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Journey of a Sikher
So few months ago I decided to do something daily that I normally reserved for Fridays and weekends. That was to let my beard down and stop trying to tame it into submission every morning. Tying a beard properly takes time and effort; it also takes a lot of patience as anyone who has styled hair knows that every day is different. Depending on the humidity or other factors each day was/is a challenge. I have nothing against tying a beard, I did / do it for years but there was always something inside me that did not feel right about it. Maybe it was the fact that it just seemed like something I was hiding, and taking painstaking efforts to look neat and groomed to western standards. Even today when I sit in executive meetings, all around me are nicely groomed gentlemen; there are times where I feel a little insecure about my long bushy beard. But there are those random glimpses of my shadow or reflection in the mirror that for a split second remind me who I am, that make it worth it! My beard is a part of me, it is part of my identity and it is a part of my uniqueness, it connects me to something so special. It is a prevalent part of my face, in fact between the beard and turban I am just a set of eyeballs and nose! I belong to something greater than just trying to look great for society; I am trying to look my best for something better something higher and something that means much more than this. My entire image belongs to something else, it is not mine, what a dent to an ego that is, when you fail to be able to even have your own image. This is the thing I am most proud of, what my ancestors gave lives for and what has driven me spiritually for years, this image, this uniqueness and this power to stick out is why I am where I am, nothing I did could have gotten me this far. The power and humility I feel when I tie my turban or brush my beard with my hand, it automatically connects me, reminds me constantly that my actions have consequences that I have certain ideals to live by and very high standards that this image represents, to meet. When I leave my beard down it just makes me feel normal, it makes me feel at ease with myself, plus the fact that I don’t have hairspray on my face making me feel sticky, or flaky gel, or pins which are pulling at random hairs. What’s the point of looking groomed when you feel uncomfortable, grooming is not about looks it’s about cleanliness and you can be clean while having a beard if you brush it daily, wash it daily and maintain healthy habits. There is a special thing about a flowing beard, a natural beauty and feeling which does not come when you tie it. When the wind goes through your beard it moves as if it was just an extension of your face, it makes you stick out even more, it makes you go against pretty much all sense of western style imaginable, and there is a comfort in that, to walk a path that is rarely tread, to put yourself out there. I have the occasional, pressure to tie it in formal functions, but you know, life is about living in an experience not from pressures from others. I have chosen to try what the inner voice in myself states to try, if that means I am criticized or admired that part has no relevance just that I need to live it, to know it. This is who I am, this is what I believe and where I feel comfortable. I imagine that in the past Sikhs would have lived / looked like this, they would be proud of this identity and uniqueness that assists in spiritual development. For those who tie their beards more power to them, I have experienced both ends of this spectrum and let me tell you the freedom from products and stress of trying to keep something molded in a shape is liberating, I wake up brush my beard the occasional hand pat down throughout the day to keep it somewhat tidy and I let the wind and nature do the rest. |
Ever since I have gotten my beard when I was a teenager I was excited about it, it made me feel older, look older and was the beginning of ‘manhood’. Since it became longer I remember trying various products to tie it up, to make it look neat and tidy. Using pins, hairspray, mousse, or combinations of all of them I tried pretty much every product to see how it would work. It was a great hobby, the goal was to try to make it look so nice and neat, each hair in its place gelled to perfection. After 9/11 I realized one day that nobody knew I had a long beard as it was always tied up and looked ‘trimmed’ to the common eye, so I started doing beard down Fridays, to show that I have a long uncut beard which I tie up, to those around me this was a very interesting sight, one day the beard looked small next day it was down to my chest.