Born in Black River, St. Elizabeth sometime between 1909 and 1911, King Emmanuel Chailes Edwards is the spirtual leader of the Bobo Ashame (Bobo Shanti) sect of the Rastafari movement, Formerly Prince before assuming the title King, Emmanuel Charles Edwards, Marcus Garvey and Haile Selassie are regarded as part of a holy trinity. Haile Selassie I is regarded as King, Garvey as prophe and King Emmanuel I, the High Priest. He began his early mission as a Street Preacher, ministering to the masses that traversed the Coronation Market in downtown Kingston. His role in the growth of Rastafari is significant. He was one of the key figures behind the first Rastafari Groundation held in Back-O-Wall in 1958. Out of this first Grounation emerged an autonomous movement, the Ethiopia Africa Black International Congress (EABIC), which became known as the Bobo Ashanti. This movement advanced a set of ideals rooted in Biblical History, Black Nationalism, and Black Liberation Theology.

 

Back-O-Wall was a depressed community near to the garbage dumps in the city of Kingston. It was home to a large number of the early Rastafarian brethren. It was there that King Emmanuel welcomed the young, the outcast, and the wayward, teaching them that Man of Right is God in flesh and woman of Right is Goddess in flesh. He gave them a new message; one of redemption, of self-reliance, self-discipline and of Black dignity. These themes resonate in the teachings of Marcus Garvey, and the example of Haile Selassie. He also taught skills like broom and mat-making (similar to skills taught at Pinnacle), which later became an economic activity synonymous with the Bobo Ashanti. Coming from his Revivalist roots, King Emanuel also introduced the Turban and Robe regalia to the movement, which became a distinctive mode of dress. He also advanced a set of principles by which the priestly order of the movement is governed, not dissimilar to the early Jews as outlined in the Old Testament Bible. These include strict observance of the Sabbath, specific dietary guidelines, separation of man and woman during a woman's menstruation period, and an unyielding commitment to the idea of repatriation back to Africa. Perhaps his biggest contribution to the development of the movement however, was the development of an encampment which today houses the Headquarters of the Bobo Ashanti.

 

After the authorities destroved the Back-O-Wall community, King Emanuel established the Bobo Ashanti Community, popularly known as Bobo Hill in 10 Miles Bull Bay. It is said that he received a prophecy that there, on that hill, 10 miles from the city, Garvey's Black Star Liner would come into view, and return exiled African to their homeland. Bobo Hill became a self-proclaimed self-governed state within a state in 1959. This community today welcomes initiates to the faith from all across the country, and pilgrims from across the globe. King Emmanuel died in 1994. He is affectionately referred to by the Bobo Shanti as Dadda and is often invoked in Bobo Shanti worship as Holy Emmanuel I.