Ital

What the word means

Rastafari take the word Ital from the English 'vital', dropping the opening letter. The same habit runs through much of their speech: the 'I' is put first in many words to show that the speaker stands joined to God and to all of nature. From the same root comes livity, the life force that Rastafari hold to be given by the Almighty and shared by every living person. Eating Ital, then, is not only a set of kitchen rules. It is a way of guarding that force, so that what a person takes in builds life up instead of wearing it down.

Where it came from

The first Rastafari who kept Ital worked out their food rules from the Bible, reading Genesis, Leviticus and Deuteronomy for guidance. Genesis is read as a gift of seed-bearing plants and fruit trees for food. Vegetarianism also reached the movement through Indian indentured workers living in Jamaica, along with dreadlocks and the smoking of ganja as a sacrament. Leonard Howell, known as Gong and Gyangunguru Maragh, was not of Indian descent, yet he took a strong interest in Hindu practice and did much to bring a plant-based diet into Rastafari life at Pinnacle.

How it is kept

Practice varies a great deal from one Rasta to another, and few rules hold for everyone. Most who keep Ital are strict vegetarians; a good number go further and cut out dairy, since they see milk and cheese as no more natural for people than meat. Meat is passed over because it comes from a dead animal and so works against livity. Fish is allowed by some. Alcohol is not approved of, though a few will drink a little as long as it does not cloud the mind. Cigarettes are widely rejected on health grounds. Coffee and other drinks with caffeine are avoided by some, less often. A few Rastafari grow their own coffee, sugar and cocoa.

Strict and looser readings

There are stricter and looser ways of keeping Ital. In the strictest reading, rock salt is left out and sea salt used in its place, and nothing preserved by canning or drying is eaten. Metal cooking pots, plates and cutlery are also set aside, with clay and wood taking their place. Added salt, and salt with iodine in it, is turned down by some, though pure sea salt or kosher salt is eaten by others. Chemicals used in farming, such as pesticides and fertiliser, put a food outside Ital for the strictest. Very few keep all of this, and some Rastafari keep none of it.

How Ital is kept

Keeping Ital begins with what a person chooses to eat and drink. Most followers build meals from plants, fruit, seeds and grains, and leave out meat because it is dead food. Some also leave out dairy; fish may be allowed. Alcohol is generally refused, cigarettes are widely avoided, and some pass over coffee and other caffeinated drinks. Rastafari often grow their own coffee, sugar and cocoa. In the strictest homes, food is cooked in clay or wood rather than metal, salt is limited to pure sea or kosher salt, and canned or dried goods are not used. There is no single set of rules that every Rasta follows.

When and where

Ital is not tied to a date in the calendar or to a season. It is a way of eating kept through the whole year, and how closely a person follows it is a personal matter. The mansions differ as well, and practice shifts from one Rasta to the next.

Ital belongs to the Rastafari movement, whose home is Jamaica, and it took shape there. The community at Pinnacle was an early centre for plant-based eating. Rastafari who follow it are found across the movement, though not in every mansion: Bobo Ashanti and Nyabinghi require it, while the Twelve Tribes of Israel does not.

What Ital means

For Rastafari, what goes into the body should add to livity, the life energy given by the Almighty, and never take from it. Meat is seen as dead food, so eating it works against that energy. Food close to the earth, without chemical change, is read as food that keeps a person close to God and to nature. The 'I' at the front of the word carries the same meaning as it does in other Rastafari words: the speaker standing at one with the divine and with the whole of creation.

Questions people ask about Ital

See also

KwanzaaA seven-day African American celebration of heritage, family and community valuesReggae SumfestAn annual week-long reggae and dancehall music festival in Montego Bay, JamaicaJunkanooA Caribbean masquerade festival of masked dancing, goatskin drumming, and cowbellsHosayAn Indo-Caribbean Muharram commemoration with ornate floats, drumming and processions

Good reading and sources

• Ital on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• Wikidata recordOpen data

It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-05.