Head and facial hair,
according to ancient Hindu conceptions of purity and impurity (ashaucha), trap
and maintain ritual impurities.
In most situations, this impurity is simply washed away with
flowing water, just like the rest of the body.
Men will often complete their time of impurity by shaving
both their heads and beards in circumstances of especially violent impurity,
such as that associated with death (maranashaucha).
They may also get their nails trimmed, indicating a belief
that any non-essential elements of the body should be eliminated in order to
eliminate any remaining impurities.
The chudakarana, or tonsure ceremony, which marks the
ceremonial end of infancy and removes any residual impurities left over after
delivery, also involves shaving the head.
Men are normally the ones who shave their heads in
adulthood; women usually provide a symbolic strand of hair as a sign for the
entire, however women may have their heads shaved to fulfill a religious
commitment.
Shaving the head is rather frequent, but shaving the body
hair is not—the Sanskrit language has separate terminology for these two forms
of hair, and they are regarded to be completely different entities.
You may also want to read more about Hinduism here.
Be sure to check out my writings on religion here.
