At an alarming rate the Sikh kids are cutting their hair, which once held great respect in Sikhism. The leaders, parents and the kids themselves are always on the lookout for what is causing them to disrespect their God given gift. The blame game is not going to help solve this growing issue. Through this article I will attempt to look at the typical culprits, their solutions and a justification for the hair they are gifted.
Whenever there is a problem; it is only natural to look for the culprit. With the growing hair issue is blamed on many factors such as women, the need to assimilate, and lack of education.
New dangerous trend in Sikhism is for woman to overlook men with beards and turbans and marry men that have gone clean shave. The overlooked men then feel the need to go clean shave to please these women. When women are asked why they had overlooked those men and to think about what that caused; their answer is a bit shocking because they feel the same way. The Sikh women also feel pressured by the men to get rid of their body hair to look prettier or they too are overlooked. So really both men and women are at fault for this trend. Sikhs need to promote the fact that it is not okay to change yourself to please one another, that is the only way to stop this trend.
In this day and age everyone is so busy trying to fit in that they often lose themselves in the crowd. Once lost in the crowd, they will try all sorts of ridicules things to stick out again. In their attempts the world well see them with many crazy haircuts, immodest clothes, among other things. Everyone wants to be individual but yet blend in the crowd too. One has to realize you have to pick one path and walk it. Sikhs have a God given way off sticking out and that is by following our rehat and keeping our hair. But the only way Sikhs well find the courage to walk this path is if they educate them.
Gurudwaras need to turn into schools for their Sikhs/Sangat. Sikhs need to be taught Gurbani, Rehat and the importance of both. They need to explain to the Sikhs in a particle manner each rehat and each teaching, not just tell them that this is how it’s always been. Only with particle education well Sikhs be able to hold their heads up high and keep their hair intact. Sikhs need to know how to answer questions and queries raised by non-Sikhs, instead of changing themselves to avoid the questions.
Sikhs need to know that they have hair for a reason and be able to tell others the same also. Two major reasons Sikhs keep their God given gift are; to become a walking talking Nishan Sahib and because they understand that God gave them hair for a reason. Sikhs let others know they are Sikhs by looking like Sikhs, they are Saint-Soldiers and they don’t blend in. They stick out so they can live to their dharam of being a Soldier. A Sikh with all their hair intact and their rehat maintained is a person that everyone knows they can identify and count on. But with keeping their hair, the Sikhs don’t just stick out to protect others.
Sikhs protect themselves also by keeping their hair intact. God gives everything for a purpose, and he gave us hair for a purpose to. Sadly, Hair is just like the appendix which seems to serve no purpose but yet can spread poison in our body when it bursts. The appendix is not taken out before it bursts, so why remove the hair before it dies? The purpose is not clear but both the appendix and the hair serve to protect us spiritually. Some of people have more hair because they need more protect, others have less. When people remove their hair, they open their lives to whatever the hair was protecting them from. You well notice that when you shave and the hair grows back more/worse, that is because Waheguru is trying to undo your damage and protect you. Let Waheguru help you, and if you don’t let him help you, then don’t blame him.
Sikhs need to stop playing the blame game and begin educating. No one is to blame for the Sikhs that are cutting their hair. So let’s focus our energy on a positive thing and do what Sikhs do best, learn. Sikhs are students and students need to learn and then teach or the cycle of education stops. Waheguru willing with education the Sikh children will not make same mistakes their elders did.