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A BRIEF HISTORY OF DREADLOCKS
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and ELOHEIM
Dreadlocks, sometimes called simply dreads or locks, are matted ropes of hair which will form by themselves if the hair is allowed to grow naturally without the use of brushes, combs, razors or scissors for a long period of time. Dreadlocks are a universal phenomenon and through the ages, people of various cultures have worn dreadlocks. It can be said that what are known today as "dreadlocks" are one of the oldest and most universal hairstyles known.The first known examples of dreadlocks date back to ancient dynastic Egypt, where Egyptian royalty and commoners wearing dreadlocked hairstyles and wigs appear on bas-reliefs, statuary and other artifacts. Mummified remains of ancient Egyptians with dreadlocks,[1] as well as dreadlocked wigs, also have been recovered from archaeological sites.The first known written records date back to the Vedic scriptures of India, when the dreadlocked Vedic deity Shiva and his followers were reported in as "jaTaa", meaning "wearing twisted locks of hair", probably derived from the Dravidian word "caTai", which means to twist or to wrap. The extact date of the Vedic scriptures is still debatable. While traditional Hindu scholars date it back to 5000 BCE and historians such as Dr. David Frawley from the American Institute of Vedic Studies concluded that the Rig Veda had been completed before 3500 BCE, some modern western scholars tend to connnect the scriptures with the Aryan Invasion Theory and date it around 1800 BCE-1500 BCE, though recent archeological finds in India (like Dwaraka) now appear to require a much earlier date.The Vedas are the primary texts of Hinduism. They had a vast influence on Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism and also influenced the Celtic religion, society and folklore. According to Roman accounts of the time, the Celts wore dreadlocks as well, describing them as having "hair like snakes".Germanic tribes, the Vikings, the Greeks, the Pacific Ocean peoples, and the Naga people also wore dreadlocks.Several ascetic groups within various major religions have at times worn their hair in dreadlocks. In addition to the Nazirites of Judaism and the Sadhus of Hinduism, there are the Dervishes of Islam and the Coptic Monks of Christianity, among others. The very earliest Christians also may have worn this hairstyle. Particularly noteworthy are descriptions of James the Just, "brother of Jesus" and first Bishop of Jerusalem, who wore them to his ankles.Dreadlocks also have been part of Mexican culture. In a description of an Aztec ritual, Historian William Hickling Prescott referred to dreadlocked Priests of the Aztec civilization, a Mesoamerican people of central Mexico in the 14th century, 15th century and 16th century."On the summit he was received by six priests, whose long and matted locks flowed disorderly over their sable robes, covered with hieroglyphic scrolls of mystic import. They led him to the sacrificial stone, a huge block of jasper, with its upper surface somewhat convex." (William H. Prescott, History of the Conquest of Mexico)In Senegal, the Baye Fall, followers of the Mouride movement, a sect of Islam indigenous to the country which was founded in 1887 by Shaykh Amadu Bmba Mbkke, are famous for growing dreadlocks and wearing multi-coloured gowns. Cheikh Ibra Fall, founder of the Baye Fall school of the Mouride Brotherhood, claims that he was "the first dread in West Africa".Rastafari with long dreadlocks.In Jamaica the term dreadlocks was first recorded in the 1950s when the "Young Black Faith", an early sect of the Rastafari which began among the marginalized poor of Jamaica in the 1930s, ceased to copy the particular hair style of Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia and began to wear dreadlocks instead. Different theories exist about the origin of Rastalocks.Some sources trace Rasta locks back to Indians who arrived in Jamaica to work as indentured laborers in the late 19th century, some of whom were among the first followers of Leonard Howell. Others believe the first Rasta dreadlocks were derived from the "dreaded locks" of the Mau Mau, the violent, largely Kikuyu protonationalist insurgency against British colonialism in 1940s Kenya. Most Rastafari, however, explain Rastalocks with one of the three Nazarite vows, in the Book of Numbers, the fourth of the books of the Pentateuch.All the days of the vow of his separation there shall no razor come upon his head: until the days be fulfilled, in the which he separateth himself unto the LORD, he shall be holy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow. (Numbers 6:5, KJV)Nazarites for life who wore dreadlocks and were mentioned in the Bible include the Nazarites Samuel, John the Baptist, and probably the most famous biblical figure with locked hair, Samson, who, according to scripture, had seven locks and lost his great strength when they were cut.
Meaning and popularityThere are many reasons among various cultures for wearing dreadlocks. Dreads can be an expression of deep religious or spiritual convictions, a manifestation of ethnic pride, make a political statement, or be simply a fashion preference.
Religious or spiritual convictionsSadhu with jata (long dreadlocks) twisted in a knot on top of the headAmong the Sadhus and Sadhvis, Indian holy men and women, dreadlocks are sacred, their formation a religious ritual and an expression of their disregard for profane vanity and a manifestation of a spiritual understanding that physical appearances are unimportant.This Sannyasin, the particular phase of life in which the person develops Vairagya, a state of determination and disillusionment with material life, does not merely follow a public pattern that includes letting his or her hair grow in matted locks, but goes through a profound inner transformation that is expressible through traditional symbols. The public symbol of matted hair is thus re-created each time an individual goes through these unique experiences. The emphasis in this tradition is on the transmutation of the lower instinctive powers into a great energy which expresses the will of the deity.Dreadlocks also represent Shiva's power. Gangadhara Shiva captures and controls the river Ganges with his locks, whose torrential descent from the heavens otherwise would have deluged the world. As the Lord of Dance, Nataraja, Shiva performs the tandava, which is the fierce, violent dance in which the universe is destroyed. Shiva's long, matted tresses, usually piled up in a kind of pyramid, loosen during the dance and crash into the heavenly bodies, knocking them off course or destroying them utterly. In almost all myths about Shiva and his flowing locks, there is a continual interplay of extreme asceticism and virile potency, which link up the elements of destruction and creation, whereas the full head of matted hair symbolizes the control of power.Dreadlocks in India are reserved nearly exclusively for holy people. According to the 'Hymn of the longhaired sage' in the ancient Vedas, long jatas express a spiritual significance which implies the wearer has special relations with spirits, is an immortal traveller between two worlds and the master over fire:The long-haired one endures fire, the long-haired one endures poison, the long-haired one endures both worlds. The long-haired one is said to gaze full on heaven, the long-haired one is said to be that light. ...For him has the Lord of life churned and pounded the unbendable, when the long-haired one, in Rudras company, drank from the poison cup. (The Keshin Hymn, RV 10.136)The Shaiva Nagas, ascetics of India, wear their jata (long hair) in a twisted knot or bundle on top of the head and let them down only for special occasions and rituals. The strands are then rubbed with ashes and cowdung, considered both sacred and purifying, then scented and adorned with flowers.A variation on dreadlocks, the Polish plait (China)In East Asian countries, such as China, dreadlocks and a variation on locks, the Polish plait, initially treated as an amulet supposed to bring good health, have been regarded with superstition throughout the ages.The Baye Fall wear dreadlocks which are called ndiange or 'strong hair' in imitation of Ibrahima Fall, chief disciple of the spritual guide Shaykh Amadu Bmba Mbkke with the goal to cultivate a unique relationship with God through the Shaykh.Similarly, the Rastafari wear dreads as an expression of inner spirituality. For them, the term "dread" refers to a "fear of the Lord", expressed in part as alienation from the perceived decadence and other evils of contemporary society and a return to the Covenant with the Almighty, Jah Ras Tafari.Another interpretation among the Rastafari is that "dread" refers to the fear dreadlocked Mau Mau warriors inspired among the colonial British.Although Emperor Haile Sellassie I did not wear the locks, dreadlocks on a Rasta's head are symbolic of the Lion of Judah which is sometimes centered on the Ethiopian Flag. Rastas hold that Selassie is a direct descendant of the Israelite Tribe of Judah through the lineage of Kings of Israel David and Solomon, and that he is also the Lion of Judah mentioned in the Book of Revelations.
AN OLD FILM ABOUT LIFE IN ETHIOPIA!
