Monkish Haircut

I just had my hair cut short the other day - very short, almost bald like the picture you see above. They call it "semikal" short for "semikalbo". I don't know why I decided to have my hair shaved that way considering that summer is almost over. In any case I still like it. My head feels light and cool. My mom actually commented that I looked like some Tibetan Buddisht monk in the Himalayan region. I actually do minus the red-orange vestments that they wear and I love it.

My not so fabulous hairstyle is "in" for these trying times because I get to save on shampoo and conditioner; soaps will do. For now I need not to worry about sticky gels, hair sprays, hair creams, hair conditioners, and err...pomade (courtesy of my uncle). Combs have become next to useless. No more 100 brushstrokes to keep my hair shiny and scalp healthy. I just need to stroke my head with my bare hands (my head actually feels like soft fine bristles of toothbrush). No more drying of wet hair using the electric fan, too (saves me something on electricity). No more falling dandruffs. No head lice. No fleas. No leeches. Nada. With a hair this short, it will take some time before I visit the barber shop again. (saves me bucks) In short, shorter hair means less vanity. There is no need to check on your hair frequently in front of the mirror. I bet you'll see the same thing the same way everytime.

It makes me wonder then why monks sport a bald top. Hmm. Is it part of their ascetical practice? Maybe. A sort of detachment from all things vain and balding? I guess (hair can be a source of vanity, just ask the ladies). Or are they just imitating the one who started it all...Buddha? Perhaps. In any case, having no hair definitely affords them less distraction in contemplating greater things. Men with alopecia (male-pattern baldness) should learn a lesson of detachment from the monks. Sooner or later most men will lose their hair as they grow older. Why worry then? Just leave it to the girls.