dreadlocks

Rastaman with long locks

Dreadlocks, sometimes called simply locks or dreads, 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. Many religions and cultures specifically forbid the wearer to wash their hair, however, this is seen by the dreadlock community as an unfortunate stereotype. It is common for the wearer to perform thorough maintenance on their hair, including washing and various techniques of re-knotting, in order to maintain the desired appearance. Although the term 'dreadlock' was originally associated closely with the Rastafari movement community, people of various cultures have worn, and continue to wear, locks.

History

Hindu Belief: Shiva takes the weight of the mighty Ganges in his locks and imprisons her. She is released through the locks of his hair, which prevents the river's force from destroying earth, and the waters bring purification to the planet.

The first known examples of locks date back to ancient dynastic Egypt, where Egyptian royalty and commoners wore locked hairstyles and wigs appeared on bas-reliefs, statuary and other artifacts.^[1] Mummified remains of ancient Egyptians with locks, as well as locked wigs, also have been recovered from archaeological sites.^[2]

The locked Hindu deity Shiva and his followers were described in the scriptures as "jaTaa", meaning "wearing twisted locks of hair", probably derived from the Dravidian word "caTai", which means to twist or to wrap. According to Roman accounts of the time, the Celts wore dreadlocks as well, describing them as having "hair like snakes". ^{[citation needed]} Germanic tribes, the Vikings, the Greeks, the Pacific Ocean peoples, the Naga people and several ascetic groups within various major religions have at times worn their hair in locks. 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.

Locks may have also been part of Mexican culture before the 16th century spanish conquest. In a description of an Aztec ritual, Historian William Hickling Prescott referred to locked 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 Aamadu Bàmba Mbàkke, are famous for growing locks and wearing multi-colored gowns.[1] Cheikh Ibra Fall, founder of the Baye Fall school of the Mouride Brotherhood, claims that he was "the first dread in West Africa".

In Jamaica the term dreadlocks was first recorded in the 1950s as a derogatory term 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 locks instead. It was said that they looked 'dreadful' with their locks, which gave birth to the modern name 'dreadlocks' for this ancient style. Different theories exist about the origin of Rastalocks. Some sources trace Rastalocks 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 largely Kikuyu protonationalist insurgency against British colonialism in 1940s Kenya.[2]

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 locks 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.

Religious or spiritual connotations among Hindus

A dreadlocked Samson fights the lion in this drawing from a 15th century Icelandic manuscript.

There are many reasons among various cultures for wearing locks. Locks can be an expression of deep religious or spiritual convictions, a manifestation of ethnic pride, a political statement, or be simply a fashion preference. In response to the derogatory history of the term dreadlocks, alternative names for the style include locks and African Locks. It is also argued that the accurate term for the process of creating the style is locking rather than dreading.

Among the Sadhus and Sadhvis, Indian holy men and women, locks 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 an inner transformation. The public symbol of matted hair is thus re-created each time an individual goes through these unique experiences. 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.

Gangadhara Shiva captures and controls the river Ganges with his locks, whose descent from the heavens would have deluged the world. She is released through the locks of his hair, which prevents the river from destroying earth. As the Lord of Dance, Nataraja, Shiva performs the tandava, which is the dance in which the universe is created, maintained, and resolved. 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.

Locks in India are reserved nearly exclusively for holy people as well as shamans in many of the ethnic groups that still maintain such practices. 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 ... Of us, you mortals, only our bodies do you behold. ...For him has the Lord of life churned and pounded the unbendable, when the long-haired one, in Rudra’s company, drank from the poison cup (The Keshin Hymn, Rig-veda 10.136)

Sadhu with jata (long locks) twisted in a knot on top of the head

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.

Religious or spiritual connotations among Rastafari

Similarly, the Rastafari wear locks 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 Rastafari.

Another interpretation among the Rastafari is that "dread" refers to the fear locked Mau Mau warriors inspired among the colonial British.

Bunny Wailer's enigmatic album "Blackheart Man" tells the story of early Rastafarians in Jamaica who were shunned by the current post-colonial and colonial culture. It is no surprise, that the "stone that builder refused, shall be the head-cornerstone" as quoted from The Scriptures. Dreadlocks, as popularized worldwide by Bob Marley, has come to bring more fame to Jamaica than any other export.

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 Revelation.

The Ngati Dreads or Māori Rastafarians, indigenous people of New Zealand, combine the Rasta teaching with the teachings of Te Kooti Arikirangi Te Turuki, a Māori leader and the founder of the Ringatu religion who preached belief in God and the rejection of Māori tohungaism.

Other Cultures

In East Asian countries, such as China, locks and a variation on locks, the Polish plait, initially treated as an amulet supposed to bring good health, was often worn in combination with extremely long fingernails. These fashions were reserved mainly for noblemen and ascetics, who wished to advertise their freedom from menial labor and earthly attachment.

The Baye Fall, arising from Senegal, wear locks which are called ndiange or 'strong hair' in imitation of Ibrahima Fall, chief disciple of the spiritual guide Shaykh Aḥmadu Bàmba Mbàkke with the goal to cultivate a unique relationship with God through the Shaykh.

Political motivations for wearing locks

Environmental activist with thick locks

The rise in popularity of reggae music in the 1970s and the worldwide fame of singer and songwriter Bob Marley prompted an interest in locks internationally. The anti-establishment philosophy of Rastafari, echoed in much of the reggae of the time, had a particular resonance for left-leaning youth.

Like the afro, locks also can have social and political ramifications. For some peoples of African descent, locks are a statement of ethnic pride. Some see them as a repudiation of Eurocentric values represented by straightened hair. For some, the rejection of ideas and values deemed alien to African peoples (which locks embody) sometimes can assume a spiritual dimension. Similarly, others wear locks as a manifestation of their black nationalist or pan-Africanist political beliefs and view locks as symbols of black unity and power, and a rejection of oppression and imperialism. While most Rastafari sects welcome all ethnicities and the history of locks attributes the hairstyle to almost all ethnic groups, some blacks who attach strong ethnic meaning to locks disapprove of the wearing of locks by nonblacks, viewing such practice as a form of cultural appropriation.

In white counterculture, locks have become popular among groups such as the "anti-globalization" movement and environmental activists (such as Swampy, well-known in the 1990s). One issue of SchNEWS, an English anarchist newsletter, described the coming together of striking dockworkers and green protesters as "Docks and dreadlocks come together". ^[3] Some people also describe them as "neo-hippies."

Rastafari and British film director and musician Don Letts, explained the punk-rasta unity, which emerged in Great Britain during the early 1970s, in terms of a shared sense of a rebellion against the establishment and established norms.

The reggae thing and the punk thing...it's the same fuckin' thing. Just the black version and the white version. The kids are singing about the change, they wanna do away with the establishment. ...Our Babylon is your establishment, same fuckin' thing. If we beat it, then you beat it, and vice versa... Like with me hair, and the red, gold, and green. Once you put that hat on your head you're takin' on a whole lot of shit, you know what I mean? Same as a punk, right, a punk wears his clothes. He's makin' an outward sign he's rebelling. (Don Letts, 1977 interview with Sniffin' Glue ^[4])

Raver with multi-colored, woolen and synthetic dreadlocks

Dreadlocks are also popular in crust punk and grindcore subcultures.

Apart from anti-establishment politics and spiritual reasons, some white people have claimed their reason for adopting locks is to honor and cherish Celtic or Viking tribal identity.^{[attribution needed]} However, there is no historical evidence for dreadlocks having ever been a traditional feature of these cultures.

Within other youth subcultures, locks also can be a means of creative self-expression, a symbol of individualism and a form of rebellion against traditional ties and restrictions. For example the members of the Cybergoth movement in Europe setting out to shock with creative hair displays like wildly coloured lock wigs, "dread falls" and elaborate extensions complemented by dramatic make-up to oppose representations of authority and conformity.

In Western popular culture

Man with dreadlocks

When the reggae music in the 1970s gained popularity and mainstream acceptance, the locks, often just called “dreads”, became a fashion statement, a trend for the secular, worn by prominent authors, actors, athletes, rappers, even portrayed as part of a gang culture in some movies (such as Marked for Death).

With the "Rasta style", the fashion and beauty industries capitalized on the trend. A completely new line of hair care products and services emerged in salons that catered to a Caucasian clientele, offering all sorts of "dreadhead" hair care items such as wax, shampoo, and jewelry. Hairstylists created a wide variety of modified locks, including multi-colored, synthetic lock extensions and "dread perms", where chemicals are used to treat the hair.

Hair salons in Black communities boomed as well, with well-known Black artists such as Rosalind Cash, Whoopi Goldberg, Alice Walker, Toni Morrison, Lauryn Hill, Lenny Kravitz, Malcolm Jamal Warner, Living Colour and Keith Hamilton Cobb inspiring a "new" look for Afrocentric hair free from chemical processing. However, some salons offered "natural" Afrocentric styles by attaching locks of false or artificial hair similar to locks to the natural hair. Locks that used to take five years to develop became available at the local stylist in approximately five hours. These dreadlock wearers are derided as "rentadreads" or "rentals" by true Rastafarians. While some mistakenly view Milli Vanilli as examples of this type of dread, their hair was actually styled in multiple braids viewable on several of their album covers. Microbraids as well as two-strand twists are sometimes mistaken for dreadlocks.

Locked models appeared at fashion shows, and Rasta clothing with a Jamaican-style reggae look were sold. Even exclusive fashion brands like Christian Dior created whole Rasta-inspired collections worn by models with a variety of lock hairstyles.

"Trustafarian" is a sarcastic term for a rich, white young person with locks. The word combines "Trust-Fund" with "Rastafarian".

"Fashion dread" is a derogatory term used for male dreadlock wearers who shave their beards and the fringes of their dreadlocks, or otherwise sport dreadlocks to attract women.

In cinema several well known characters sport dreadlock such as:

The twins of The Matrix trilogy wear silver suits, have pale skin and wear a dreadlock hairstyle.

Along with other characters from the "Pirates of the Caribbean" trilogy, including Tia Dalma, Jack Sparrow has a few thin dreadlocks along with apparently undreaded hair.

The 2006 hit song which many attribute as the one that jumpstarted the Hyphy Movement by E-40, Tell Me When To Go, included the lines "Jesus Christ had dreads, so shake 'em / I ain't got none but I'm plannin' on growin' some" and "Shake them dreads!". These lines, especially the latter, are easily recognized by Bay Area urban youth (as well as many across the United States, given the commercial success of the song).

The Predator alien in Predator, Predator 2 and Alien vs. Predator (AVP) has rubbery-looking dreadlocks.

The furiously political singer of rap/rock group Rage Against the Machine, Zack de la Rocha, has his signature dreads.

During the beginning years of Seattle-based rock and grunge act Alice in Chains, frontman Layne Staley was often well-known for his blonde dreadlocks, which went along well with his style of headbanging which was a simple movement of lowering his head, and moving it back and forth.

Tom Kaulitz of Tokio Hotel sports dreadlocks

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

locks

• Bad Brains
• Edgar Davids
• Bob Marley
• Beenie Man
• Backcombing
• Hinduism
• Rastafari movement
• Sadhu
• Brian Grant
• Shiva
• Ziggy Marley
• Polish plait
• King Booker
• Lil Wayne
• T-Pain
• Lauryn Hill
• India.Arie
• Brian Fair
• Sister Toldja
• Jonathan Davis
• Zack de la Rocha
• Aaron Rose from the Gossip Girl series

Notes

References

• "The African Presence in India: A Photo Essay," by Runoko Rashidi

External links

• Guardian article
• Dreadlocks Guide and examination in depth of Rasta culture
• DreadHeadHQ

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