I’ll Never Leave My Hair Again

A couple times a year I get my hair cut. Six inches drop to the floor as I’m carved, once again, out of my lion’s mane. For years, I’ve been aware of hair art and sacred practices using hair. But until recently, I hadn’t thought about using my own hair for rituals. Now, I’ll never go back to seeing it dropped into a waste bin.

It started last year when, desiring a fresh start in life, I thought to ask my stylist for my hair. She scooped it up into a bag for me and I took it home, unsure what to do next. I propped the bag at my altar, and the weeks passed. I knew that, as with all of my rituals, I would intuitively know what to do and when.

Six months later, preparing for a long-planned name change and along with it, release of old stories and identities, it was time to use my hair. I created a three-part ritual that, along with my hair, included ancestors, mullein leaves, seeds, written declarations of my new name, a river send-off, and a burial. It was one of my most epic and joy-filled rituals!

I see my hair as sacred, representing a cycle of time, providing a way to both release what’s needed and renew myself. Hair holds power, and I want to embrace mine. As I step more and more into my power, I use ritual to both embody and energize my intention.

The next time I got my hair cut, I rested the pile in a large sea shell at the center of my altar beside Buddha. Two days later, on my half birthday, I burned my hair along with written manifestations for the coming six months. As I tended the fire, I fed all I desired, letting the wind carry my intentions.