Hi
Just wondering what the purpose of the half shaved head and long pony-tail was for…?
Uh…monks shave their head.
The hair cut in question, I believe, was made popular by the first Manchu emperor, Shunzhi, in 1645, as a sign of submission to Manchu rule.
Somebody told me once (I forget where - maybe here) that the ponytail was meant to resemble a horse’s rear end and thus emphasize that the common people who were legally required to wear it were nothing more than beasts of burden.
queues and cue balls
The queue was a symbol of subservience to the Manchus, who were equestrians, thus the horse’s tail analogy.
As for shaving the head, in Buddhism, it is an exercise in non-attachment. Nuns shave their heads too.
so you could spin on your head easier. I’m quickly learning spinning on your head with a full head of hair suxx0rz. The ponytail, like the tassles on a stripper, are just for show.
sheeze, two comparisons too strippers in one month, I’m on a roll!