In ancient India and most eastern cultures, beards were venerated at a higher level than almost anywhere else. Long beards stood for dignity and wisdom, strength and courage, and this is often the case today. Beards in these places were so revered that they were also used in the prosecution of crimes.
“The benefit of having a beard is protection, as well as esthetics,” Dr. Harvey says. “Its good protection against wind, chafing and traumatic injury. It's also a trend, so we see a lot of men with some form of facial hair.”
From ancient civilizations to modern-day society, beards have been a symbol of power, wisdom, and even rebellion. Beards in Ancient Times: In ancient Egypt, a well-groomed beard was a sign of high social status. Pharaohs even wore fake beards made of metal as a symbol of their divine power.
In religious contexts, beards were seen as a sign of piety and devotion, with the act of growing a beard considered a sacred practice.
grow the beard in British English
verb. informal. (of a TV series) to gain credibility or improve in quality during the course of a series following a specified development.
As a secondary sexual trait, men's beards could affect the social perception of their age, social status, and dominance, all of which are primarily important in male-male competition and secondarily in attractiveness to females.
The Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said: “Oppose the Mushrikeen, lengthen the beards and trim the moustache.” It is stated in Durrul Mukhtaar that, “It is Haraam for men to trim/shave their beards. The Sunnat length is fist-length,” (Page 223, Vol. 4).
Not surprisingly, bearded faces were rated higher on masculinity and aggressiveness. But here's where it gets interesting: The researchers also found that bearded faces were rated as more prosocial than clean-shaven faces. Specifically, bearded happy faces were rated as more prosocial than clean-shaven happy faces.
Facial Hair as a Sign of Maturity & Attraction. Since you're not going to be seeing any little kids or women sporting beards, it's a known identifier as physical maturity in men. In a similar study to the beard aggression one, it was found that beards are associated with maturity and higher social status by both sexes.
Beard is a slang term, American in origin, describing a person who is used, knowingly or unknowingly, as a date, romantic partner (boyfriend or girlfriend), or spouse either to conceal infidelity or to conceal one's sexual orientation.
Beards also signal sexual maturity. Like women's breasts that develop at puberty and shrink with menopause, little boys can't grow beards while older men's gray beards confirm that the height of their virility has passed. But on the more conscious level, men also grow beards to accentuate their jawline.
Women find men with light stubble most attractive, and men with full beards as most masculine. A fuller beard is perceived as indicative of good fathering ability and more investment in offspring. Some women do not care for men's facial hair at all.
The beard is a symbol of manhood, virility, and sovereignty. It is wisdom, a mark of the knowledge of the elders, and is often the mark of male dignity. Hence, a bearded woman is often a witch. In the Old Testament, the beard can only be cut as a form of penance, mourning, punishment or putting someone to shame.
All Israelite men grew beards; God commanded it: “You shall not round off the hair on your temples or mar the edges of your beard” (Leviticus 19:27). Beards were a facial billboard for manhood, distinguishing men, at first glance, from boys and women.
Age, however, does affect beard growth in some cases. The “prime” time for facial hair growth is between the ages of 25 and 35, generally speaking. But many men report that their beard continues to grow at a healthy rate even after they qualify for an AARP card.
Since the ability to grow a beard is a sign of physical maturity in men, it is naturally associated with age and grown manhood — as is evidenced by a study that found that beards were associated with maturity, power, and higher social status by both men and women.
Evolutionary psychology explanations for the existence of beards include signalling sexual maturity and signalling dominance by the increasing perceived size of jaws; clean-shaved faces are rated less dominant than bearded.
The beard provides the face with protection from the elements, and a natural shield from the more delicate parts of the face around the mouth and lips. Next, prehistoric men grew their beards for protection. The thick, rich beards that they could grow were so full that they helped cushion blows to the face.
In some cultures, a beard is a rite of passage, a symbol of coming into one's own. In others, it's a sacred emblem, woven with spiritual significance. From the boardrooms to the backstreets, beards carry with them an aura of mystery and power.
It symbolized authority, wisdom, and divinity, setting Jesus apart from the clean-shaven Roman emperors and aligning him more closely with the Old Testament prophets, who were also depicted with beards. It was all about creating a visual link between Jesus and the holy men of the past.
Shaving the beard in Israel was for the ceremony of cleansing (Leviticus 14:9), a sign of humiliation (2 Samuel 10:4-5), or a sign of mourning (Jeremiah 41:5). Plucking out the beard (Ezra 9:3) was a sign of frustration, anger, or mourning.
In Leviticus 19:27, which is part of the Holiness code, Jews are prohibited from "destroying" the corners of the beard.
The Amish beard started as a beard with no mustache or soul patch and branched off into many different styles that you'll see outside of Amish culture today. However, the basic premise is still the same — a thick, long, and healthy beard without a mustache.
Scholars have also suggested that it is likely Jesus had short hair and a beard, in accordance with Jewish practices of the time and the appearance of philosophers. The earliest depictions of Jesus from the Roman catacombs depict him as free of facial hair.