Jamaica may be the most beautiful country in the Caribbean, but there was one place I was always waiting for the opportunity to visit while I was working in Jamaica. Nine Mile Town.
On a rainy Jamaica morning, my 2.5 hour journey from Montego Bay, where the dive center is located, to the town of Nine Mile started calmly. After leaving the main road, as we entered the interior of the country, the roads narrowed, the population decreased and nature began to show itself in equal measure.
As we approached Saint Ann Parish, the small and humble village of Nine Mile appeared out of the mountains. This is not only a village but also the birthplace and final resting place of Bob Marley, one of the most iconic figures in Reggae history. A day spent in this village made Bob Marley’s songs more meaningful to me.
Although today we know him as Bob Marley whose real name is Robert Nesta Marley, was born on February 6, 1945 in the town of Nine Mile. He spent his early years in this town, which would deeply influence his worldview, music and spiritual beliefs. Raised by his mother Cedella Booker, it was here that young Bob first faced the realities of the harsh life in the countryside of Jamaica. These early experiences in Nine Mile would later find a deep resonance in his music.
Today Bob Marley’s house is preserved as a museum. First I visited the house where Bob Marley was born and spent the first 7 months of his life. The house and the furniture have been preserved as they were. The handmade toys on the walls were made by Bob Marley’s mother.
When Bob Marley was 7 months old, his family moved out of this house and settled in a one-room house a little further down. Until Bob Marley was 13 years old until he left Nine Mile, he and his family lived in this one-room house, under one roof. The rhythms of daily life in Nine Mile, the sound of the rain on the zinc roofs, the singing of the birds in the hills are elements that you often hear in Bob Marley’s music.
Right next to the house is Zion Rock or the painted stone where Bob Marley meditated. He would often sit on this stone and daydream looking at the view of the village. Right now I am sitting on the same rock and looking at the same view. Right behind me is Bob Marley’s grave… I don’t know what the view of the village was like in the 1950s but it was definitely much calmer.
After a while I gave up to the pouring rain and started walking around the village barefoot. A few tourists joined me and we decided to go to the Rastafarian Church, which was located just below Bob Marley’s house.
Nine Mile, like many Jamaican villages, was home to a mixture of African traditions, Christianity and local Jamaican customs. Marley’s childhood was influenced by the Christian faith of his mother, Cedella Booker, but at the same time the rural environment of Nine Mile harbored traces of African traditions and a deep connection to nature. These elements strongly resonated with the Rastafarianism that Marley embraced in his later years.
When we entered the church, we were greeted by a Mary and Jesus painted on the wall. Apart from that, I noticed that there was no furniture inside. It was left completely plain.
Marley made his commitment to Rastafarianism public in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when he was gaining fame with The Wailers. As part of his religious faith, he grew his hair long and wore it in rastas, a hairstyle that became a symbol of his identity and resistance. Marley’s music also began to reflect Rastafarian teachings.
As Marley’s fame grew, his connection to Nine Mile deepened and he returned there often for spiritual renewal.
Bob Marley died on May 11, 1981 at the age of 36 from a type of skin cancer called melanoma. Bob Marley’s disease first appeared in 1977 as a sore on his toe. This wound was later diagnosed as melanoma. Doctors recommended that Marley undergo surgery to remove the cancerous tissue, but Marley refused to have any part of his body amputated due to his Rastafarian faith. According to the Rastafarian faith, the integrity of the body must be preserved.
Marley wanted to spend his last days in Jamaica, but his condition worsened and he died in the US state of Florida on his way back to Jamaica from Germany. After his death in 1981, Marley was buried in Nine Mile, his birthplace, because he wanted to be close to his spiritual roots.
Nine Mile is more than just a small dot on the map. It was here that Bob Marley lit the fire of struggle, found the spirituality that guided his life and created the music that would change the world. As you walk through this village, on the roads Marley once walked, you are not just stepping into the past, you are connecting with the story of a man who transcended borders and generations.
ONE LOVE
