Shaving My Hair

Two days ago I decided to shave my hair down to a length of 7mm. It’s pretty short compared to my usual kind of haircuts, but it was something to try out. 

The pros are nice. I don’t have to care about my bedhead. It takes seconds to clean, and dry out, so I use less shampoo, hair products, and water. It’s extra nice during dog days, and it doesn’t cost me a thing to maintain since I bought my own hair clipper.

Buddhist monks shave their heads to signify they have given up worldly attachments. As Seneca himself wrote, the way we treat our hair shows we are way too obsessed about our personal appearances: “How angry they get if the barber has been a bit too careless, just as if he were shearing a real man! How they flare up if any of their mane is lopped off, if any of it lies out of order, if it does not all fall into its proper ringlets! Who of these would not rather have the state disordered than his hair?” For a Buddhist, cutting your hair is reducing the attention you give to looks. 

Now, I’m not a Buddhist, so I frankly have no such intention behind this gesture—having very short hair is rather quite fashionable these days. But I find it quite interesting to do that in a period where I’m supposed to live a seemingly monastic life working hard on my digital products.

When Samson lost his hair, however, he also lost his strength. I’ll have to see that for myself. Fortunately, I’m young enough for all my hair to grow back.