burning bushes and other brush removal

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Posted by Catherine Cartwright Jones on May 15, 2000 at 09:27:13:

In Reply to: Re: Nostalgia and catharsis posted by Zahira on May 14, 2000 at 23:14:42:

Thanks!
An interesting note: women's pubic depilitation (along with
circumcision) really took hold in fashion and the popular
imagination during the classical Greek period (500 BCE or so) . One
factor was the Greek philosophy of Masculine vs Feminine in the
cosmos, and adherence to gender identity. Men were encouraged to be
as furry, virile, aggressive and rugged as possible, women were
encouraged to be furless, pregnant, submissive, and if possible, a
little dumb. That was part of what made the universe make sense to
them .... was to have identifiable polar opposites. However, in
reality, people come in all sorts of bodies and behaviours that are in
between the ideal opposites.

Another factor in removal of fur and bushes (bush removal seems to be
crucial in many other Islamic cultures) was that the pre-Islamic (and
pre-Greek) deities of Tanith, Anath, and Asherah, were always depicted
as having a particularly prominent bush .... to the extent that many
of the amulets were simply a bush triangle. Rejection of those
early deities seem to also entail bush rejection.

I know that my older traditional Palestinian female friends do
complete bush removal for the eid at the end of Ramadan, and then they
henna the area.

From what I understand, fur removal was absolutely a gender issue,
cleanliness being sort of laid over the top ..... because the only
accounts I've ever read or heard of men being sheared is a couple from
Egypt and North Africa on the night before their weddings. And then,
the men had their body hair remove by shaving (classified as "hot"
technique) as opposed to sugaring or lye (classified as "cold"
technique). One male friend from a village in Egypt said that he was
completely defurred and full-body hennaed the night before his wedding
(which I believe would have been about 1940's). I haven't had any
chance to ask other Arab men about their fur, and I haven't seen
anything else written about it. If the ME men have comparable fur
removal, I don't know about it. (Anyone care to enlighten me?) In
India, though, from the 3rd century BCE, men were supposed to shave
bush at least 3 times a week. Now there, since bush removal seems to
be about equal between the sexes (at least historically, I don't know
about present) that would seem to be a hygiene or aesthetic issue
rather than a gender issue.

Follow Ups:

Re: burning bushes and other brush removal Kenzi 17:47:48 5/15/00 (6)
- wrong url in last post-try this Larry 11:08:08 7/19/00 (0)
- Re: burning bushes and other brush removal Larry 11:06:10 7/19/00 (0)
- defoliating the landscape Catherine Cartwright Jones 19:25:25 5/15/00 (3)
  - Re: defoliating the landscape kenzi 19:38:46 5/15/00 (2)
    - Re: defoliating the landscape Catherine Cartwright Jones 21:58:07 5/15/00 (1)
      - Re: defoliating the landscape Natasha Papousek 11:07:42 5/16/00 (0)
Re: brush removal Anna Beltestad 13:07:35 5/15/00 (0)

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Comments:
: Thanks! : An interesting note: women's pubic depilitation (along with : circumcision) really took hold in fashion and the popular : imagination during the classical Greek period (500 BCE or so) . One : factor was the Greek philosophy of Masculine vs Feminine in the : cosmos, and adherence to gender identity. Men were encouraged to be : as furry, virile, aggressive and rugged as possible, women were : encouraged to be furless, pregnant, submissive, and if possible, a : little dumb. That was part of what made the universe make sense to : them .... was to have identifiable polar opposites. However, in : reality, people come in all sorts of bodies and behaviours that are in : between the ideal opposites. : Another factor in removal of fur and bushes (bush removal seems to be : crucial in many other Islamic cultures) was that the pre-Islamic (and : pre-Greek) deities of Tanith, Anath, and Asherah, were always depicted : as having a particularly prominent bush .... to the extent that many : of the amulets were simply a bush triangle. Rejection of those : early deities seem to also entail bush rejection. : I know that my older traditional Palestinian female friends do : complete bush removal for the eid at the end of Ramadan, and then they : henna the area. : From what I understand, fur removal was absolutely a gender issue, : cleanliness being sort of laid over the top ..... because the only : accounts I've ever read or heard of men being sheared is a couple from : Egypt and North Africa on the night before their weddings. And then, : the men had their body hair remove by shaving (classified as "hot" : technique) as opposed to sugaring or lye (classified as "cold" : technique). One male friend from a village in Egypt said that he was : completely defurred and full-body hennaed the night before his wedding : (which I believe would have been about 1940's). I haven't had any : chance to ask other Arab men about their fur, and I haven't seen : anything else written about it. If the ME men have comparable fur : removal, I don't know about it. (Anyone care to enlighten me?) In : India, though, from the 3rd century BCE, men were supposed to shave : bush at least 3 times a week. Now there, since bush removal seems to : be about equal between the sexes (at least historically, I don't know : about present) that would seem to be a hygiene or aesthetic issue : rather than a gender issue.

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