Cutting your hair

[Guest guest]

Sat Nam and Thanks for This Question,

 

This is how I would rationalize this in a purely Evolutionary Biological

standpoint...

 

The fact that our nails grow long doesn't make us special from any other animal

who has nails. In the wild, our nails continually grow, because we would be

using them to climb, scratch, and open nuts and peel fruit, and they would wear

down naturally... So in order to continue to provide for ourselves, our nails

continue to grow. In today's society, that is no longer needed, so we have

evolved to cut them, or as you may see many people still do, trim them by biting

them - which also was a necessary evolution of our past for the times when they

grew too long and could cause damage by breaking off too long.

 

Our hair on the other hand makes us slightly more unique. Sure, yes, all animals

with hair shed their hair, it grows, and falls out at some

evolutionarily-determined regular rate, and for the most part, it grows to a

particular length. All mammals have hairs covering their entire body, except on

the palms and feet and eyes. The continued replacement of body hair is important

for many reasons (cooling or warming, transfering sweat out of the body,

insulating, camouflage, etc) and for the same reasons as nails re-grow, so would

our hair - because it wears out over time.

 

But humans are unique in that we have longer hair that grows from our head and

in the case of men, our faces. From a strictly Evolutionary Biological

standpoint, this would have probably occurred for the same reasons that some

birds have longer plumage (exaggeratedly so), which is for sexual selection.

Longer hair on women could be considered sexually desired, indicating better

health, and therefore a better ability to produce healthy offspring. For men,

the beard could also be considered protective (neck area), plus masculine and

insulating.

 

The yogic notion, as you know, takes a different approach to this, and explains

some more subtle energetic and emotional reasons for the hair on men and women.

I personally believe that the beard is a necessary faculty of men, and that it

was given to us for a reason, and therefore should be experienced. I believe it

grows downwards for a reason, and that it does increase our sensitivity and

roots us to the energies of the earth in some respects. It also covers our

throat so when we gulp in fear or emotion, it is not seen. Containing the hair

in a Rishi knot, although I am not yet able to fully tie one, does confer some

stability and focus -- does it cycle down the suns energy and focus the magnetic

field of the earth? It's all NATURE, so of course, we tune in finely to nature

with these antennas. We are not and never have been separate from nature! I'm

not so sure how much of that we can tune into and sense, or how much of that is

a yogic notion. I tend to believe it, but I've yet to profoundly experience the

difference. I believe these are subtle effects... But certainly the hair is

there for a reason.

 

I don't believe the nails are meant to grow to extreme lengths for many reasons,

but why not try it out? I personally like to keep mine pretty long - and I do

feel more natural and sensitive with it. Maybe there are subtle benefits to

experience long coiling nails. Perhaps some seers and shamans, yogis and men of

witchcraft grew their nails long to tune into this energy. It won't help you

play the guitar or violin, but it couldn't hurt to try. And I believe in

pictures I've seen of Yogi Bhajan, he kept his pretty long, and not trimmed down

short.

 

Hope that helps.

 

Fateh Singh

[Guest guest]

Sat Nam Sat Sandesh,

Yogi Bhajan encouraged us to wear our hair in a rishni knot tied over

one of the soft spots, forward on the skull for men, and near the back

of the head for women. He advised that the hairs be combed straight, and

used the imagery of soldiers marching in perfect formation--probably

from his background as a military officer! The hairs are ideally then

twisted into a rope until they curl around and easily tie into an actual

knot. This should be secured with a wooden comb; plastic is an

alternative and metal clips a no no because they conduct energy away

from the purpose.

 

A rishi knot works as an antenna to focus sun energy directly down the

spine to stimulate the Kundalini. It is an exact science. Dreadlocks can

be tied into a rishi knot, yet they will not conduct subtle energy very

well.

 

I hope this clears it up a bit!

 

Loving Blessings,

SS Guru Prem Kaur Khalsa

yogagems.com

[Guest guest]

Sat Nam

Dear Krishna Singh,

You just have the good yogas in your chart that perform those 'satvic'

feats. Someone with the more difficult yogas will perform the less 'satvic'

feats. Its all about the genes, the childhood, the environment, as you may call

it the 'karma'. You may be an evolved soul or you may not. I don't equate your

form with your depth.

 

No, of course no one is coming to help you. In this fascistic, hellish new

world you describe, everyone has to have an extremely limited and ultimately

faith lacking vision. This is where only the most motivated and fittest (sound

familiar), have entry to the utopia, others simply lack some kind of fibre.

 

I would value compassion over any of the '10x qualities' banded around. And as a

matter of fact I'm perfectly happy to die unenlightened.

 

It would seem to me that your practice does you no good whatsoever, and I thank

you for balancing me out.

 

May God not shake your belief system,

Paul