Hairy Vanity

I began writing this blog entry well over a month ago, but it’s since been neglected. Work and weddings sort of took over and I didn’t get to give this my full attention let alone write more often. Anyway, it’s now been sitting in my laptop waiting to be edited, checked, and given some purpose so long that I decided I’ll just get it up and may follow up on it with more research later (if anyone is interested).

So this entry didn’t get the attention it deserved but I hope you’ll enjoy reading it anyway. I am by no means an expert on any of this stuff and like I said -  I have not done any extensive research into the cultures / religions mentioned, but I did enjoy reading what I did find and I hope you do too!

About three years ago I was passing through Newark airport. I sat at the gate waiting for my flight and finished the book I was reading occasionally stopping to look at the hustle and bustle going on around me. That’s when I saw a young Indian couple and their child. The thing that made me take notice of them, besides that they looked blissfully happy, was that they all had shaven heads.

By chance they happened to sit next to me and I got talking to the young couple. I learned that they shaved their heads during a Hindu pilgrimage in India. Many Hindus will shave their hair off during times of spiritual significance in order to be liberated from their vanity (or tie to the material world). It’s also symbolic of letting go of the past and looking ahead onto a better path. Some Hindus believe a person’s hair holds their past transgressions, or energy in it - cutting it off liberates one from those transgressions or energy.

I admired the couple for following their spiritual instincts and turning a blind eye to what we in the West think of as aesthetically pleasing (especially for women) and following their conviction. For a long time I’ve wanted to go on a similar pilgrimage and have thought many times about shedding my past transgressions and attaining some liberty from my own vanity, even if only for a while, though I’d hope the lesson would be permanent.

Now, I must digress in order to explain why I am writing this blog entry in the first place. A few weeks ago I had a very bad haircut. It was lopsided and patchy. At first it didn’t bother me so much, all I had to do was tie it up and no one would ever notice. I’d just have to be patient but that’s easier said than done. The more I looked at it, the more it bugged me, the more its unsightliness stood out. I felt paranoid at how unattractive it looked. I tried in vain to hide it better and obsessed over how silly a mane I had.  After just a week and a bit I had it cut and corrected. Instantly I felt better.

During this whole bad hair experience I started to think about the couple I met in Newark and my hopes to one day undergo a spiritual journey of a similar sort. Well, of course the first thing I asked myself is “If I can’t go a fortnight with a bad haircut, how on earth will I be able to shave my head in the name of spiritual liberation?!” Clearly I’m not ready for such a journey and have much to learn. That is assuming it’s something one has to be ready for. Maybe it’s something you just have to do, ready or not – and deal with the emotions and thoughts after it’s done. I have no doubt it would feel liberating, healing even. But what about the next day? And the day after? It’s not an unknown fact that people often cut their hair when they are down, in despair, or just need to be re-energized. But a shaven head, I’m ashamed to say, I am still too shallow to go through with.

The way we keep our hair is an outward expression of who we are and how we want to be perceived (no surprise there). Long before hair was just about fashion and self-expression, hair has been a key part in cultural beliefs and religions. Probably one of the best known peoples who believe their hair is connected to their spirituality is the Native Americans. Long, uncut hair is synonymous with Native Americans – no doubt you’ve seen plenty of such images. Depending on the tribe, hair was kept long for a number of reasons. Sioux and Blackfoot tribes for example only cut their hair during times of mourning following the death of a close relative. Some Eastern tribes had partially shaved heads with long Mohawks – what is now a fashionable haircut was for them a matter of identity, a rite of passage and spirituality. This style is also synonymous with the punk movement in the 80s and more recently a fashionable style in pop culture. I wonder how many people who wear this style know of its spiritual significance and history? 

BlackfootSioux  

Sadly, many tribes were forced to cut their hair against their will upon the arrival of missionaries and settlers. Such an act was considered sacrilegious among the Natives, losing their hair was for them losing their strength and honour. Simply put - it was humiliating. Perhaps it’s not surprising that the new settlers and missionaries enforced such a thing. What you might find surprising is that enforcements were still in place until relatively recent times. Native American army recruits who were forced to cut their hair during World War II performed significantly poorer than those who were allowed to keep their hair (later recruits). This prompted a series of studies in to the connection between the Native American and his hair (just Google it and you’ll get a bunch of case studies). As recent as 2008 a Lipan Apache boy was refused entry in to a Texan school because of his long hair – you can find details of the story by searching for Adriel Arocha.

Mohawk      Punk Rock

Long hair in history is not just synonymous with Native Americans. One of the best known Biblical stories about long hair is that of Samson and Delilah. In brief, Samson (a Nazarene) was judge over Israel. He could not be defeated, so the Philistines bribed Delilah (a Philistine) to uncover the secret of Samson’s strength by way of seduction. Samson revealed to her his birth vow, put on him by his parents, to never cut his hair, for the Nazarenes believed it was the source of a person’s strength and power. So while he slept Delilah cut his locks. Samson, of course, lost all his strength. Throughout the ages, the Christian view, or more accurately the church’s view on how hair should be kept has changed. Women were to keep long hair as a veil to cover their humility; monks were to have shaven or partially shaven heads, as were some nuns. Of course over time this has changed, and I scarcely know any Christian who believes their hair carries their strength.

  Rastafarian Maasai

Of modern religions, one that carries the belief that a person’s hair is connected to their spirituality is Rastafari. Rastafarians follow the Biblical command not to cut one’s hair (Leviticus 21:5). Many of them wear their hair in long dreadlocks – which is believed to have first been seen, and thus inspired by, Kenyan Maasai tribes. Dreadlocks have the appearance of a lion’s mane (no coincidence since the lion is representative of Africa, particularly Ethiopia – the Promised Land – and the lion of Judah). The style became popular during the early years of the Rasta movement symbolising rebellion against Babylon – the material world. It was also a style that distinguished them from their oppressors. Like the Native Americans, they believe their hair keeps their strength and wisdom and so they don’t cut it.

Sadhus Sadhvis

Dreadlocks are not just a spiritual style of the Rastafarians. In fact many Hindu sages in India known as sadhus (male) and sadhvis (female) holy men and women wear their hair in the same manner and have done so for thousands of years. For them, wearing their hair in dreadlocks is an outward expression of their disregard for vanity. It’s believed that a person with such a mane has a vast amount of spiritual knowledge and discipline. It’s even believed that they are travellers between two worlds and masters of fire (fire is a key component of creation and destruction in Hindu beliefs). Shiva also wore his hair in dreadlocks. It’s believed that when Ganga (a goddess) descended from the heavens on to the earth in the form of a massive stream, Shiva received her in his matted locks (or else her descent would have destroyed the world with her immense power) and thus the Ganges was created. Hindu monks on the other hand will shave their heads, just like Buddhist monks.

Shiva and Ganga

Buddhist Monk

Incidentally both Native Americans and Hindus do not cut a child’s hair until they are one year of age as part of a spiritual passage. American Natives will not cut the child’s hair again thereafter.

In Europe, hair has been more connected with social status than spirituality. Throughout the ages, the length of ones hair in Europe has represented a number of things. Longer hair was favoured by men in ancient Greece as it represented wealth and power, while slaves kept shaven heads. In the Middle Ages, long hair was worn by the freemen then with the introduction of the church men were required to keep short hair. In more recent times, shorter hair has been favoured as an expression of higher social status, wealth and education, whereas long hair on men was an expression of rebellion and nonconformity. These days, almost anything goes.

                      

         Ancient Greek Hairstyles for Men

So, while I’ve talked about a few different styles and the spirituality connected to hair here, I don’t think I’m any wiser about my own relationship with my hair and its significance – material or spiritual. I have however learned a lot more about the religious and cultural significance of how we cut or don’t cut our hair and not to think of hair as just a style or fashion accessory.

Will I ever shave my head in the name of liberation? Probably not. Unless I get another bad haircut…