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Personal practices · On your own · Every day, at the bath

Body hair

“Never cut the hair of the joints of the body.”Caryácarya 2, “Sixteen Points”

Watch how it is done
A man in white doing a seated yoga twist on a mat outdoors, one arm raised behind his head

Why we do it

The aim of yoga is Supreme Consciousness

  1. 1

    The aim is Supreme Consciousness. The goal of yoga is far off, like a distant star system.

  2. 2

    The instrument to reach that goal is the mind. It is the subtlest part of us, so it is the only part fine enough to reach the aim.

  3. 3

    The method is meditation. Seeing a star takes a telescope pointed at it; reaching Supreme Consciousness takes the mind pointed at it. That is meditation.

  4. 4

    The preparation and care. A telescope has to be looked after, cleaned and set right to see the stars. The mind is the same. Every practice does this for the mind, directly or through the body, because the mind is connected with the body.

    See how it leads to the goal ↓

Reaching the goal through Body hair

Keeping the joint hair brings us to the goal through the glands. The hair guards the lymphatic glands; removed, they overheat and the thyroid and parathyroid, the glands of psychic development, weaken. Kept, the body follows nature's arrangement and the mind can develop and rise; sádhaná carries that growth on, and the mind, expanding, is freed from its bonds. That is the goal of yoga.

  1. 01

    Where it grows

    The hair of the joints grows where the lymphatic glands are, in the armpits and the groin.

    “When the lymphatic glands in the armpits and leg joints are activated, hairs start to grow in those parts of the human body.”
    Yoga Psychology, “The Human Body Is a Biological Machine”
  2. 02

    Nature's arrangement

    It is nature's own arrangement: the hair keeps the heat of the body balanced and protects the skin where it rubs.

    “Due to the quick development of physical energy at this age, nature has provided necessary hair at the joints of the body to keep the body heat balanced and, because of the possibility of rubbing, to keep the skin healthy.”
    Yogic Treatments and Natural Remedies, “Nocturnal Emission”
  3. 03

    If it is removed

    Removed, the lymphatic glands overheat and secrete too much, and the thyroid and parathyroid work less.

    “Joint hair grows near the lymphatic glands in the armpits and [genital area]. If this hair is removed, then the lymphatic glands tend to overheat, causing over-secretion, and this in turn decreases the function of the thyroid and parathyroid glands.”
    Yoga Psychology, “Glands and Sub-Glands”
  4. 04

    The glands of the mind

    The thyroid and parathyroid are the glands of psychic development and intellectual elevation; the lymphatic glands serve physical activity.

    “The thyroid and parathyroid glands are concerned with psychic development and intellectual elevation, while the lymphatic glands are more concerned with physical activity, hence monkeys can jump higher and swing further than human beings.”
    Yoga Psychology, “Glands and Sub-Glands”
  5. 05

    Harm to body and mind

    So removing this hair harms both the body and the mind.

    “So when people remove this hair owing to lack of proper knowledge, they harm themselves both physically and mentally.”
    Yogic Treatments and Natural Remedies, “Nocturnal Emission”
  6. 06

    The mind can rise

    With these glands strong, the mind can develop and rise: it is by them that human beings have evolved beyond the animal.

    “One of the reasons why human beings are more evolved than monkeys is that their thyroid and parathyroid glands are more active.”
    Yoga Psychology, “Glands and Sub-Glands”
  7. 07

    Freed in expansion

    Sádhaná carries this growth on: the mind expands, and in expanding it is freed from its bonds. This is the goal.

    “Brahma paves the way for expansion and, in the process of expansion, liberates human beings from their bondages.”
    Ánanda Vacanámrtam 4, “Tantra Is Sádhaná, Sádhaná Is Tantra”

What it is

The hair of the joints of the body, in the armpits and the pubic region, is never cut: this is the third of the Sixteen Points. At every bath these places are cleaned properly. Every day after the bath the hair is combed and oiled; coconut oil is the usual choice, and other oils can be used as well.

In the sources

“Nature’s rules should be observed in all respects, whether in food, in behaviour or in one’s daily life. At the beginning of adolescence and youth, one has to acquire a correct knowledge about the arrangements that nature has made to meet the demands of human bodies and minds, because through such knowledge one can protect oneself from the onslaught of disease.”Yogic Treatments and Natural Remedies, “Nocturnal Emission”

“The thyroid and parathyroid glands are concerned with psychic development and intellectual elevation, while the lymphatic glands are more concerned with physical activity, hence monkeys can jump higher and swing further than human beings.”Yoga Psychology, “Glands and Sub-Glands”

“There is an inverse relation between the lymphatic glands and the thyroid and parathyroid glands: if one is more active then the other is less developed and it becomes weak. For this reason, the joint hair should not be removed.”Yoga Psychology, “Glands and Sub-Glands”

How to do it

  1. 1

    When taking a bathCaryácarya 3, “General Health Rules” (5)

    “When taking a bath, all parts of the body, in particular the armpits and groin, should be cleaned properly. Soap, oil, and comb should be used every day. The body hair should never be cut, especially in the armpit and pubic region.”

    In practice: Every day. After the bath the hair of the armpits and the groin is combed and oiled. Coconut oil is the usual choice; other oils can be used as well.

What studies of hair removal found

Removing body hair

  • US emergency-room records showed an estimated 11,704 genital injuries from grooming between 2002 and 2010, a fivefold rise over the period; razors caused 83% of them.

    Glass AS et al., 2012, Urology

  • In a national US survey of 7,580 adults, people who groomed their pubic hair, especially those who removed all of it often, reported more sexually transmitted infections. The study shows an association, not proof of cause.

    Osterberg EC et al., 2017, Sexually Transmitted Infections

Stories

  • The five fires

    During a reporting session, Bábá scolded one of the brothers, "Why did you shave the hair of your body joints? Don't be stupid; never do that again. You must preserve the hair of your joints and keep it clean as part of the Sixteen Points." Bábá explained to the rest of us, "There are two groups of people. The first group is called the Paiṋca Kesha. They never trim or shave the hair from five areas of their bodies-mainly their joints. These are called Paiṋca Agni — the Five Fires. The hair in these areas maintains the heat of their bodies in a balanced state. That is why Parama Puruśa gave the human body hair in those areas. …" … "So never trim or shave the hair of your joints, do you understand?" "Yes, Bábá," we said.Read the story

    — A monk at a reporting session, Ác. Shamitánanda Avadhúta, “Bábá Unparalleled: 102 Stories”, no. 91

  • Combing after the bath

    One day in Bábá's house at Lake Gardens, I was … "Shamitananda, are you following the Sixteen Points very strictly?" He asked. "I am trying, Bábá." "Are you combing your joint hair after taking a bath and using coconut oil?" He became a little serious, "Why not?" "I don't like to comb my joint hair." No one knew this besides me — Bábá caught me. Firmly, He said, "You do not like it, but I gave this for your benefit—you should use it." "Yes, Bábá, I will comb my joint hair from now on," I said. Bábá not only knows everything, but he also helps us improve through gentle or strict guidance.Read the story

    — Ác. Shamitánanda Avadhúta, in Bábá’s house at Lake Gardens, Ác. Shamitánanda Avadhúta, “Bábá Unparalleled: 102 Stories”, no. 35

  • Behind the house

    … Bábá then said, "Everything else is okay with you. But what made you violate the Sixteen Points?" He could not recollect what Bábá was referring to and was trying hard to remember. Bábá did not give him time, He supplied the cue. "Can't you remember? It was three years, two months and four days back. It was late afternoon. You were sitting alone in a room in the corner of your village home. Unnoticed by anybody, you shaved clean your pubic hair. 'Who will see it,' you thought. Isn't it so? Then, wrapping it in paper, you threw it out behind the house. There was a big tree there, remember?" "Yes, Bábá. It is true, but that was before I was initiated. I was not a Márgii then and didn't know the Sixteen Points." "True, you were not within the Márga. But does that mean I should not take interest in your activities or be ignorant of your faults and lapses?" Bábá added ironically, "Anyway, you may be excused on those grounds. But in any case, a fault is a fault after all!" …Read the story

    — The general secretary at a reporting session, Lake Gardens, Calcutta, early 1980s, Ác. Sarveshvaránanda Avadhúta, “My Days With Bábá”, “17. Those Two Eyes”

What Shrii Shrii Ánandamúrti said

  • “When taking a bath, all parts of the body, in particular the armpits and groin, should be cleaned properly. Soap, oil, and comb should be used every day.”
    Caryácarya 3, “General Health Rules”

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