What sideways, tonsure, gumenzo and other men's hairstyles look like in different denominations

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

It is unlikely that in the history of civilization there was at least some long era when hair would not have been given special, even sacred significance. Almost all denominations ordered women to forget about haircuts, and hide their hair from others under a scarf or other headdress. With men's hairstyles, everything was more complicated.

Vitality, growing strands and sideways

Already in antiquity, the question of how a head of hair should look was subordinated to ancient norms and customs, different peoples had their own beliefs and traditions. In ancient Egypt, cutting hair for children, they left separate strands of hair on the temples or on the crown of the head. The hair was believed to contain life force.

This belief was later reflected in the biblical account of Samson, who was initiated as a Nazarene and took a vow not to cut his hair. The Slavs did not cut their child's hair until they reached a certain age - this custom is often observed in the modern world.

Following the prescriptions of the Torah, the Jews wore a beard, a headdress and did not shave off the hair on their temples - they were called peot or sideways. It is not necessary that the length of these strands exceed the length of the rest of the hair on the head, but in order to emphasize their belonging to Judaism, their religious zeal, they often did not cut their hair at all. Now, noticeable side-locks are worn by Orthodox Jews, the length of the strands depends on the traditions of the community and on the area - just like the clothes of believers. Sometimes the side curls - this is what the Hasidim do, for example.

The characteristics of the appearance of the Jews demonstrated loyalty to the Bible's covenants, along with a willingness to follow them under any circumstances. Back in the first half of the 19th century, side-locks were persecuted: Emperor Nicholas I issued a decree forbidding Jews to wear such hairstyles. But the sanctions did not destroy the tradition, the Jews were punished, but they continued to remain faithful to the tradition. Later, faced with the Nazi regime, they had to defend their beliefs in incomparably more dangerous conditions.

Tonsura and gumenzo

Cutting hair during the Christian ceremony symbolizes communion with the church. When this custom arose - to cut hair when initiating one or another degree of spiritual service, it is not known exactly. In any case, this was done already in the first centuries of the new era. At first, the hair was cut over the forehead. And since 683, when the IV Toledo Council took place, the rule on tonsure was officially enshrined - taking tonsure in a circle, on the crown of the head, leaving the hair “in a circle”.

This was the sign of the transition to the status of a monk or clergyman. By cutting off most of the hair, the Christian was thus proclaiming his affiliation with the church; in those days only slaves could have a completely shaved head. The "rim" of uncut hair symbolically resembled the crown of thorns of Christ. The requirement to wear tonsure for Catholic monks continued until 1973, until the moment when it was recognized as optional by the decision of Pope Paul VI.

For a long time, the Orthodox Church has kept the same tradition - to shave or cut the hair at the crown, leaving it at the edges. In Russia, such a haircut was called "gumenzo" - from the word "threshing floor", that is, a leveled, cleaned part of the land. On the head they wore a skufia hat, which was also called "bald-head" or "paddle-head." According to the new rule, the custom of wearing the "crown of Christ" and letting go of the hair should have been abandoned in the past.

In practice, the gumenzo persisted even after the official innovations. Only by the middle of the 19th century, priests and monks in Russia acquired their familiar appearance. When exactly they stopped cutting the gumenzo - the question remains open. By the way, as far as Orthodox Greeks are concerned, married clergymen are supposed to wear a short haircut, in contrast to single, monastics - they let their hair go.

The shaved head of a Buddhist and a bun on the head of the Buddha

Buddhists shave off their hair completely. Thus, they are freed from various "rubbish" - vanity, envy, all vain and interfering with moving on the path to enlightenment. Hair, according to the philosophy of Buddhism, stores information about a person's personality, his thoughts and actions - all this should be left in the past.

But the Buddha himself, as a rule, is depicted with hair in a bun. In the circles where Siddhartha revolved, such a hairstyle was assumed - it was necessary for wearing a turban. Ushnisha is depicted on the crown - a convex formation on the crown, a symbol of the achieved enlightenment. Before Buddha attained enlightenment, he wore long hair, and when he became an ascetic, he cut it off, renouncing his origin.

By the way, according to legend, the traditional image of Buddha - sitting in the lotus position, touching the ground with his right hand, and holding a begging bowl in his left - arose thanks to a miracle. When one of the rulers of India wished to have a portrait of Buddha with him, he invited the best master painters, but none could achieve an accurate representation of the prince's appearance. Then brushes and paints themselves created this portrait - the first, according to legend, a portrait of Buddha.

So it is with the beard - in some religions it is prescribed to let go and wear it, in others it is forbidden.