My understanding is that some sects of Islam believe that all men should grow beards. OBL and all the Islamic guys I see on TV have beards. (Note, I am not equating OBL with all Islam believers) My question is simple. What if a man cannot grow an OBL type Beard?
I have a ‘Shaggy’ beard growth. (Shaggy being the guy from Scooby Doo who had 11 hairs growing out of his chin) I have about 11 hairs growing out of my chin. They can get long but they never will be a beard. Am I damned for that? Should I buy a chin Toupee so I can act like I have a beard?
A lot of pictures of Islamic fundies have teenaged looking guys with really stupid looking beards. I guess that answers your question – if 11 hairs is all you can grow, grow 'em and call it a beard.
Most of my muslim friends don’t have beards, nor believe that they need to. Many emirati men have sort of semi-beards - more like long stubble, that I belive derives from a Bedouin look.
Talking of single hairs I used to find the keeping of very-long-mole-hairs (AFAIK for superstitious reasons) on the faces of Asian (usually chinese I think) guys in Sydney quite repulsive. Like a mini-beard growing out of a brown patch.
Well, a beard is supposed to be worn, but it is (for a change) liberaly defined. Yaseen in my office always has about two days of five o’clock shadow. (How he manages this is a mystery.)
Marwan at 23 is too young yet to grow a proper beard.
Yousef doesn’t bother and shaves everyday. Nobody bothers him about it.
Osman has a full beard.
You are supposed to wear a beard, but not everyone does.
(Of course even the bearded ones shave. You don;t want to know more. Trust me.)
I don’t know about Saudi (where they are very strict) but in general beards are a symbol of how religious you are. All mullahs are expected to have a beard. Also many muslims grow a beard after they come back from Mecca (they feel all religious for a couple of months after they visit Mecca).
Generally speaking though muslims don’t have to grow a beard, they only do it if they think they are religious. The Taliban tried to force everyone to grow a beard and most muslims (around the world) thought they were a bunch of arseholes.
I don’t know why having a beard should make you any more religious than not having a beard.
Perhaps is not so much you have to have a beard as you aren’t supposed to cut your beard (in which case 11 hairs would be fine. I mean except that you might look silly)?
The Hasidic Jews base their haircut (payos and beard) on Leviticus 19:27 “You shall not round the corners of your head or mar the edges of your beard.”
Paul in Saudi, I do want to know. I suppose that the guys who wear full beards still have to shave their necks, don’t they? I certainly hope they do. I find a hairy neck to be rather unsavory.
Ok, secondary question. If I were to convert to an Islamic belief system where growing a beard is considered, or required, as a sign of religous belief could I become a mullah with my 11 long chin hairs? (Note, I am not joking about the 11 hair thing. I, at 32, shave once or maybe twice a week. If I have a suit job I shave twice a week, otherwise I just shave once a week.)
Also, if I didn’t make this clear, I understand that the beard thing is held only by some muslims. I think, but do not know, that those who believe you shouldn’t shave off a beard are in the minotrity.
God, if you see the clothes they wear under their abayas - ultra clinging, tight (franky tarty/slutty) designer gear. In the Christian LaCroix outlet here, 95% of customers are local women.
Most of the younger ones wear filmy and flappy abayas here, and you get a good look at all the gear underneath - from jeans to really sexy, smart stuff.
Culturally traditionally you can understand it, because in a country of high heat and virtually no water, shaving or waxing hairy parts would minimise the stink a bit.
istara, my bellydance teacher mentioned that. She’s blond and Canadian, but has danced in the M.E a fair bit. She said that whenever she got into an elevator with a bunch of women, they would all haul off their burqas and show her their cool lingere.