Baha'i Haircut Law: Why Create a Law if your going to break it youself?

[spirit_of_dawn]

According to Baha'i law, shaving one's head and allowing hair to grow longer than the lobe of the ear is forbidden:

"Shave not your heads; God hath adorned them with hair, and in this there are signs from the Lord of creation to those who reflect upon the requirements of nature. He, verily, is the God of strength and wisdom. Notwithstanding, it is not seemly to let the hair pass beyond the limit of the ears. Thus hath it been decreed by Him Who is the Lord of all worlds." (Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i Aqdas)​

Of course the second law only applies to men (what happened to equality of men and women?!!):

"Shoghi Effendi has made clear that, unlike the prohibition on shaving the head, this law forbidding the growing of the hair beyond the lobe of the ear pertains only to men." (The Kitab-i Aqdas, notes)
​

However, Baha'u'llah, Abdu'l-Baha, and even Baha'u'llah's scribe (Mishkin Qalam) completely ignored this law:

What's the use of a law that the Prophet, His successor, and his closest companions aren't willing to implement themselves, then expect their followers to implement them?! If you can't abide by your own rules then why do expect others to do so?

 

[Axe Elf]

I don't practice what I preach, because I'm not the kind of person that I'm preaching to.

 

[Trackdayguy]

According to Baha'i law, shaving one's head and allowing hair to grow longer than the lobe of the ear is forbidden:

"Shave not your heads; God hath adorned them with hair, and in this there are signs from the Lord of creation to those who reflect upon the requirements of nature. He, verily, is the God of strength and wisdom. Notwithstanding, it is not seemly to let the hair pass beyond the limit of the ears. Thus hath it been decreed by Him Who is the Lord of all worlds." (Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i Aqdas)​

Of course the second law only applies to men (what happened to equality of men and women?!!):

"Shoghi Effendi has made clear that, unlike the prohibition on shaving the head, this law forbidding the growing of the hair beyond the lobe of the ear pertains only to men." (The Kitab-i Aqdas, notes)
​

However, Baha'u'llah, Abdu'l-Baha, and even Baha'u'llah's scribe (Mishkin Qalam) completely ignored this law:

View attachment 26108


What's the use of a law that the Prophet, His successor, and his closest companions aren't willing to implement themselves, then expect their followers to implement them?! If you can't abide by your own rules then why do expect others to do so?

Really......! The God who made the universe is concerned with how long your hair is? No wonder the masses are of sick religion.

 

[Jumi]

What's the use of a law that the Prophet, His successor, and his closest companions aren't willing to implement themselves, then expect their followers to implement them?! If you can't abide by your own rules then why do expect others to do so?

If you on your honor vow with your deepest honesty that this is truly an important law then yes it's curious.

 

[SalixIncendium]

If you can't abide by your own rules then why do expect others to do so?

Surely, you meant "won't" rather than "can't" (unless they lacked an sharp edged tool).

Because creating rules is a means of control. The creators of those rules needn't have that means to control themselves. They mean to control those that follow them.

 

[Dawnofhope]

What's the use of a law that the Prophet, His successor, and his closest companions aren't willing to implement themselves, then expect their followers to implement them?! If you can't abide by your own rules then why do expect others to do so?

The laws in the Kitab-i-Iqan are considered a charter for a future civilisation. As such many of the laws were not applicable at the time they were written and many are not even applicable now. The laws you have listed, for example, are not yet applicable for Baha’is in the West. They may require clarification as to what exactly they mean.

 

[spirit_of_dawn]

As such many of the laws were not applicable at the time they were written and many are not even applicable now.

That has got to be the lamest excuse I have ever heard. Yes Adrian we know it was utterly impossible during the time of Baha'u'llah and Abdu'l-Baha to keep your hair shorter than the earlobe. Even with the technological advances of our age God knows what hardships one must endure to get a haircut that is in conformance with the Baha'i law on haircuts. You are totally right. Those laws "were not applicable at the time they were written and many are not even applicable now."

 

[Dawnofhope]

That has got to be the lamest excuse I have ever heard. Yes Adrian we know it was utterly impossible during the time of Baha'u'llah and Abdu'l-Baha to keep your hair shorter than the earlobe. Even with the technological advances of our age God knows what hardships one must endure to get a haircut that is in conformance with the Baha'i law on haircuts. You are totally right. Those laws "were not applicable at the time they were written and many are not even applicable now."

Spin it as you will. Bahá’u’lláh spent the last 40 years of His life in exile and in prison. Nine of those years were in Akka where conditions resulted in the deaths of three members of the companions due to poor sanitary conditions early during their incarceration. It was famously rumoured the air was so foul smelling that a bird flying overhead would plummet to its death on account of the stench. Those were the conditions of Akka where the Aqdas was revealed. I doubt if all the prisoners going to the local barbershop was either practical or a priority.

 

[spirit_of_dawn]

Spin it as you will. Bahá’u’lláh spent the last 40 years of His life in exile and in prison. Nine of those years were in Akka where conditions resulted in the deaths of three members of the companions due to poor sanitary conditions early during their incarceration. It was famously rumoured the air was so foul smelling that a bird flying overhead would plummet to its death on account of the stench. Those were the conditions of Akka where the Aqdas was revealed. I doubt if all the prisoners going to the local barbershop was either practical or a priority.

Again false statements and lame excuses. Baha'u'llah's last 13 years were spent in a fancy mansion surrounded with Gardens and not in some rotten Prison. From Wikipedia citing Baha'i sources:

The final years of Bahá'u'lláh's life (1879–1892) were spent in the Mansion of Bahjí, just outside Acre, even though he was still formally a prisoner of the Ottoman Empire. During his years in Acre and Bahjí, since `Abdu'l-Bahá, his eldest son, had taken care of the organizational work, Bahá'u'lláh was able to devote his time to writing, and he produced many volumes of work including the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, his book of laws.[50]
​

I can't believe to what lengths you are willing to go to try to make it seem impossible that someone could have easily gotten a haircut.

 

[George-ananda]

The laws in the Kitab-i-Iqan are considered a charter for a future civilisation. As such many of the laws were not applicable at the time they were written and many are not even applicable now. The laws you have listed, for example, are not yet applicable for Baha’is in the West. They may require clarification as to what exactly they mean.

Didn’t you mean Kitab-i-Aqdas and not Kitab-i-Iqan?

But anyway it does seem odd to me that this hair length advice was not followed even by Baha’is of that time. Any thought on this?

I consider the Aqdas to be one of the weak issues of the Faith personally.

 

[Vinayaka]

Didn’t you mean Kitab-i-Aqdas and not Kitab-i-Iqan?

But anyway it does seem odd to me that this hair length advice was not followed even be Baha’s of that time. Any thought on this?

I consider the Aqdas to be one of the weak issues of the Faith personally.

Of all the 'not following the rules' situations on this topic, I think the fact that the grandson didn't have a will, when clearly it was a rule (at the very least highly recommended) caused the most confusion for many. Hair, meh..

 

[Audie]

Surely, you meant "won't" rather than "can't" (unless they lacked an sharp edged tool).

Because creating rules is a means of control. The creators of those rules needn't have that means control themselves. They mean to control those that follow them.

As I understand it the army ( and dog trainers)
(Or N Korea) use lotsa senseless rules to exercise
control.

Big surprise that religions do it too. (Not)

 

[Audie]

Again false statements and lame excuses. Baha'u'llah's last 13 years were spent in a fancy mansion surrounded with Gardens and not in some rotten Prison. From Wikipedia citing Baha'i sources:

The final years of Bahá'u'lláh's life (1879–1892) were spent in the Mansion of Bahjí, just outside Acre, even though he was still formally a prisoner of the Ottoman Empire. During his years in Acre and Bahjí, since `Abdu'l-Bahá, his eldest son, had taken care of the organizational work, Bahá'u'lláh was able to devote his time to writing, and he produced many volumes of work including the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, his book of laws.[50]
​

I can't believe to what lengths you are willing to go to try to make it seem impossible that someone could have easily gotten a haircut.

It doth call to mind the lengths gone to by one of our
JWs to show that the frozen mammoths were flash
frozen as a result of "the flood".

 

[George-ananda]

Of all the 'not following the rules' situations on this topic, I think the fact that the grandson didn't have a will, when clearly it was a rule (at the very least highly recommended) causes the most confusion for many. Hair, meh..

I agree

 

[Trackdayguy]

Get a life people................

 

[Trackdayguy]

Spin it as you will. Bahá’u’lláh spent the last 40 years of His life in exile and in prison. Nine of those years were in Akka where conditions resulted in the deaths of three members of the companions due to poor sanitary conditions early during their incarceration. It was famously rumoured the air was so foul smelling that a bird flying overhead would plummet to its death on account of the stench. Those were the conditions of Akka where the Aqdas was revealed. I doubt if all the prisoners going to the local barbershop was either practical or a priority.

I guess you gotta have a lot of faith to believe that.....

 

[Dawnofhope]

Didn’t you mean Kitab-i-Aqdas and not Kitab-i-Iqan?

But anyway it does seem odd to me that this hair length advice was not followed even by Baha’is of that time. Any thought on this?

I consider the Aqdas to be one of the weak issues of the Faith personally.

I did mean the Aqdas, my mistake.

The Kitab-i-Aqdas was revealed in Akka in 1873. The photos of Bahá’u’lláh were taken 1868 prior to His 4th exile to the prison city. So the photo predates the law about hair by about 5 years.

I suspect that appearances were in keeping with Persian nobility at that time.

The period of Bahá’u’lláh’s incarceration during His time in Akka from 1868 to 1877 we’re unlikely to be the best time for implementing new laws.

Bahá’u’lláh arrives in the Holy Land - The Life of Bahá'u'lláh

 

[Dawnofhope]

Again false statements and lame excuses. Baha'u'llah's last 13 years were spent in a fancy mansion surrounded with Gardens and not in some rotten Prison. From Wikipedia citing Baha'i sources:

The final years of Bahá'u'lláh's life (1879–1892) were spent in the Mansion of Bahjí, just outside Acre, even though he was still formally a prisoner of the Ottoman Empire. During his years in Acre and Bahjí, since `Abdu'l-Bahá, his eldest son, had taken care of the organizational work, Bahá'u'lláh was able to devote his time to writing, and he produced many volumes of work including the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, his book of laws.[50]
​

I can't believe to what lengths you are willing to go to try to make it seem impossible that someone could have easily gotten a haircut.

Bahá’u’lláh was exiled from Persia 1852 to the end of His life in 1892. He was not free to return to His homeland.

From the same website you quote from;

A royal command was issued in July 1868 condemning the Bábís to perpetual imprisonment and isolation in far-flung outposts of the Ottoman Empire — Famagusta, Cyprus for Mirza Yahya and his followers, and Acre, in Ottoman Palestine, for Bahá'u'lláh and his followers.[46]

The Bahá'ís, including Bahá'u'lláh and his family, left Adrianople on 12 August 1868, and, after a journey by land and sea through Gallipoli and Egypt, arrived in Acre on 31 August and were confined in the barracks of the city's citadel.[46] The inhabitants of Acre were told that the new prisoners were enemies of the state, of God and his religion, and that association with them was strictly forbidden. The first years in Acre imposed very harsh conditions with many becoming sick, and eventually three Bahá'ís dying.[46] Dr. Thomas Chaplin, director of a British Hospital in Jerusalem[47] visited Bahá'u'lláh in April 1871 and sent a letter to the editor printed in The Times in October.[48] This seems to be the first extended commentary on Bahá'u'lláh in western newspapers.[49] It was also a very trying time for Bahá'u'lláh, whose son, Mirzá Mihdí, died in June 1870 at the age of twenty-two when he fell through a skylight while pacing back and forth in prayer and meditation. After some time, relations between the prisoners and officials and the local community improved, so that the conditions of the imprisonment were eased and eventually, after the Sultan's death, Bahá'u'lláh was allowed to leave the city and visit nearby places. From 1877 until 1879 Bahá'u'lláh lived in the house of Mazra'ih.[46]

Bahá'u'lláh - Wikipedia

 

[TransmutingSoul]

According to Baha'i law, shaving one's head and allowing hair to grow longer than the lobe of the ear is forbidden:

You would be aware that it is offensive to a Baha'i to post the Picture of Baha'u'llah on the internet. It would be kind of you to remember that please.

This is a law that is not clear and has never been fully clarified. As such the letter of this law as it is written can not be changed by the Universal Hoise of Justice, but they have the authority as to when to implement this.

As stated above, it is yet to be implemented in the West and Speaking to Persian Baha'is on this subject, they are also not aware of the full requirements.

Thus when itis implemented, there may be a variety of haircuts that will result from this fact. We may not all look like clones.

I am sure the wisdom will unfold.

Regards Tony

 

[Trackdayguy]

You would be aware that it is offensive to a Baha'i to post the Picture of Baha'u'llah on the internet. It would be kind of you to remember that please.

Really.... Baha'ullah had internet back then.

You really think that this stuff is important to the God you made the spider and the stars, come on guys open your eyes.