The long journey of evolution from ape to man was marked by conspicuous shedding of body hair. Why then did we retain a full head of hair? Was it just chance/ a mere roll of dice/ an evolutionary trade-off which endowed us with our crowning glory?
Not so. It so happens that Africa, where we were born and where we decided to stand on our own two feet, is hot! The full glare of the equatorial sun beat down on our (then) rather bald heads. Recognising a tendency towards hot-headedness, Mother Nature decided to take matters in her own hands and provided us with a thick mop on our heads – an in-built sunhat, so to speak! A sunhat composed of layers of weatherproof keratin – a material so tough to be practically indestructible!
Then she played around with colours and tweaked with textures – and found that curls could cool us more efficiently than straight, lanky hair!
Curls are Cool
But why, you may ask, do we need so much of cooling off? Because of what lies inside – that marvellous but delicate organ – our brains. The brain works by generating nerve impulses, which are basically tiny bursts of electrical activity. The heat generated makes our brain temperatures higher than our body temperature. This is where a full head of hair steps in – to cool our fevered brains and allow it to work without having a meltdown! Even more interestingly (the curly-haired can take a bow), the extra cooling provided by curls allowed our brains to grow bigger, making us the clever modern humans we are today!
Maintaining our manes
In an exemplary display of gratitude, the brain vowed to never to forget its saviour. History stands witness to the time, effort, and thought it has devoted to maintaining our (magnificent) manes. The Egyptians styled, dyed, shaved, wore wigs and even had hair extensions! No pharmacopoeia – from ancient Ayurveda to the medieval text of Trotula and Nostradamus were complete without detailed decoctions for hair care.
Hair Care — from alum to allium
The list of ingredients for hair care have ranged from the mundane to the exotic. From alum to allium, we have left no stone unpounded and no onion unsqueezed in an effort to find the perfect elixir for our hair! Commoners crushed coconut and curry leaves while royalty opted for cognac and crocodile fat. Algae and seaweed, soap-nuts and overripe bananas, murumuru and ylang ylang are among the many entrants in the astounding array of shampoos, oils, conditioners, gels, serum, mists and sprays that we use to lavish attention on our locks! The search continues!
Tales and Traditions
In the late afternoons, as we braided our pampered tresses, we wove in magical tales into them. Tales of tender romance and murderous revenge; stories of strength and sacrifice. How the unkempt wild locks of Draupadi and Medusa seeked revenge and wreaked havoc. Of the treachery of Delilah as she cut off Samson’s hair. Of Rapunzel of the long golden hair imprisoned in her high tower. Around the embers of the campfire, tales were told of Berenice‘s sacrifice as her mane shone among the stars above.
Hair was not merely a sign of health and beauty. It symbolised a woman’s wealth, sexuality and fertility; and a man’s strength, power and virility. Native Americans believed hair to be an extension of their sensory system. At some point, the indestructible nature of dead keratin became imbued with immortality. We preserved our locks – both as grisly trophies of war and tender tokens of love!
Endowed with mystical and spiritual properties, hair became tied to myths, superstitions, and customs. From womb to tomb, rituals governed our locks – from the first cut in infancy to the last wash in death. Hair styled our status in society – whether maiden, matron, widow; master or slave; high priest or outcaste. Laws determined how much was concealed or revealed. To go against against these norms was an act of rebellion, or one of humility… or humiliation.
Losing our heads over hair loss
Hair continues to be deeply entwined with our own self-worth and our cultural and spiritual identity. Which is why we rather tend to lose our heads when we start losing our hair. Baldness may be sexy, but few can be persuaded to think so. Both men and women have gone to extraordinary lengths to cover their balding heads. Wigs and giant periwigs, hair fertilizers and hair transplants, humans want their full head of hair… and anyhow!
With so much riding on our waves and curls, its no wonder that we react rather violently to those who would harm a hair of our heads. After all, we need every precious strand of it to keep our cool!