Bob Marley died in 1981, officially due to malignant
melanoma, a dangerous type of cancer that was found on his toe. It's not quite as
simple as it sounds, though.
Discovering
the Melanoma
Reggae legend Bob Marley first discovered that something
was wrong in 1977 when he injured his foot while playing soccer with some
friends. The wound seemed pretty extreme for a simple soccer injury, and when
it got worse instead of healing, he decided to see a doctor. Marley was
diagnosed with melanoma (a rare condition in people of African descent, but one
that does occur), and an amputation of the toe was recommended.
Why
didn't Bob Marley just have the amputation?
As a devout Rastafarian, Bob Marley adhered strongly to
the tenets of his religion, which include a belief that amputation is sinful. A
Bible verse that Rastafarians hold as very important is Leviticus 21:5 -
"They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave
off the corner of their beard, nor make any cuttings in the flesh." The
first part of this verse is the foundation of the belief in the wearing of
dreadlocks, and the last part is the basis for a belief that amputation (as
well as other types of body modification) is sinful.
Other verses, including those which refer to the body as
a holy temple, may also influence this belief.
There is an additional tenet of Rastafarianism which is
slightly more difficult for non-Rastas to understand, but which probably also
influenced Marley's decision. The belief is essentially that death is not a
certainty, and that truly holy people will gain immortality in their physical
bodies. To acknowledge that death is a possibility is to make certain that it
will come soon. It is believed that this is the reason that Bob Marley never
wrote a will, either, which resulted in difficulty in dividing his assets after
his death.
The
cancer spreads
Bob Marley's medical records were never made public, but
according to most accounts, he did eventually allow for a skin graft in place
of a full amputation. It seems that if this procedure did take place, it was either
ineffective or simply too late. By the late summer of 1980, the cancer had
metastasized throughout his body. While he was in New York City performing,
Marley collapsed during a jog through Central Park. He performed for the last
time in September of 1980 in Pittsburgh, a performance that was remastered and
released in February of 2011 as Bob Marley and the Wailers Live Forever.
Death
at age 36
After traveling to Germany to be cared for by Josef
Issels, a holistic physician, Bob Marley soon realized that his cancer was
terminal. Intending to fly home to Jamaica, he became even sicker while in
transit, and the plane stopped over in Miami, where he died on May 11, 1981.
According to some reports, his final words were spoken to his son Ziggy Marley:
"Money can't buy life."
Conspiracy
Theories
Rumors persist that Bob Marley was murdered by the CIA
(among other theorized assassins), with assistance from Dr. Issels, who has
been reported in these accounts to be a former Nazi. The most common version of
the story is that the CIA had an operative give Marley a pair of boots as a
gift, and the boots had a radioactive wire hidden in them, which caused the
cancer on his toe. A 2011 article from High Times magazine details this theory
further.
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