subsistence included amongst the list of rights, particularly Article 25(1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well‑being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services”. 7 In a way, food is a double‑edged sword that is concurrently, both “itself and more than itself”. 8 1 Associate Professor of Religious Studies in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Great Zimbabwe University, Masvingo, Zimbabwe. Professor Sibanda received his DPhil from the University of Zimbabwe. At the time of writing, he was the ACLARS Regional Representative for Zimbabwe. 2 Fajans J. 1988. “The Transformative Value of Food: A Review Essay”, Food and Foodways 3(1‑2):143‑166. 3 Passariello P. 1990. “Anomalies, Analogies, and Sacred Profanities: Mary Douglas on Food and Culture, 1957–1989”, Food and Foodways 4(1):53‑71. 4 Maposa RS and Sibanda F. 2011. “Going an Extra Mile: Linking Religion to Family Diet and Consumer Patterns in Zimbabwe”. Paper presented at the Fifth Annual International Federation of Home Economics Africa Regional Conference, Gaborone, University of Botswana, 26‑28 September. 5 Fajans, “The Transformative Value of Food”. 6 Douglas M. 1979. Implicit Meanings: Essays in Anthropology. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul; Abarca ME. 2004. “Authentic or Not, It’s Original”, Food and Foodways 12:2. 7 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, G.A. res. 217A (III), U.N. Doc A/810 at 71 (1948). 8 Passariello, “Anomalies, Analogies and Sacred Profanities”, 53. Green MC (ed). 2019. Law, Religion and Human Flourishing in Africa. Stellenbosch: Conference-RAP DOI: 10.18820/9781928314592/22 © 2019 AFRICAN SUN MeDIA