rates_armanibodhidharmaJunior year in high school, before I formally came down with the spiritual dis-ease, a Tibetan monk came to visit my class to talk about religion. When asked why he shaved his head and bore robes, the monk responded as if he was describing a prerequisite for embarking on the spiritual path: “So I’ll be ugly.”

Several years later, fully infected and on the search, I spent several months at an American Zen Center where I had the opportunity to talk with several Westerners who had taken on the role and life of a traditional monk. One day the topic turned to hair: “Why is it that Buddhist monks shave their heads, while Christian and Hindu monks tend to let all of their hair grow long?” I asked. “Well, they’re just different ways of letting go of who you think you are and caring what you look like. Some may grow long beards but you would never see them wearing a goatee or mustache” he replied. Read the rest of this entry »