I am far from the concepts of purification of karma, and a haircut does not carry a religious and philosophical implication for me. I, a simple Russian vacationer, had to go to an Indian master because of necessity.
Have you ever had such a thing that you come to the sea-ocean, and your hairstyle is not at all designed to fit in with a restless wave and gentle sea breeze? You are no charming Mowgli, you are becoming more like a plucked swamp kikimora. After sea procedures, the hair sticks to the top of the head, at the ends they ruffle in a splash. Where? Where is she, that natural beauty against the backdrop of white sand, which we see on advertising posters about travel? So I have the same question every time.
I ask the master-compatriot to cut me so that after washing my hair I wave my small hair, and my hair fell under the breeze in a slight careless mess. But in Russia they cut expensively, for a long time and with the expectation of daily morning styling. Usually I am happy, because for the office I still have to use a hairdryer and special combs, creating a neat bob. On vacation, the conditions are different – after somersaults in a raging wave, a selfie requires instant natural beauty.
After suffering for a couple of days from the reflection of my species in the Indian muddy mirrors, I made a clear decision – to go to the Indian barber. I did not see women’s workshops on my way, so I was looking for at least some semblance of a hairdresser’s on the dusty streets of Goa, even if with a male master. I must say that I walked around the barbers on the street, because I did not really imagine that they would cut me on a chair near the road. Later I found out that in India there are separate hairdressing salons for men and women. “Thirst for profit” (laughing) sometimes forces barber to take a lady’s head, but European women are not allowed into the premises, placing them an armchair on the street. Indian women do not have their hair cut by strangers, because their heads cannot be touched by a stranger who cannot touch their hair. This is due to the fact that an outsider can take away their positive energy and strength. Indian women, according to the Vedas (mantras, prayers), are advised to wear hair as long as possible, because it contains psychic energy. It is possible to cut a centimeter only in a negative period in order to change karma for the better.
Looking into a couple of “salons” and explaining with gestures that I needed to be cut off, I got not very pleasant emotions – the barbers waved their hands and sent me home. The Russian-speaking guide explained that men do not want to deprive me of my connection with space with their own hands – namely, the hair leads a woman along a mystical path.
While I was pounding at the closed doors, I learned that hair shortening should be done during the waxing moon. And the age-old foundations prohibit cutting on Saturday – this day is considered unfavorable for new hairstyles.
The full moon is coming soon, Saturday too – you have to catch everything!
The goddess of Hinduism Lakshmi, who is responsible for good luck and happiness, heard my prayers, and in the village of Morjim I stumbled upon a women’s salon!
What can I tell you, I was surprised, albeit a crooked, but luminescent sign at the entrance, the relative cleanliness of the facade and the woman hairdresser who met me on the doorstep.
– Make pliz gut !!!
“Well done!”
In my opinion, this is the only thing that we understood from verbal communication with each other. Everything else happened with the help of gestures and facial expressions … from my side. The master was more restrained in her emotions. Waving my hands, I explained that I need to leave the square, but remove the hair from the crown. Do not cut the bangs, there should be a ladder at the back, raise the hair on the crown, the length of the hair is below the earlobes, the forehead is open, I will remove the bangs behind my ear, and in general I should come out of the water beautifully. You can probably imagine the expression on the Indian stylist’s face as she looked at my explanations.
She decided to stop my flapping wings by roughly turning my head towards the mirror. I understood the gesture and humbly succumbed to the will of the scissors. There was no point in asking about the cleanliness of the instruments. By the way, in India I use their cosmetics, so my hair was in coconut oil. They weren’t going to wash them for me. Indeed, they are clean, just stuck together. The hairdresser cut the strands off casually, not trying to open them even a little evenly. It seemed to me that they were behaving with me in a boorish and impolite manner, twisting my skull in different directions. Chik-chik-chik – rags flew in different directions, and I watched this action with one eye with horror. They cut my hair for exactly 11 minutes, spotted me. Paulo Coelho meant another eleven minutes, but there was something of his romance in her haircut – most likely a practiced habitual speed.
Turning my head roughly and categorically, the hairdresser let me know that the case was over. Oh, Hindu gods, that was what we needed! My first thought: why do I spend so much time on craftsmen in Russia? The second – why am I paying so dearly for this, because the price here told me at 70 rupees, which is 70 rubles. Shaking my oily hair a few more times, I was so pleased with the result that I paid Rs 300 gratefully. The master accepted such a reward without much gratitude and bows, putting the bills in the pocket of her dress with dignity.
I don’t know where the hairdresser is doing my cut hair, because according to the Vedas (mantras, prayers), they need to be burned or thrown into the deep Ganges (or at least into the nearest river). I hope she buried them – this is also permissible so that no one uses my jubilant cosmic energy. The rest of my vacation I spent enlightened, with purified karma and happy in Russian, because a light breeze was combing my hair like the best stylist in the Universe, and I looked truly captivating.