In response to the article by Tajamul Hussain (Greater Kashmir 4th October) Naked faces, I do not invoke religion to defend beard, but, attempt to remove many misconceptions that the author seems to be having regarding beard.
Here, I start with the story of the beard of the most famous American. This is what I found from the Time Archive:
‘Concerned that Abraham Lincoln’s gaunt, worry lined face was so severe, it might scare off the voters, 11-yr old Grace Bedel crafted a solution –grow a beard”.
In 1860, this little girl sent him a letter urging him to grow a beard to improve his appearance. That is how beardless Lincoln went from a clean-shaven candidate to a bearded man. This famous bearded face is the most popular face of America, and of course- the most sought after face-considering that this face adores the jingling pennies of the poor and the fat wallets of world’s rich. So, do not tell me that beards are unattractive or scary. Marlyn Monroe pronounced Lincoln ‘the sexiest man in American history’. Pablo Picasso is supposed to have kept a boxful of Lincoln’s photographs and engravings in his studio exclaiming to a visitor once, ‘There is the real American elegance!’ (NY Times). Lincoln was inspired to have his signature beard by a little girl dancing in her fairytale world. So, a note to take for the beard haters!
To, Tajamul Hussain’s statement, ‘A shaven face is potentially cleaner and healthier’ our microbiology studies have actually opposite to say. E. Wakean in a hospital based study from US hospitals tested swabs from faces of 408 hospital staff workers with or without facial hair. The results showed that clean-shaven men were more likely to be carrying methicillin-resistant-staph-aureus (MRSA) on their cheeks. Clean-shaven men were 10-percent more likely to have colonies of staphylococcus aureus on their faces (it is a bacterium that causes skin, respiratory infections and food-poisoning). Researchers suggest that these findings could be due to microabrasions caused by shaving the skin, which support bacterial colonization and proliferation. The findings of this study were published under the title ‘Bacterial ecology of hospital workers’ facial hair- a cross-sectional study’ in Journal of Hospital Infection, 2014; 87(1):63-7. BBC in an episode titled, ‘trust me I am a doctor with a beard” discussed the matter threadbare and concluded that bearded healthcare workers do not increase the risk of infection. Not only were the men with beard harboring less microbes, but Dr Adam Roberts, a microbiologist from UCL was able to grow 100 different bacteria from swab samples taken from the beard, which were efficiently killing other harmful bacteria. These may in future replace the antibiotics. So, beards harbor less dangerous microorganisms- in fact the protective ones. You ought to read these articles before you call the beards dirty and unhealthy.
Not only on the anti-infective front, beards as per the research conducted at the University of Queensland have been found to have anti-cancer properties. Alfio Parisi from University of Southern Queensland found that beards block about 90% of harmful ultraviolet rays and reduce the risk of cancer. Facial hair as per this study has a protection factor of 21, whereas, sunscreen has a protection factor of 30. So, beard is a natural sunscreen and has anti-cancer properties. ‘Beards act as scent-trap and a shaven-faced is potentially more fragrant’ is what Mr. Tajamul says. However, science says ‘Beards are filters which help to keep allergens from entering your mouth and nose thereby reducing the chance of allergies’. (Times of India , Jan 18, 2016).
‘A shaven face is gentle to touch, a shaven face is unconsciously associated with a more sophisticated condition’ – this is a self-made statement by Mr.Hussain which is contradicted by what literature has to say. Journal of Evolutionary Biology (2016) in a study titled ‘The masculinity paradox: facial masculinity and beardedness interact to determine women’s ratings of men’s facial attractiveness’ concluded that women exhibit preference for men with thick beard as they are seen to be more attractive and better for a long term relationship. ‘A shaved face is less masculine, it reduces the visual effect of male aggressiveness’ says Mr. Tajamul. Why would a woman like a man who is less masculine? And, do women really like effeminate men is my question?
In a study based on 228 managers who interviewed candidates for various jobs published in Journal of Evolutionary Biology (2018) reported ‘bearded job applicants are more likely to get position on offer and are rated higher for personality, competency and composure’. It’s not just women who find beards attractive: employers do, too.
Beards are fashion statements, they attract attention. Leave aside saints and gurus, mullahas and preachers, beard has added charm to the faces of Virat Kohli, Ranveer Singh, Shahid Kapoor, Shekhar Kapoor, Ben Affleck, George Clooney and Hugh Jackman. It has not affected the acting skills of actors like Prabas and Shahid Kapoor. Kohli does not look less handsome with his signature beard. John Hamm’s beard became so famous that New York Times magazine honored it with its own obituary when he shaved it off.
‘Beard is rough to touch. A shaved face is gentler to touch’, says the worthy author. But, this is what is actually the fact, ‘Blemishes and cuts are common among those who shave on a regular basis leading to roughness of the sensitive facial skin. Beards make the skin look smooth and younger’. ‘For a person who regularly shaves, seasonal changes like heat and cold cause dryness of the skin; sebaceous glands which are the natural moisturizers get eroded in clean shaven men by constant use of razors. Growing a beard can save you from the ill-effects of artificial moisturizers and can help sebaceous glands to function normally’. (Times of India , Jan 18, 2016).
Night hides the sins-beard hides the chins. As they say- grow beard to hide a small chin , a double chin or a multitude of blemishes. People with shaved faces may outnumber the bearded ones, but that does not give the ones without a beard a right to call bearded men ‘bushy and unclean’. Beard is a not a scale to measure the level of cleanliness or the height of sophistication. Having beard is a personal choice and in many cases a religious obligation too. Muslims, Sikhs and Jews regard beard as a religious obligation and calling bearded fellows by uncivilized names is not the way the civilized ones should behave.
As Muslims, cleanliness represents half of our Iman, so a bearded Muslim true to his religion will have a neat and a well trimmed beard; keeping beard unkempt and dirty is not a practice with Muslims-I am sure it is true for other faiths as well.
For now, bearded men need not worry-their beard is a blessing which will fetch them love, work and faith, let clean shaven men go slow on their razors!
rumanahamid@rediffmail.com