I read this on sikhnet
http://fateh.{url not allowed}/s/WhyTurbans
“Turban as Technology
Turbans go way back in history as part of a spiritual practice. The top of your head is the tenth gate or the crown chakra. It is normally covered by hair that acts as antennae to protect the top of the head from sun and exposure, as well as to channel sun and vitamin D energy. Yogis or Sikhs do not cut their hair, they coil or knot it on top of head on their solar center. In men the solar center is on top of the head at the front (anterior fontanel). Women have two solar centers: one is at the center of the crown chakra, the other is on top of the head towards the back (posterior fontanel). For all, coiling or knotting the hair at the solar centers channels one’s radiant energy and helps retain a spiritual focus.
This hair knot is traditionally called the “rishi” knot. In ancient times, a rishi was someone who had the capacity to control the flow of energy and prana in the body. A “maharishi” was someone who could regulate the flow of energy in the body, meditatively and at will. The rishi knot assists in the channeling of energy in meditation (Naam Simran). If one cuts off the hair, there can be no rishi knot. By giving us the rishi knot and the turban the Guru gave us the blessing to have the capacity of a rishi.
The 10th Sikh Master, Guru Gobind Singh, taught his Sikhs to take the next step: Put a turban on the head covering the coiled, uncut hair. The pressure of the multiple wraps keeps the 26 bones of the skull in place. There are pressure points on the forehead that keep you calm and relaxed. Turbans cover the temples, which protects you from mental or psychic negativity of other people. The pressure of the turban also changes the pattern of blood flow to the brain. (These are all reasons that women should also wear turbans.) When you tie up your hair and wrap the turban around it, all the parts of your skull are pulled together and supported. You feel clarity and readiness for the day and for what may come to you from the Unknown….”
I have read elsewhere of someone saying that “Sikhs wear turbans to protect themselves from certain energies.”
Is this truly one of the purposes the Gurus intended for a turban – to assist to channel-in certain energy, and to repel other/negative energy?
I also read this:
“Why do Sikh women wear the chuni over their turban?
Ideally, a woman also wears a chuni over her turban. It takes a lot of consciousness and dedication because it's definitely more trouble. The chuni worn under the chin and across the shoulder protects the grace of the woman. To put it simply, men have a beard to give a protective energy field around the face, women don't. The chuni provides that protection so you don't attract the wrong kind of energy. It means a woman is not sexually available. This is not just a cultural thing, it actually changes the way people – especially men – see and relate to her.”
I have NEVER before heard that SIKHISM says that one purpose of the chunni is to send a message that a women is “not sexually available”….this sounds more like a hijab’s purpose…I have never considered the turban/chunni on a women to mean anything to do with “modesty” or sexuality, speaking strictly from a Sikh religion perspective (culturally it may have such a meaning).
http://fateh.{url not allowed}/s/WhyTurbans
“Turban as Technology
Turbans go way back in history as part of a spiritual practice. The top of your head is the tenth gate or the crown chakra. It is normally covered by hair that acts as antennae to protect the top of the head from sun and exposure, as well as to channel sun and vitamin D energy. Yogis or Sikhs do not cut their hair, they coil or knot it on top of head on their solar center. In men the solar center is on top of the head at the front (anterior fontanel). Women have two solar centers: one is at the center of the crown chakra, the other is on top of the head towards the back (posterior fontanel). For all, coiling or knotting the hair at the solar centers channels one’s radiant energy and helps retain a spiritual focus.
This hair knot is traditionally called the “rishi” knot. In ancient times, a rishi was someone who had the capacity to control the flow of energy and prana in the body. A “maharishi” was someone who could regulate the flow of energy in the body, meditatively and at will. The rishi knot assists in the channeling of energy in meditation (Naam Simran). If one cuts off the hair, there can be no rishi knot. By giving us the rishi knot and the turban the Guru gave us the blessing to have the capacity of a rishi.
The 10th Sikh Master, Guru Gobind Singh, taught his Sikhs to take the next step: Put a turban on the head covering the coiled, uncut hair. The pressure of the multiple wraps keeps the 26 bones of the skull in place. There are pressure points on the forehead that keep you calm and relaxed. Turbans cover the temples, which protects you from mental or psychic negativity of other people. The pressure of the turban also changes the pattern of blood flow to the brain. (These are all reasons that women should also wear turbans.) When you tie up your hair and wrap the turban around it, all the parts of your skull are pulled together and supported. You feel clarity and readiness for the day and for what may come to you from the Unknown….”
I have read elsewhere of someone saying that “Sikhs wear turbans to protect themselves from certain energies.”
Is this truly one of the purposes the Gurus intended for a turban – to assist to channel-in certain energy, and to repel other/negative energy?
I also read this:
“Why do Sikh women wear the chuni over their turban?
Ideally, a woman also wears a chuni over her turban. It takes a lot of consciousness and dedication because it's definitely more trouble. The chuni worn under the chin and across the shoulder protects the grace of the woman. To put it simply, men have a beard to give a protective energy field around the face, women don't. The chuni provides that protection so you don't attract the wrong kind of energy. It means a woman is not sexually available. This is not just a cultural thing, it actually changes the way people – especially men – see and relate to her.”
I have NEVER before heard that SIKHISM says that one purpose of the chunni is to send a message that a women is “not sexually available”….this sounds more like a hijab’s purpose…I have never considered the turban/chunni on a women to mean anything to do with “modesty” or sexuality, speaking strictly from a Sikh religion perspective (culturally it may have such a meaning).