When I started this blog, it was really to take a deep dive into the spiritual world, while combining it with my love, knowledge, and skill as a cosmetologist. And what made this specific topic come up was the fact that I desperately needed a haircut.
It’s been over a year, and as a hairstylist, it’s important to be a great representation and model for your clientele. I was torn.
It’d be hypocritical to preach about not cutting your hair (like some cultures do), when I knew that in our modern world, haircuts benefit almost everyone.
So I found myself deep in a rabbit hole, and here is what I concluded.
HAIR-story
Believe it or not, haircuts and hair styling actually dates back to ancient civilizations including Egypt, Greece, and Rome. And throughout many historic time periods, hair was often used to indicate social status, wealth, or occupation.
Ancient Egyptians were said to have used razors made of flint or bronze.
No one person invented the ‘haircut’.
Civilizations naturally sought out ways to manage, maintain and shape their hair whether it was for practical or aesthetic reasons.
Regular Haircuts are Still a Good Thing
And it’s important to remember this.
I’ve found that a lot of spiritual cultures did not cut their hair. And for good reason, I believe.
Not only does it keep you connected to the environment that surrounds you by heightening your awareness, but it connects you to spirit and holds wisdom.
But here’s what I’ve also noticed…
Intentionality is key. The environment and era they lived in was completely different from what we experience today. GMO’s, chemicals, toxins and other environmental pollutants were not as prevalent in their world as they are in ours.
In today’s world, cutting your hair is necessary to keep it spiritually and physically healthy.
Your Haircuts Should Be Intentional
So yes, while a haircut is important for the physical benefits, it can have a great effect on the spirit too.
Regular haircuts or trims improve scalp stimulation, resetting its microbiome, while also removing split ends and breakage.
This is how your hair is able to grow long and strong. And without a haircut- yeah you can forget about long, luscious locks.
But, a haircut can remove dead ends in the non physical form as well. If you’ve read The Power of Spiritual Hair Care, you know that your hair keeps score.
Any experience or encounter in your life leaves an emotional and energetic imprint on your hair. And sometimes, those experiences can weigh heavily on your spirit.
This is why after life changing or transformative periods in our lives, we often like to switch up our hair styles, but some of us are not conscious of the deeper meaning behind it.
Ritualize Your Haircuts
Cutting your hair is not an easy feat to some. Your hair is not only an extension of you physically, but spiritually as well. To many, it acts as a security blanket.
People get emotionally attached to their hair, I’ve seen it many times.
I’m also one of them, but we can just keep that between us.
STOP THROWING YOUR HAIR AWAY
At salons today, when you cut your hair, it’s discarded in the trash.
That’s kind of symbolic of tossing a part of you in the trash.
In many eastern cultures, intentions are set and ceremonies are held for any changes to your hair. Ritualizing your hair cut honors where you were and where you are now.
Instead of letting your hair sit in the trash, only to be transported to a landfill with other negative energies, have you ever tried a hair cutting ritual?
The ritual doesn’t need to be over the top, but can be a small gesture to honor that part of you.
Create your own Ritual
As a stylist, I rarely let others cut my hair. Not because I don’t trust that they’ll do a good job, but my spirit doesn’t sit well with their energy. Whether you’re a stylist or client, check out the importance of protecting your energy in any beauty service setting.
I trim about 2 inches every six months. But instead of throwing away a piece of me, I started to honor that part of myself.
what my ritual consists of:
- Trim freshly washed, wet or damp hair (or if you have curly hair like me, I will flat iron it to make sure everything is even before cutting).
- Collect cut hair and place it in a safe area.
- Write a letter to whomever you believe in. In this letter, I try to reflect on what I went through personally during that time period. Whether it was bad or good, I give thanks for the experience and what it taught me. And more so, I am thankful that I got through it and got to where I am now. I release any tendencies or feelings that I think hold me back, and invite positive energies to flow back to me.
- Place your hair in the letter and fold it up.
- In a safe area outdoors, light your letter and cut hair on fire with a match, and release those energies back into the universe.
- Finish by Hair Oiling (optional) which you can fill with position intentions and let sit on your hair and scalp for an hour. Then cleanse thoroughly. Let any left over negative energies wash down the drain.
I’ve done this a handful of times, and I have found comfort in this process. I think it truly allows you to connect with something outside of yourself, but still honors your spirit at the same time. If you go to the salon to get your hair cut, you can ask your stylist to save your hair for you.
So yes, two things can be true at the same time. A spiritual journey can mean never cutting your hair or getting regular trims. It depends on what you believe in. The intention behind it is what gives meaning.
Have you done any hair rituals? If so, I would love to hear about it!