Vol 4 Page 503

EDITOR'S NOTE TO “SHOULD MEN CUT THEIR HAIR?”

[The Theosophist, Vol. IV, No. 9, June, 1883, p. 219]

[This short article, by Alexander Wilder M.D., F.T.S., is written in defence of the practice of wearing long hair. It is followed by this comment of H. P. B.’s:]

Fashion—which has somehow succeeded in making “respectability” its queer ally—forbids Christian civilized society wearing their hair long at this period of our century. In this the so-called Christian civilization is guilty of inconsistency, and its clergy of disrespect, since Jesus and his Apostles are shown to have worn long hair—every one of them except Paul. The Nazars of the Old Testament never allowed the razor to touch their head. The Aryan Rishis, the Yogis, the Sadhus of every kind wore and still wear their hair long. The initiates of Tibet do the same. In Europe, the Greek and Russian clergy alone, along with their monks, have preserved the wise habit, and the longevity of some of the last named is proverbial.